Taken

CHICAGO – For audiences seeking a casually entertaining thriller that doesn’t require a great deal of thought, “Unknown” amounts to an enjoyable couple of hours. Skeptics are advised to steer clear. Though the mind-scrambling plot includes initial shades of “Twilight Zone” intrigue, it’s really just an excuse for Liam Neeson to kick even more butt than he did in 2008’s surprise box office hit, “Taken.”

CHICAGO – John Travolta always seems to be in a perpetual state of “coming back.” His various attempts at reinventing his screen persona seem to be driven less by artistic integrity than commercial desperation. The more macho and foul-mouthed he tries to be, the less convincing he is.

CHICAGO – Bringing the same screen presence and gravity that he has to more serious roles like those in “Schindler’s List” and “Kinsey,” Liam Neeson turns the relatively generic “Taken” into an above-average action movie that should prove a surprising alternative for movie goers looking for a break from Super Bowl coverage this weekend.

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In Taken, Liam Neeson stars as Bryan Mills, an ex-government operative who has less than four days to find his kidnapped daughter - who has been taken on her first day of vacation in Paris.

CHICAGO – This 8-image slideshow contains a selection of official press images from Twentieth Century Fox’s “Taken,” which opens stateside on Friday, January 30th, 2009.