Taken 3 (2014) User Reviews (451)

"Don't Be Such A Pessimist" (Cool Dialog)

[A_Different_Drummer · 7/10 · 23 January 2015]

Let's review.

(Quoting from my IMDb reviews of the first two) Taken 1 was one of those unexpected surprises that keeps the wheels in Tinseltown turning. It turned Neeson, a very competent actor, into filmdom's oldest and newest action hero. A neat trick. It was actually a very well made product and even with all the attention, still under-rated. It was better than people thought.

OK, to be clear. Neeson was not getting any younger and when offered Taken 2, he took it. Sorry for the pun. Taken 2 was not so much a film as an IQ test. If you thought it was in the same class as Taken 1, you failed the test. Sorry. The truth hurts.

To atone for Taken 2, Neeson did the Tombstone flic. It was great and showed the world he was still an A-list actor. Apology accepted.

Hollywood never ever leaves money on the table. Which brings us to Taken 3. Not really a Taken movie, more of what you would expect if they wanted to do a TV series on the Neeson character and they started with a long pilot.

It is much better than Taken 2 but then again so is footage of your dog's birthday party.

It is not bad. Depends on your expectations.

High expectations, you will not be happy.

Bored and want to spend time with Liam?You could do worse.

Not a bad end to a fun trilogy

[Arcturus1980 · 7/10 · 11 January 2015]

Taken 3 is a step down from Taken 2, itself a lesser film than the original. But that is to be expected and forgiven. The title could be considered an unimaginative misnomer, but it makes marketing sense.

Aside from the part of Stuart (husband to Famke Janssen's Lenore), the casting is consistent. The addition of Forest Whitaker as a smart cop is for me something of a saving grace since Taken 3 offers up absurdities without question. On reflection, however, the plot has enough coherence to do the trilogy justice. Moreover, it is a joy to see Liam Neeson in this role again.

The director Olivier Megaton has an irksome penchant for frenetic, up-close, disorienting action sequences whereby shots are rarely longer than two seconds. He was a little better in this regard for Taken 2, which had the benefit of superior choreography.

Another personal point of contention is the casting of Sam Spruell as the top Russian villain. He has not an imposing physical constitution and quite frankly brings to mind Jim Carrey, who sported the same haircut in the Dumb and Dumber movies. Not at all what I want in a villain.

I generally enjoy the films I see, and this one—notwithstanding the negatives—is no exception. However, I would not recommend it for people who are more stern in matters of taste.

Very thrilling and violent picture with a sensational Liam Neeson as relentless avenger father

[ma-cortes · 6/10 · 17 January 2019]

Spectacular and moving following starred by the retired CIA operative Mills (Liam Neeson) with plenty of action-packed , thrills , suspense , violence and high body-count . This is a nice sequel released six years after the first , here Liam Neeson returns as ex-covert operative Bryan Mills, whose long awaited reconciliation with his ex-wife Lenore (Famke Janssen married to financer Stuart St. John : Dougray Scott ) is tragically cut short when she is brutally murdered . Consumed with rage, and framed for the crime, he goes on the run to evade the relentless pursuit of the CIA, FBI and the police (law enforcement : Forest Whitaker , Don Harvey , Dylan Bruno) . For one last time, Mills must use his "particular set of skills," to track down the real killers, exact his unique brand of justice, and protect the only thing that matters to him now - his daughter. Meanwhile , his daughter Kim (Maggie Grace) is pregnant and really affected for the killing . Shortly after , Mills is rescuing his daughter from the vicious killers . Then , Bryan enlists his daughter to help him and attempts to clear his name and he swears revenge and retaliation against the murdererers . He confronts his nasty enemies in order to find it out and is forced to once again take up violent means to survive . Mills takes the law on his own hands and acting as a merciless revenger . As he faces off a feared villian called Oleg Malinkov (Sam Spruell) , an ex-soldier who was in the Russian army when they invaded Afghanistan . First, they took his daughter. Now, they're coming for him. It Ends Here. They want revenge, They chose the wrong guy. This time, they come for him.

