Last Friday afternoon, I had the chance to see Liam Neeson's new film "Taken." My sister Saundra had raved that it was one of the best action films. So a couple of friends and I headed to Berkeley to catch an early matinee. To my surprise, we were able to find a park and get to the show on time. If you are familiar with downtown Berkeley you could spend your entire day riding around looking for a park. Nevertheless, the parking fairy was good to us, so we did not have to rush.
My sister was right the new movie Taken was a great film. Honestly, I am not a die hard Liam Neeson fan nor do I recall watching any of his past movies, but I was impressed with this one. Liam plays a retired ex-military, former US Intelligence guy. He is a divorced father that is trying to reconnect with his teenage daughter. Neeson's ex-wife is an estranged character that goes to all lengths to prevent him from connecting with his daughter.
The plot moves slowly in the beginning but starts to pick up after Liam agrees to let his seventeen year old daughter travel with a friend to Paris. This was unbelievable to me because no one in their right mind would allow their teenage daughter to travel without an adult chaperone in today's society. Well, after the girls arrive in Paris, they are targeted by a wealthy market of thieves that kidnap young girls and sell them into slavery. Wow! This was a very good plot. Liam Neeson gets to show off some of his military skills as he is trying to find his missing daughter.
Most importantly, I think it's the theme of the movie that intrigued me. Trafficking young girls is not something new. It was the wealthy investors that shocked me. They were common people that you would least expect to be involved in this sort of trade.
Since I'm the movie reviews for families expert, I would definitely recommend this movie for adults and teenagers. However, I would strongly recommend parental guidance for children twelve and under. Some of the scenes are too graphic for young eyes.
