RBR: Taken 2

The first Taken film was pretty stupid and forced audiences to severly suspend belief when it came to its story. But what ultimately made that film a winner was the testosterone-fueled emergence of Liam Neeson as an action star. There was a certain joy watching him cut down foreign bad guys with reckless abandon. If this sequel had managed to give us another dose of that, this would have been fine. Instead we get an even dumber film that also lacks the satisfying action sequences needed to offset its stupidity. This time around Neeson and his ex-wife (Famke Janssen) are taken by the living family members of the people he killed in the first film. Of course, daughter Kim (Maggie Grace) is along for the ride as well. Kim is the source of a lot of the film's problems. First there's the disorienting fact that this character is supposed to be a teenager despite the fact that the actress playing her is 30. The film doesn't help this problem by shoehorning a ridiculous subplot involving Kim learning how to drive, which of course will come into play as the film progresses. Not only does Kim need to drive, but she also needs to display some of Neeson's "particular set of skills" for him while he's abducted. This includes recklessly throwing grenades on the rooftops of Turkey so that she can find him. Again, all of this would be forgiven if the action was satisfying. However, director Oliver Megaton, taking over for Luc Besson, once again displays his inability to film a fight scene that doesn't include at least 50 edits. In the first film, Neeson was filmed in a way to make it look like he was a believable bad ass. The use of quick shots in this one makes it seem like they are trying to mask the abilities of a senior citizen. Taken 2 is a complete downgrade over the original film and just makes your head hurt as you watch it. This one gets an easy thumbs down from me. Rating: * 1/2