Nail-biting and extremely violent film with a phenomenal Liam Neeson as an implacable avenger daddy .This stirring film contains intrigue , thrills, chills, frenetic action, shootouts , long run time car pursuits , car crashes , and violent fights . From start to finish the noisy action and fast movement are unstopped . Liam Neeson acting as hard-rock , two-fisted retired agent is top-notch , doing all his own fight sequences for the movie , he is the wronged father who must lay his life on the line to protect his intimate family against time and an army of ominous Russian mobsters . Being well accompanied by Maggie Grace as daughter and Famke Janssen in a brief acting as his ex-wife , repeating efficiently their previous roles . Secondary cast is frankly good, such as : Forest Whitaker , Dougray Scott , Sam Spruell , Don Harvey ,David Warshofsky , Jon Gries , and Leland Orser , among others . Nice cinematography by cameraman Eric Kress , using Steadicam and zooms with numerous locations from Los Angeles . The musician Nathaniel Mechaly creates a thrilling , moving soundtrack fitting to frantic action . Lavishly produced by the successful French producer and director Luc Besson from his production company Eurocorps . The trilogy is formed by ¨Taken 1¨ (2008) by Pierre Morel with Maggie Grace , Xander Berkeley , Holy Valance , Katie Cassidy ; in which a gang of human traffickers abduct Kim who barely has time to call her dad and give him information about an Albanese kidnapper and then Bryan seeks vendetta . ¨Taken 2¨ (2012) by Oliver Megathon with D.B. Sweeney ,Luke Grimes , Jon Gries , Rade Serbedzija , set in Istanbul in which Bryan and Lenore are abducted by the Albanian father of a kidnapper Mills killed while rescuing his daughter. And this final "Taken 3" movie in the trilogy, at least this is what is expected at the time of production and release . This trilogy was shot as an R-rated film, but edited down to a PG-13 for its theatrical reléase .

The flick was compellingly directed by Oliver Meghaton who had previously directed other nice action films, such as ¨Taken 2¨, ¨Transporter 3¨ with Jason Statham , ¨The red siren¨ with Asia Argento and ¨Colombiana¨ with Zoe Saldana , also produced by Luc Besson . Megaton was formerly a graffiti artist and took his name from his birthday : the 6th of August 1965 is the 20th anniversary of the dropping of the Hiroshima A-bomb . Rating : 6.5/10 . Better than average sequel , well worth seeing . The picture will appeal to explosive action fans and Liam Neeson fans .

Taken

[0U · 20 February 2020]

This is my biggest guilty pleasure of all time, I know this film is God awful, from the directing to the writing and the stereotypical villain but I honestly don't care it was just popcorn entertainment and seeing Liam Neeson as Bryan Mills is always good. The plot of this film is basically the plot of The Fugitive. This film is so bad it's good and that's why I give this film 6/10.

If you loved the first one, you may not think much of this one

[neil-476 · 7/10 · 9 January 2015]

Retired special ops chap Bryan Mills seems to attract the sort of trouble which his special set of skills is ideally placed to deal with. And so here we go again....

If you take this on its own merits, it is a tolerable action thriller, albeit peppered with annoyances – thick-headed police, action sequences filmed with extreme close-ups edited extremely badly, ex-wife's current husband recast from Xander Berkeley (first film) to Dougray Scott here (which is tantamount to painting "villain" on his forehead), and – like episode 2 – an absence of the grim mercilessness in Liam Neeson's Bryan Mills, which was the thing which made the original so riveting.

So if you loved the first one and were unimpressed by the second one, best not bother with this one.

Oh, and it all takes place in LA – not very European at all.

Enjoyable but not as good as Taken 1

[e1907 · 7/10 · 9 January 2015]

Not being a proper sequel (no one is actually being taken) is awkward. Imagine Eddie Murphy as a chef in Beverly Hills Cop 4...

The plot is good but quite expected. The fight scenes are standard, nothing original. I expected more fight scenes and gadget usage by Brian Mills. I didn't like the bits of humor in the film, for example a cop eavesdropping Kim in university and not appreciating the lecture. I liked Lenny - it's a shame she is off in case there will be Taken 4 (you never know...)

Actor I enjoyed the most in this film: Forest Whitaker. Actor I enjoyed the least in this film: Maggie Grace.

Summary: good action film, worth watching.

