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Taken (Blu-ray)
[Blu-ray]
Blu-ray B - United Kingdom - Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment Review written by and copyright: Anthony Arrigo and Samuel Scott (10th October 2013). |
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The Film
 I’ve said it many times before, but I think it bears repeating that I’m a total sucker for a good revenge flick. I emphasize good because for every "Man on Fire" (2004), there’s a watered-down thumb-twiddler like "The Brave One" (2007). Revenge films have to walk a fine line between being ballsy and brutal, and having enough mass appeal to even be made in the first place. Since the revenge subgenre is so tried and true, it takes something special to stand out above the pack. (The apex of the genre, for those curious, will always be 1974’s "Death Wish") "Taken" had the same generic premise as most others: guy’s mother/wife/daughter is kidnapped, guy goes on hunt to find loved one and save them. It’s not rocket science. I wasn’t particularly impressed with the film’s trailer, but the strong word of mouth it’s been receiving placed it at the top of my current must-see list. I should have known better than to doubt a revenge flick: a) starring an actor I like seeing kick ass (Liam Neeson), b) written by Luc Besson; and c) that comes in around a tight 90 minutes. "Taken" doesn’t reinvent the cinematic wheel of vengeance, but it does beat it to a fine pulp. Liam Neeson is Bryan Mills, a retired Black Ops soldier who’s trying to live the simple life and rekindle a relationship with his daughter, Kim (Maggie Grace). That, however, isn’t easy due to her mother’s (Famke Janssen) tenuous relationship with Bryan, not to mention her multi-millionaire stepfather (fantastic character actor Xander Berkeley) upstages him in every way. Kim decides to go with a friend to Europe to follow around U2, though she tells Bryan otherwise, and almost as soon as they arrive they are kidnapped by Albanian sex traffickers. So, naturally, Bryan hops on to the next flight to Paris to find the men responsible for kidnapping his daughter. I’m glad someone finally decided to make a movie where Liam Neeson kicks major ass, because the guy is damn good at it. Neeson has always been a solid, dependable actor. You never hear “Liam Neeson sucks in this movie”. He has previously kicked ass before, in the unfairly maligned "Darkman" (1990), but not like this. Here, Liam plays a guy with nothing else in life other than his daughter and a particular set of skills that give bad guys a major headache. What I enjoyed so much about his performance is that you never doubt for a minute that he won’t kick someone’s ass. There’s an intensely subtle moment where, right before unleashing a barrage of fury, Bryan quickly surveys a room full of men to determine how easily he can take them. It’s awesome because you know exactly what he’s thinking, and you know he can pull it off. I was reminded of Charles Bronson’s turn as a bare knuckle street brawler in 1975’s "Hard Times"; there’s never a moment in that film that you don’t think Bronson will steamroll everyone in his path. Bryan is very much a character cut from the same cloth. A film this solid and tight is a difficult task for a second-time director to correctly pull off without subjecting the audience to lots of needless exposition, and Pierre Morel isn’t to thank for cutting out the fat. That distinction would go to one of the film’s writers, French director Luc Besson. Besson is a fantastic filmmaker and he’s responsible for some awesome films, such as "Leon: The Professional" (1994) and "The Fifth Element" (1997). Working alongside Robert Mark Kamen, who has written some great films (such as "The Karate Kid" (1984) and "Gladiator" (1992) as well as continuous collaborations with Besson) and some total crap ("The Next Karate Kid" (1994) ?!?), Besson has crafted a simple, tight, effective thriller that wastes no time on bullshit and devotes almost the entire film to watching Bryan beat some ass. This is exactly the kind of kick-in-the-ass film that I love, and apparently it’s struck a chord with audiences, too, since the film had raked it in at the box office. "Taken" is a quick, hard-hitting film that doesn’t waste a lot of time. If you’re looking for some great entertainment, especially if you like revenge films, then you really can’t go wrong. There’s nothing particularly amazing that makes this film stand out above any other in the genre, but sometimes a film that dispenses with the crap and makes good on the promise of unholy vengeance is just what you want to see.
Video
Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment release Taken in the United Kingdom in the original aspect ratio of 2.35:1. The transfer is 1080p and uses an AVC MPEG-4 codec. It should be noted, that unlike their American release, this contains the Extended Harder Cut only, and not the Theatrical version. The transfer here is not reference quality, but is certainly above average. The main issue for me came during any scene that happened outside in daylight, especially in France, due to a higher amount of edge enhancement than expected. Contrast levels were sometimes turned a little too high for my preference, but colours were generally handled well, even if the blacks occasionally appeared slightly murky. Detail was great throughout, most noticeably during facial close-ups and in the action sequences. Every misplaced hair, and every scratch to a vehicle was visible. There was no obvious damage to the source material. The disc is region B and C encoded, and the feature runs 93:25.
Audio
This release features several audio options: - English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz/24-bit) - English Audio Descriptive Dolby Digital 5.1 - German DTS 5.1 - Italian DTS 5.1 - Russian DTS 5.1 - Spanish DTS 5.1 For my viewing, I opted for the original English track in DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 - and what an engrossing track it was. Whilst the score didn't wow me, the effects that were used, and how they were used did. You feel every punch, fear every car that comes whizzing past you during the Audi chase, and become lost in the surrounding chatter and environments. The track may not be the most subtle produced, but it knows when to turn it up a notch during the many action-packed scenes. Volume levels were consistent, dialogue was always clear, and there were no obvious signs of damage. Optional subtitles are included in English HoH, German, Italian, Russian and Spanish.
Extras
"Real Time Mission Intelligence" picture-in-picture feature is a fun additional viewing experience that gives you stats on deaths and injuries, lets you see how long Neeson has left to find his daughter, random bits of trivia, and more. One of the better PiP viewings I've encountered. The "Making-Of" featurette (18:22) is a typical fluff piece which outlines the basic plot and is full of footage from the movie interspersed with behind the scenes footage and interviews with cast and crew. It should be noted that you must turn on English subtitles manually for Pierre Morel's French interjections. Nick Leeson and Maggie Grace are the two main interviewees here and talk about their characters, the story, and even the stuntmen. There are also some interesting soundbites in regards to the car chase, and rather amusingly, we see the stunt driver have a minor accident off-screen. "Avant Premiere" featurette (4:47) is essentially footage taken from the premiere at a French UGC cinema (presumably in Paris). It shows cast and crew in photo opportunities, but also includes interviews with several of them also, including Luc Besson who is not in the making of featurette. English dialogue has burnt-in French subtitles, and you must manually select English subtitles for the French dialogue yourself. Next up are six "Inside Action: Side By Side Comparisons" featurettes: - “Peter’s Death” (0:49) - “Bryan Escapes Construction Site” (3:06) - “Good Luck” (0:51) - “The Interrogation” (2:07) - “Bryan At Saint Clair’s” (1:39) - “Boat Fight” (2:30) These are essentially multi-angled experiences that showcase the editing, training of the actors, and the effects that were involved. They are all interesting to watch, but it would've been highly desirable if they had included either an introduction, or a commentary of some sort. There are also some weblinks.
Overall
Film reviewed by Anthony Arrigo. A/V and extra features reviewed by Samuel Scott.
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