Actuakers One of my all time favorites.

Phonearl Good start, but then it gets ruined

Suman Roberson It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

Dana An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

TheLittleSongbird Having moderately enjoyed, if finding some faults, the first 'Taken', part of me was hoping for a sequel along similar lines while still having some degree of freshness. Despite that it was reasonably poorly received and, although with notable exceptions, sequels tend to be inferior.Count me in however as another person who was underwhelmed by 'Taken 2'. Not irredeemably awful and there are worse sequels about (naming them would take up a whole review's worth), but 'Taken 2' was a real waste of reasonable potential, considering that it has the always watchable and often very good to great Liam Neeson as the main star. Even those who don't expect much in the first place will find themselves having big problems with the film. Before anybody says anything, am not the sort of person who is always with the general consensus, have been known a fair few times to go against the tide and part of me wanted to do so watching this but the film was just too problematic to enjoy it more and take it for what it was.'Taken 2' is not without good points. Neeson is a strong presence throughout, thoroughly badass yet with some heart. It's photographed slickly and stylishly, some of the imagery thrills and chills. Music is a decent fit while not being intrusive. Some of the action is exciting and thrillingly choreographed, like with the rooftops, and again the violence is uncompromising without being too gratuitously so.However, there are a lot of problems here. Only Neeson gives a halfway decent performance. Famke Janssen has next to nothing to do and doesn't look interested, while Maggie Grace's character was just too annoying and shallow for me to endear to Grace herself or resonate with the father-daughter relationship. Of which there is more of, but to me there was not enough heart or development to it. The rest struggle in very underwritten and stereotypical roles. 'Taken 2' fails to bring the best out of Turkey or make it the star or its own character, in fact it looks cheap and everything is represented in a fashion rife with lazy stereotypes.Dialogue continues to lack clarity and be too over-the-top and the direction this time round lacks rawness and the same amount of momentum, pretty go-through-the-motions. It's the story that is the biggest failure. It is too much of a rehash of the first, except with a more fatigued pace, constant over-familiarity and even more ridiculous far-fetchedness and with wider lapses in logic and sense. Furthermore there is nowhere near the same amount of suspense or excitement. The climax is badly rushed and anti-climactic.Overall, okay but rather tired. 4/10 Bethany Cox

sol- Taken hostage in Istanbul by the Albanians whose relatives he mercilessly murdered in 'Taken', ex-CIA agent Bryan Mills has to rely on his daughter to rescue him in this action-packed sequel to the 2008 hit film. 'Taken 2' pushes the boundaries of credibility at many points (Neeson triangulating various locations) and it is not quite as well-paced as the first entry with half an hour of exposition before the action truly ignites, however, it is not a worthless sequel by any stretch of the imagination. The writers build up rapport between Liam Neeson and Maggie Grace as estranged father and daughter very well, and there is something quite amusing in how she does eventually get a long awaited real driving lesson from him late in the piece. The film's attempt to reverse the formula of the first film works surprisingly well too as she follows instructions from Neeson via cellular phone of how to rescue him. 'Taken 2' also acknowledges Neeson's callousness for the first time, and how with the Albanians he "killed them all like they were so many nothings" - a refreshing moral stance almost completely absence from the original film. The script is far from perfect though with the sudden reconciliation between Famke Janssen and Neeson seeming like a mere plot device, not to mention many improbabilities, but it is a surprisingly gripping watch and Neeson is as sympathetic as ever as a man out to protect his family whatever the cost. 'Taken 2' is may not necessarily be a superior motion picture to Part One, but it is a lot more interesting than one might expect.

Terryfan Taken the first movie is one of my favorite films it really was original and shows that anything can happen with the right talent of both cast and crewTaken 2 however is pretty much a example of that a movie like Taken don't need a sequel. The film is more or less the same plot as the first movie only this time the roles are reverts where Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson) and Lenore (Famke Janssen) were taken hostage leaving their daughter Kim (Maggie Grace) to fend for herself. The writers did improve on the character for Kim. There are some worth while moments the action is still good. It just the plot is being like a copy cat to the first film. There are some good moments in the film and some clever intent moments that make you go wow it's just the film don't live up to the standards that the first film had set and it goes to show that Taken was better off without the sequel. It's just the film is more or less a disappointment while yes there are some moments that make it watchable but the film just will make you wish you were watching Taken 1 insteadI give Taken 2 an 6 out of 10

Zbigniew_Krycsiwiki Insultingly awful sequel, whose plot is very similar to the vastly superior original, but riddled with holes in the plot, numerous continuity, and simple logic, errors. Characters hurl grenades through the air with reckless abandon just to determine another's location(!) , Neeson guides his daughter by using things like a red flag, or a flower vendor as directions. If they were in Mayberry that might work, but not in a city of 14 million people. Apparently it is possible to crash one's car through the front gates of the American Embassy (which is in the Turkish capitol Ankara, not Istanbul) and not be shot at, and furthermore, be allowed to walk away moments later!The well choreographed and filmed action scenes from the original are reduced to shakycam and frenetic editing trying to distract from the crummy action-- bloody hell, what action? It's just Neeson shooting everyone in sight after a very slow start. I could barely remember much about this one after it was over. What a disappointment.