A better made film than its predecessor

[erroll1707 · 7/10 · 8 January 2015]

For the fans of Liam Neeson, a good treat to watch. For others just another predictable action flick. From the start we have actors putting on a show with guns and muscles, with beautiful cars and many amazing street scene's depicting LA, this is an amazing third for a franchisee. What i loved the most was the introduction, where perfect shot photograph's of the most loved city capturing the night lights were displayed. On the negative side, the cameras were shot at a very close angle, the plot had not enough depth and was very predictable just like its antecedent. Hope everyone enjoys this one for a first film of the year.

questionable plot, enjoyable action

[thefolenangel · 6/10 · 23 January 2015]

Bryan Mills, this guy just can't get a break. Ultimately we can say this guy is bad luck Brian.

I have a few questions for the plot, most important is, where did the boyfriend of the daughter go, for the whole movie?Other than that you can not say that the movie is bad, however is not a plot masterpiece.

This movie is kinda indifferent towards itself. Nelson has to use his "skills" one more time, we see action, explosions and naked ladies.

However the feeling that this movie is made for profit does not leave us, during the whole cinematic experience. The movie feels empty, both of fun and development.

The best thing about this is probably Nelson, who at this age still can look as bad ass as ever.

Final judgment: enjoyable, but don't have big expectations.

A shockingly disappointing finale, 'Taken 3' is a disgrace to its star Liam Neeson and an appalling display of ineptness by its director Olivier Megaton

[moviexclusive · 3/10 · 7 January 2015]

To set the record straight, no one gets taken in 'Taken 3', a condition that its principal star Liam Neeson laid down before he agreed to return for this third and presumably final instalment. That is perfectly fine with us; after all, how many times can ex- Special Forces operative Bryan Mills find himself having to deploy his very particular set of skills after a member of his family is taken away from him? Indeed, that is not the issue we had with this utterly disappointing third outing, which totally squanders what audience goodwill the first movie had accumulated and its immediate predecessor had not yet depleted.

Produced by French-based EuropaCorp, the Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen-scripted 'Taken' was one of the most notable action films in recent memory when it was released back in 2008. Key to its success was Neeson, whose viciously efficient qualities as the former CIA badass were excellent complement to the actor's natural gravitas and air of gentleman nobility. The inevitable sequel that followed four years later was a letdown to say the least; not only did it slavishly repeat the original's formula, it toned down the former's no-holds-barred brutality to make it more accessible to a younger audience, and in the process losing the former's gritty, visceral, and even transgressive edge.

Unfortunately, fans of the original hoping that the series would go out on a bang will be sorely disappointed to know that 'Taken 3' is cast in the same mould as the sequel. There are plenty of gunshots but no sight of blood. There is hand-to-hand combat that plays out more like a playground brawl between teenagers. Even a torture scene that sees Neeson waterboard fellow co-star Dougray Scott is extremely tame in comparison with a similar and brutally memorable one in the first movie, that if one recalls involved the use of electric clamps that Neeson stabbed into his nemesis' thighs. Not that we relish the portrayal of extreme violence, but 'Taken 3' seem to know not the difference between being restrained and being dull.

But the deadened violence isn't quite the movie's most critical flaw; that belongs unquestionably to its director Olivier Megaton. A Besson regular since 'Transporter 3', Megaton took over the reins from Pierre Morel on 'Taken 2' but has apparently learnt nothing from his previous directorial duties. If there was already a worrying ineptness to his ability to craft a proper action sequence in 'Taken 2', then this follow-up shows Megaton at his most incompetent.

Clearly influenced by Paul Greengrass' frenetic shooting of the 'Bourne' movies, Megaton insists on flailing hand-held camera-work, frantic over-editing and claustrophobic close-ups to ruin every single action sequence in the entire f**king movie (and yes, it is indeed that frustrating to watch). A freeway car chase is reduced to a flurry of close-ups and rapid edits that bear no continuity or coherence. A confrontation in a liquor store between Neeson and some of the Russian mobsters who took his ex-wife's life is shot in such close-ups it is impossible to make out who is doing what. And worst of all, there is no climax to speak of – not when a shootout between Neeson and another group of Russian mobsters protecting their boss Oleg Malankov (Sam Spruell) is so poorly staged it makes not a single iota of sense, or when a race between a Porsche driven by Neeson and a private plane ends in an collision that takes out the plane's front wheel but leaves no one hurt.

