Liam Neeson

Liam Neeson Elevates Above-Average Action Movie ‘Taken’

BrianTT — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 06:20:54 -0700

Rating: 4.0/5.0

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.

The great Neeson plays Bryan Mills, a retired “preventer,” essentially Jack Bauer ten or fifteen years down the road. He’s put his violent days behind him but not forgotten the skills that made him one of the most efficient experts in his very specialized field. In the opening act of “Taken,” Mills is hanging out with friends and taking odd jobs like providing back-stage security for the latest pop starlet.

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.
Photo credit: Stephanie Branchu/Fox

Bryan has grown a bit distant from his daughter Kim (Maggie Grace) and his ex-wife Lenore (Famke Janssen), but he’s working on getting back into the life of his only child. Kim decides to travel to Europe to follow U2 with her best friend Amanda (Katie Cassidy) and Bryan reluctantly allows her to go.

Before they’re even out of the airport, Kim and Amanda are spotted by accomplices of some of the most evil people in the world, spotters for an Albanian sex ring. Kim and her friend are kidnapped, but not before Kim gets her father on the phone. He hears just enough detail that he knows he can travel to Europe and save his daughter’s life. And kill anyone who gets in his way.

Pierre Morel, the director of the very-fun “District B13,” knows that “Taken” will only work if the audience doesn’t have a chance to ask questions or allow suspension of disbelief to sneak in. Consequently, his film is one of the tautest, most expertly paced action films you’ll see all year. At around 90 minutes, “Taken” features not one wasted scene.

Only moments away from being taken by a vicious band of kidnappers, Kim (Maggie Grace) makes an urgent phone call to her father.
Photo credit: Stephanie Branchu/Fox

Some of the dialogue in “Taken” is a little over-the-top, but, honestly, there’s not much of it. The second half of the film is about a driven man looking for his daughter. There’s not a lot of room for dialogue. It’s a testament to the writers - Luc Besson & Robert Mark Kamen - that they don’t weigh the film down with cheesy lines or overdone monologues. There’s no room for monologues when you’re trying to save your daughter’s life.

The script is better than average and the director perfectly understands how to pace an action film like this one, but “Taken” would be nothing without Neeson. No offense to fans of Jason Statham, but movies like “Taken” don’t often see actors of this caliber in their lead roles and it make a huge difference. He is completely believable, adding an emotional gravity to his character’s journey without saying a word.

And he’s surprisingly powerful from a physical standpoint. It’s shocking to think about after the fact, but I never once doubted that the 56 year-old Neeson could totally kick the ass of everyone on-screen. You won’t often see action stars of his age that are this convincing. It will be one of the more underrated performances of the year.

In fact, if there’s a complaint about “Taken,” and this is rare for this typically bloated genre, it’s that the film is too short. The ending comes abruptly and I wish the middle act allowed for a bit more character development. There’s a fine line between taut and choppy and sometimes “Taken” could have slowed down a bit and made for an ultimately stronger film.

Having said that, I don’t think there will be a more surprisingly effective action film for a few months. “Taken” was released in Europe months ago and seemed to be unceremoniously dumped on Super Bowl weekend, a bad choice of release date considering how many action fans are probably going to be watching the big game. All signs pointed to another “January dump,” a movie that the studio didn’t know how to handle and were just trying to get off their shelf. All signs were wrong.

‘Taken’ stars Liam Neeson, Maggie Grace, Famke Janssen, Xander Berkeley, Katie Cassidy, and Jon Gries. It was written by Luc Besson & Robert Mark Kamen and directed by Pierre Morel. It opens on January 30th, 2009, and is rated PG-13.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

Packed With Picturesque Majesty, ‘The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian’ Fights Nobly For ‘PG’ Rating

HollywoodChicago.com — Fri, 16 May 2008 12:32:38 -0600

CHICAGO – For the life of me, I couldn’t exorcise it from my head. Amid all the splendor of such a picturesque film, this one question was like a gnat I couldn’t swat: “Is this really rated ‘PG’?” Indeed, “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian” is rated “PG”. But that didn’t come without great scrutiny and much editing.

Liam Neeson (the voice of the lion Aslan) along with Georgie Henley (right) in “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian”.
Photo credit: IMDb

For starters, Walt Disney Pictures contractually required the filmmakers for the epic film to achieve a “PG” rating. The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) granted it following a wide array of amendments.

For example, director Andrew Adamson (who also directed “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” in 2005, “Shrek 2” in 2004 and “Shrek” in 2001 and wrote “Shrek the Third” in 2007) changed a scene with a fallen helmet to make certain it didn’t contain a decapitated head, according to the Los Angeles Times on May 4, 2008.

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After showing the film to young audiences and gauging their reactions, Adamson in fact made copious edits. Adamson said in a May 15, 2008 interview published on NarniaWeb.com:

“When you sit down and you’re watching it and you see the kids’ faces while making the film, you’re just making an attempt. You’re making it exciting. You’re doing all these things because you’re essentially making the film for yourself. When you start showing it to an audience, that then influences how you feel about the film.”

While the “PG” rating for the recently released “Speed Racer” felt more like an opportune financial decision, the rating for “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian” instead felt an appropriate artistic decision. Props go to Disney and Adamson for pushing its importance.

Ben Barnes as Prince Caspian in “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian”.
Photo credit: IMDb

Despite “Troy”-like fight scenes, this was nothing like the ingenious bloodshed in “300” or the blood-spattering good time in “Gladiator”. In fact, aside from a dribble on a face or two here and there, there was no blood at all. As well, much of the brutality was implied.

Instead of swinging a sword and showing the final result, the film merely illuminated the intent without the follow through.

The decision didn’t detract from the purpose in the slightest, and along with making it more appropriate for younger audiences, it issued a renewed faith that Hollywood can spit out a money-generating product without having to spew gallons of blood and blow stuff up.

The MPAA says a “PG” film “should be investigated by parents before they let their younger children attend. The rating indicates … that parents may consider some material unsuitable for their children and parents should make that decision. There may be some profanity and some depictions of violence or brief nudity.”

By the way, “Speed Racer” thus far has proven to be a whopping financial failure. On a production budget of $120 million, the film as of May 16, 2008 has only grossed about $40 million in box-office receipts in its first six days of release, according to Box Office Mojo. “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian” should fare better.

The casting decisions were also a critical element here and proved refreshingly admirable. The lead actors – Ben Barnes as Prince Caspian and the four children who played the young kings and queens (Georgie Henley, Skandar Keynes, William Moseley and Anna Popplewell) – were relative unknowns.

RELATED IMAGE GALLERY
View our full “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian” image gallery.

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More film reviews from critic Adam Fendelman.

You may vaguely remember Barnes, though, as the young Dunstan Thorn in Matthew Vaughn’s “Stardust” from 2007. While the foursome were plucked back into “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian” from “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” in 2005, they have long and storied careers ahead.

The brilliantly diminutive Peter Dinklage (“The Station Agent”) is bold in his Narnian role as a dwarf. Perhaps even more pleasantly refreshing is the film’s decision to use larger-name talent in either cameo or voice roles.

Eddie Izzard voices the mouse Reepicheep), Liam Neeson voices the towering lion Aslan, and though not credited in IMDb, Tilda Swinton indeed has a cameo as The White Witch.

“The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian” opened everywhere on May 16, 2008.

By ADAM FENDELMAN
Editor-in-Chief
HollywoodChicago.com
adam@hollywoodchicago.com