Taken 2 (**)

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If you’re looking for the same thrills that ‘Taken’ offered you, then look elsewhere. ‘Taken 2′ is the diet cola of sequels…only 1 calorie of fun as compared to the original, not nearly enough. There’s definitely a bit of fun in seeing Liam Neeson again play a retired CIA agent with a “very special set of skills”, but the initial enjoyment factor from a few years ago is much lower key this time around. Everyone involved seems to be going through the motions, with the cast shortchanged by the director and screenplay especially. Director Olivier Megaton has a great name, but his direction leaves a lot to be desired. As for scribes Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen, it feels like they didn’t have their heart in this project. ‘Taken 2′ exists solely because the first one made a ton of money, and it shows in its lackluster execution. The film isn’t overtly bad, but it’s a bit stale already and mainly serves to remind how much better the last installment is while coasting on some of its leftover goodwill. Neeson makes things bearable, but this flick didn’t need to happen. There are worse movies out there, but most are much better than this one…

This time around, the story is one of revenge, but from an unlikely source. The sex traffickers who incurred the wrath of retired special agent Brian Mills (Neeson) in the first film when they kidnapped his daughter Kim (Maggie Grace) are being mourned by their relatives, who then plot vengeance against Mills. They quickly find out that Mills is doing a quick for-hire protection job in Istanbul and set out to grab him. As an added bonus for these villains, Mills has invited Kim and his ex-wife Lenore (Famke Janssen) along for the trip, so it’s truly a family affair. After Mills and Lenore set off for lunch without Kim, the kidnappers strike. Not wanting to see harm come to Lenore, Mills surrenders, but not before phoning Kim and making sure she can escape from a second team at the hotel and prepare to assist him in finding and killing the men who have Lenore. It’s nothing too far removed from the first movie, though everyone seems to have inexplicably forgotten those events, save for the evil relatives of course. If you’re coming to see Liam Neeson as Brian Mills kill a lot of people, you’ll get that, but the film will make you wait before it happens. Anyone besides those people really need not apply here.

Liam Neeson already seems a bit bored playing Brian Mills, exuding almost none of the appeal that he had in the last movie. He’s still pretty badass and suitably intense, but it’s just a job now for Neeson. He’s not bad, but he doesn’t do anything you haven’t already seen him do before, and better. Both Maggie Grace and Famke Janssen get more to do this time around, but in very different ways. With a more physical side to Kim being shown, Grace gets to pretend to be Neeson a bit during the first half of the flick. You’ll never mistake the two, but she doesn’t embarrass herself or anything. Janssen was barely in the first movie, so here she’s solidly a supporting player, more or less playing the hostage that her daughter was in the prior flick. She’s fine but forgettable. The rest of the cast includes Rade Serbedzija, Luke Grimes, D.B. Sweeney, Jon Gries, and Leland Orser, but let’s face it…we’re all here to see Neeson.

Olivier Megaton’s direction is a real issue here. He paces the film terribly, oftentimes puts the camera in the worst possible spot, and focuses his shots in very bad places on a consistent basis. He’s been mediocre at best in the past, but he’s at his worst here and is a clear step down from filmmaker Pierre Morel, who helmed ‘Taken’ and isn’t a master of the craft either. Megaton isn’t helped by the soulless script from Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen though, that’s for sure. Besson and Kamen gave much more effort the last time around. They have their characters make very stupid choices and throw logic out the window. In fact, based on what they wrote the last time, Mills would never have allowed any of the plot to actually occur. It’s a big flaw and more or less torpedoes the movie for me.

‘Taken 2′ knows what it is, but I think it has an inflated opinion of itself. The film coasts by as if it were a true “event movie” that can use the appeal of revisiting a cast to make up for other shortcomings. It’s fun to watch Liam Neeson go on a love filled killing spree, but without anything else it wears thin rather quickly. I didn’t hate ‘Taken 2′, but it did disappoint me quite a bit. The first time around I didn’t like the original ‘Taken’, but a second viewing made me a fan. Here, I doubt I’ll ever bother with a subsequent viewing. It’s just not worth my time…

-Thoughts? Discuss in the comments!

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