It is even more infuriating to think that Megaton manages to f**k up every single sequence when there aren't that many to begin with. Eschewing the simple set-up of the previous two films, Besson and Kamen have instead opted here for a more plot-driven narrative, setting Neeson up against Forest Whitaker's LAPD Detective Franck Dotzler even while the former hunts down his wife's killers. That certainly recalls the dynamic between Harrison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones in 'The Fugitive', but 'Taken 3' is nowhere as smart and Whitaker nowhere near as keen as Jones' ever was. Though Besson and Kamen's script opts for double-crosses, hidden agendas and whodunits to keep their audience's attention, it is quite clear right at the very start just who has been pulling the strings, a mystery that once solved makes the rest of the proceedings unnecessarily protracted.

Not that it actually matters – while Neeson went about methodically tracking down his kidnapped family in the first and second movies, he rarely exhibits the same kind of discipline clearing his name here. Too much time is spent on emotionally hollow character relationships in the first act, i.e. between Bryan and his young adult daughter Kim (Maggie Grace), or between Bryan and his ex-wife Lenore (Famke Janssen), or between Bryan and Lenore's current husband Stuart (Scott), while the second act is equally wasted on Bryan's strenuous efforts to contact Kim who is placed under the close watch of the LAPD. By the time Bryan actually gets down to investigating, almost everyone involved looks more keen on getting it over and done – none more so than Neeson, who looks tired and completely uninterested from scene to scene.

Perhaps Neeson is all too aware that the 'Taken' franchise has completely sputtered out; indeed, 'Taken 3' plays almost like a parody of the original movie, which was to action fans a sheer unbridled delight for its realistic stuntwork and hand-to-hand combat. Both these elements are sorely and sadly missing from a movie that can't even get its priorities right, no thanks to the utter shocking ineptitude of its director. Like we said, no one in the movie gets taken, but little did we know that the title was meant to be a joke on its audience, who are literally taken for a ride here. Spare yourself the agony, frustration and disappointment, and just NOT get on in the first place.

Bagels

[CowherPowerForever · 7/10 · 14 January 2015]

Nearly seven years after the first film became a surprise hit, we are onto the second Taken sequel. While the story lines might be getting thinner, the fun and excitement is still there, for the most part. The film is certainly not the best of the series, but in my opinion it is a step up from Taken 2. The Following is my review of Taken 3.

Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen are both back for this sequel. Both of these writers also wrote the first and second films of this series. While no one is actually Taken in this film, all the characters we are use to seeing are back. This time around Bryan Mills(Liam Neeson) is accused of murdering his ex-wife, and of course he will not stop until he finds out who set him up. The story is actually pretty good and with some fabulous acting the down time early in the film moves by nicely. The film also features some nice plot twists that add an element that usually is not in these Taken films. While I must admit the ideas are getting old, the execution here is overall very good. Besson and Kaem do another good job of writing a Taken film.

The film was directed by Olivier Megaton, who also directed Taken 2. His shooting style of somewhat shaky camera nature is off putting though. The bigger action scenes with the car chases just don't look that well in motion, and this time around it seems they used some extra CG to scale down the budget. This makes for less beautiful action sequences. The hand to hand combat action scenes though are shot amazingly and are a big highlight of the film. As I mentioned above the film is slow in spots, but that slowdown is at the beginning of the film as they are building up the story. With fantastic actors like Liam Neeson, Forest Whitaker, Jon Gries, David Warshofsky, Leland Orser, and many others, the acting aspects of the film really hold the film together. Overall, Megaton does a good job on this film, but the bigger action sequences just don't look as well as they have in the past.

The film was composed by Nathaniel Mechaly who has scored all of the Taken films. His work in this film is actually very good. A nice step up from the score in the previous Taken film. When the action hits so does this score. It really draws you into the film in ways films in this general generally don't. The depth on this score by Mechaly is great and really a fun score all around.

In closing, this Taken film was billed as the final film of the franchise, but I highly doubt this series will end now. As long as there is money to be made, and as long as Liam Neeson wants to keep making them, they will likely keep milking this series. The film is not bad, and while it is not the best of the series and the ideas are getting worse, this film in my opinion is better than Taken 2. Fans of the series, like myself, will ignore the critics trashing this film and go see it anyway. Frankly, this is the best idea. The major critics always love trashing films like this, so their opinions are useless. The film is a good fun adventure and is well worth the price of admission.

7.4/10

I got dizzy watching this movie

[mablekos · 3/10 · 12 March 2015]

One of the worst movie editing I've ever seen in my life for an action movie. That killed the movie for me. I think they should just withdraw Taken 2 and Taken 3 and admit that they should have stopped at the first one.

