Bryan Mills
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Jan 9, 2015 · After racking up a daunting body count in both France ("Taken") and Turkey ("Taken 2"), the destructive Mills family (who really should consider going into the witness protection program, not only for their own safety, but for ours) turn their sights on the sunny freeways of their home town, Los Angeles, in "Taken 3".
Ex-covert operative Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson) and his ex-wife, Lenore (Famke Janssen), are enjoying a reconciliation when Lenore is brutally murdered. Bryan is framed for the crime and flees, with...
- (123)
- Olivier Megaton
- PG-13
- Liam Neeson
Jan 1, 2015 · Film Review: ‘Taken 3’. The third and presumably final installment of the Liam Neeson action franchise is a mind-numbing, crash-bang misfire. By Maggie Lee.
The good news is “Taken 3” is better than the last film, but not by a wide margin. Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/5 | Aug 25, 2022. Brian Eggert Deep Focus Review. The movie spends more...
- Run of the Mills
- Verdict
By Matt Patches
Updated: Aug 16, 2021 11:59 pm
Posted: Jan 9, 2015 8:00 am
Streaking across the screen like a hyperactive PowerPoint slideshow, Taken 3 falls somewhere between the franchise's inspired first installment and its strenuous sequel. A limp script and director Olivier Megaton's blistering style can't drown Liam Neeson's growl, as charismatic and old school tough as ever. Though nearly suffocated in close-ups, the actor's “special skills” shine. He huffs, he puffs, he blows the house (and the goons inside) down. Physical blows are invisible, insinuated — Neeson won't be facing off against The Raid gang anytime soon — but death stares and one-liners pack their own punch in a sequel that gets the job done.
Wisely avoiding the “BLANK... has been taken” blueprints that burdened the second installment, franchise mastermind Luc Besson and series writer Robert Mark Kamen steal mercilessly from The Fugitive — which totally works. Framed for the murder of a loved one (all revealed in a spoilery trailer), Neeson's Bryan Mills goes on the run from police in order to prove his own innocence. Juggling his investigation with the continued safety of his forever-in-peril daughter Kim (Maggie Grace), Bryan races around Los Angeles, seizing clues by force and stumbling into answers. Taken 3 flirts with detective work, but realizes that arm-twisting can solve any mystery. Intrigue is low on the priority list.
Taken 3 is aware that Oscar-caliber performances aren't a prerequisite for its success. Nevertheless, the movie offers some nuanced character work that makes the run-and-gun more satisfying. Stuck in a crap marriage to wimpy Stuart St. John (Dougray Scott), Mills' ex Lenore (Famke Janssen) drifts back to her old hubby, though he's too much of a stand-up guy to be macking on another man's wife. Janssen sells the distraught, romantic confusion. Neeson's smiles could lull a grizzly bear to sleep. It's actual sweetness, paying off when Bryan's life implodes.
The original Taken was five-course, ass-kicking fine dining. Taken 2 was a Spam imitation. Taken 3 is the frozen Lean Cuisine of the series. Neeson's charisma, Whitaker's gravitas, and a few smart action choices supplying action junkies with enough vitamins to live another day. But if a Taken 4 ever becomes a thing, it'll be time to hire a new cook...
- Matt Patches
Jan 9, 2015 · Liam Neeson returns as ex-covert operative Bryan Mills, whose reconciliation with his ex-wife is tragically cut short when she is brutally murdered. Consumed with rage, and framed for the crime, he goes on the run to evade the relentless pursuit of the CIA, FBI and the police.
Dec 31, 2014 · ‘Taken 3’: Film Review. Liam Neeson's perennially pursued, particularly skilled operative tears down Los Angeles in the final installment of Luc Besson's avenger-on-the-run franchise. By...