This movie was so boring, and when you expected to see some action scenes, you were getting yourself in the paranoid mind of a director who wanted to experiment on the poor audience. My eyes still hurt from the crappy editing of this movie.

Guys please stop here, enough, no more Taken sequels. With each one of them you're killing the hype that the first one created.

A Good Movie- Opposite as too what the People/Critics are Saying.

[rafay-01 · 8/10 · 9 January 2015]

At First When I saw the reviews on Rotten Tomatoes and a few on IMDb, critics and people were giving Taken 3 a negative review and boasting about how bad it is and that they're should be an end to the Taken Series. Being a Liam Neeson Fan I still decided to go see the movie. Let Me tell you they're are a few vague scenes but the movie with a good cast has turned out to be fine totally opposite as too what the critics are telling us. I cannot understand how it's directing is incoherent, as said by the people. Liam Neeson being an experienced actor knows what he's doing. But then everybody has his own opinion. So in opinion, go out there and watch Taken 3; trust me it's great.

Good Action

[stevendbeard · 7/10 · 9 January 2015]

I saw "Taken 3", starring Liam Neeson-A Million Ways to Die in the West, Battleship; Famke Janssen-Jean Grey in the X-Men movies, The Faculty; Maggie Grace-The Twilight movies, Knight and Day; Dougray Scott-Hit-man, Deep Impact and Forest Whitaker-The Last Stand, Panic Room.

This is the third and last-or so they claim- of the action/revenge series about an ex-CIA operative with a particular set of skills. This installment is directed by Olivier Megaton-his last name sounds like a transformer-who directed Taken 2, Columbiana and Transporter 3. It's written by Luc Besson-I love his work-who also wrote Lucy, Brick Mansions, the Nikita and Transporter series, both for the movies and TV. Liam plays the operative turned family man that just keeps having the worst luck. In the first movie, Maggie, his daughter, was taken. In the second movie, it was his wife, Famke. Thankfully, no one is actually taken in this one but someone is killed-and guess who gets framed for it? If you have seen the trailer, you probably have a good idea who it is. Anyway, Forest plays the police officer trying to capture Liam-Yeah, Good Luck there, buddy!-and Dougray plays Famke's second husband. Let's face it, this movie is not going to win any academy awards. But, it is a good action movie with lots of car chases, gun battles and assorted fisticuffs and if that is what gets you going, then you should like this one. It's rated "PG-13" for action, violence and language and has a running time of 1 hour & 33 minutes. I enjoyed it and would buy it on DVD.

So terrible it was actually funny

[Mindu15 · 3/10 · 12 January 2015]

3 stars might be a little harsh seeing as I did enjoy this film, but I enjoyed it for all the wrong reasons. Seemed like a movie made by idiots for idiots. Anyone who is mildly intelligent will find it laughable.

Where do I start, the way this film was shot was poor at best, no scene lasted longer the 3 minutes to try and achieve the same relentless pace we enjoyed from the first Taken movie. This was even worse during any action sequence where there would be about 20 different shots in a space of 30 seconds showing pretty much the same event from pointless angles.

The dialogue, so cheesy, they put in every cliché line from any action movie you can think of, one dimensional characters sounding like idiots. There was a moment in this film where Mills plugs in a USB into a LAPD computer and the computers voices says "You are currently accessing the LAPD hidden files" just in case people in the cinema missed this.

This movie treats its audience like they are slow, and I feel you actually have to be to enjoy it for what it is. Some of the actions sequences were so unrealistic even a 9 your boy would find it a push to believe let alone us adults. Poor way to end a dying trilogy. Hopefully it will now stay dead.

"It ends here" is good advice

[rogerdarlington · 11 January 2015]

In the beginning, former special forces expert Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson) found that his daughter was taken in Paris while, in the sequel, he himself was taken in Istanbul. Clearly Neeson took a bit of persuading to play the role a third time, but it would appear that three factors persuaded him: first, he didn't want to do any travelling this time (so all the shooting -in both senses of the word - is in the overly-familiar Los Angeles where he goes "down the rabbit hole"); second, apparently he didn't think anyone should be taken this time (and the writers obeyed the injunction until near the end when they just couldn't resist any more); and third, he wanted the money.

This is a movie which divides the critics and the public: the former have been very condescending about it but the later enjoy Mills using his special skills again and again (and you can't really blame them). The bad guys here are (mostly) Russians who have terrible accents and awful clothes (especially underwear), but it is always a pleasure to see Forest Whitaker (an intelligent member of the LAPD who knows the significance of a warm bagel). The tag line in the advertisements for "Taken 3" is "It ends here" and I think that would be a sensible decision (although I wouldn't guarantee it).

The end that does not justify the means

[sujanfaster · 7/10 · 9 January 2015]

Hollywood has been bitten by the sequel/prequel bug. Its the new money-minting trend in Hollywood. But audiences like me don't care as long as we see our favorite stars kicking some ass. I am a big fan of Liam Neeson and it goes without saying that I have loved him since I have seen Taken. So yes, I would love more and more movies like that even though they are brainless. Taken 2 was alright for me, though it did not live up to the first one (how many of them live up to the originals anyway). This time, the makers have decided to end it with a third one.They make it clear on the poster, "It ends here". It does end, but its just not a 'Taken' film. It is just another action movie.

This movie is about Bryan Mills (Neeson) taking on the people who kill his wife as the police chase him. I personally expected a thread from old movies that connects to the events happening in this movie. But apart from emotional ones, there are none. Of course the second movie had its on villain-revenge saga which was a result of first one. So a same theme would have made this predictable. But then again its Taken franchise and its Liam Neeson. So, the audience would have cared less. But this time Taken 3 turns out to be just another action movie which did not have to be a part of Taken legacy. There are some well shot action sequences as usual. But the intensity and the suspense part is not up to the mark.

Liam Neeson at his age still shows he is the boss when it comes to this kind of action movies. However that's what he has been doing in the recent years. Maggie Grace continues her panicked face daughter role. Forest Whitaker could have had a better scope than just eating bagels. Dougray Scott and Sam Spruell are in their usual type cast roles. The star cast could have been strengthened to give this trilogy a grand ending.

I am rating the movie high because I love Liam Neeson. But this could have been better, the director and writer could have taken their time and ended it in style.

slow in parts, entertaining overall

[FountainPen · 6/10 · 28 August 2017]

The movie drags in certain parts, and many of the violent scenes are unrealistic, but it is an entertaining flick overall, so I awarded 7.

I find Forest Whitaker to be VERY hard to take, with his weird wandering eye! Simply cannot get used to this; it is a major distraction to every part he plays. He is the actor chosen, unhappily, to portray Idi Amin in the movie bio. Very distracting!

Liam Neeson was his usual self, though looking a bit raggy and haggard. There were some lapses in the actions of the character he plays in this film, but what the heck! It's Hollywood! Go with the flow and relax!

Entertaining but nothing new

[a_sad_cow · 7/10 · 26 January 2015]

You get to see more Liam Neeson doing what Liam Neeson does best. Support cast have their spotlight time and an overall fun time is had by all.

Only real problem is that the story is very contrived with no real point. The bad guys exist solely to provide character development for our main characters. The bad guys are just as bad as they need to be but no more.

I was hoping we'd see a Hannibal Lecter caliber character by this point but...meh. Not that the actors that played them did a bad job, I just wish it'd been better written.

The Trilogy makes a great attempt to step up the franchise.

[bbickley13-921-58664 · 7/10 · 9 January 2015]

In an attempt to make a proper franchise, like the iconic Die Hard or the more recent The Expenables, the third installment attempts to improve itself from the b-style action movie that became an unexpected hit, but unlike The Expenables 3, it does this without being an over inflated hot mess. It moves away from the one hit pony of the "particular set of skills" speech that made Bryan Mills an upcoming icon, just slightly enough without completely selling out.

It caters more to it's shinning star, Liam Neeson and the type of thinking man's action hero type he's been popularizing since the first Taken.

This time around, Brian Mills has to deal with his ex-wife Lenore, played once again by Famke Janssen, being taken for the very last time. He's framed for her murder and Mills must hunt for the real killer and keep his daughter from being taken again, while being hunted himself by the LAPD lead by Forest Whitaker.

As the hunt happens we get to know Mills just a little bit more just like a good sequel should.

It's action packed, and it's about watching him work as a seasoned spy with his team of friends that have made appearances in the other films. It's also about how he oddly balances this life with the relationship of his daughter whose getting to use to this.

Hopefully, this will not be the last we see of the franchise's new direction

This is not Taken 3, this is Parkinson 3!!!

[QCTeamkill · 4/10 · 9 January 2015]

Whoever edited and filmed this, should visit a doctor ASAP.

The editing is atrocious, you can't see anything during the action scenes. Moves and hits are usually lost and you can't see who is hitting who, where, how. If you think Taken 2 was bad, this movie takes the spot at clearly trying to do the worst to suck badly.

The movie is also slow and it's less focused on action, if compared to the previous ones.

By the way, if nobody is taken, then why is it called Taken? Is it because my money was TAKEN by a crappy movie?

Bad guys appear in the first 5 minutes and then come back only after the 1 hour mark. That means we got almost 1 hour of pure nonsense.

Our hero destroys at least 20 cars, obviously killing innocent people. Nothing happens to him, he's called a hero, he is free to walk away, Such cool guy that Brian Mills!!!

This movie is a turd and you should avoid. Ah, it doesn't even have a real conclusion. If Taken 4 gets made ( you know it'll get made ), we know his grandchild is gonna be Taken. I'm serious, he now has a freaking grandchild to take care.

*half-time report*

[qevindee · 6/10 · 4 February 2015]

wait!! anyone thinks 10 stars is biased, ludicrous or, excuse my Welsh, plain mental, i'll thank thee, here, with me brook for the now-part no disputant. indeed entreat, at this your servant's hour-in juncture, nothing less than a whimsical forbearance. and why not! i am in all sooth, dear brethren, thus far unqualified, of critique embryonic, parsimoniously previous, but at the risk of committing unto such, i guess the word be 'foeticide', i have marked of late a weight of groans and growing moans from certain pundit quarters regarding a fare and pretty gamut of the motion picture's elements, and yet so far, that's right, as i, with Taken 3, am yet "scarce half made up!" (note the quote?) i say "pish-tush and Pooh, you detractors** you!" because (again, only SO FAR, mark you) i think it's fopping' great! xx (** for 'detractors' read 'miserable, talentless nonces')

Awful Camera, Edition and Direction and Senseless Plot

[claudio_carvalho · 4/10 · 25 April 2015]

In Los Angeles, Lenore St. John (Famke Janssen) is murdered with sliced throat in the apartment of her ex-husband Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson) and he is accused by the police of murdering her. Detective Franck Dotzler (Forest Whitaker) pursues Bryan while he investigate who might be the killer and protects his daughter Kim (Maggie Grace). Bryan discovers that the Russian gangster Oleg Malankov (Sam Spruell) is the responsible of Lenore's death and together with his team of friends and Lenore's husband Stuart St. John (Dougray Scott), he hunts him down. But why Lenore was killed?

"Taken 3" is a movie with awful camera, edition and direction and senseless plot. The edition is annoying with several cuts, but the plot is ridiculous. When Bryan is arrested at the gas station, no police officer is interested to see the surveillance camera footage. Why should he drug his daughter instead of putting a note in the yogurt scheduling a meeting with her in the toilet? How did he escape from the explosion in the elevator? Oleg's building is surrounded by security system, but a van parks in the parking area and no guard comes to check. Stuart spends lots of time in the van and it is not strange for the security guards. Why Stuart need to flee abducting Kim? Did Bryan's friend die in the van? Bryan causes several accidents on the highway certainly with injured people; destroys a parking building and cars; destroys an airplane; but in the end everything is OK. My vote is four.

Title (Brazil): "Perseguição Implacável 3" ("Implacable Search 3")

A satisfying end to a thrilling franchise.

[Anurag-Shetty · 8/10 · 10 January 2015]

Taken 3 continues with the story of Bryan Mills(Liam Neeson). Bryan's ex-wife, Lenore St. John(Famke Janssen) is murdered. The law enforcement authorities suspect that Bryan is the one who murdered her. Now, it is up to Bryan to evade the cops led by Franck Dotzler(Forest Whitaker), find his ex-wife's true killers to clear his name & protect his daughter, Kim Mills(Maggie Grace).

Taken 3 is an action packed & thrilling movie. The action sequences are tense, edge of the seat & have been superbly crafted. Taken 3 is better than Taken 2(2012) but, doesn't quite reach the heights of Taken(2008). The chase sequences are breathtaking, especially in the climax of the film. A note on the performances. Liam Neeson is outstanding as Bryan Mills. Forest Whitaker is great as Franck Dotzler. Famke Janssen is impressive as Lenore St. John. Maggie Grace is spectacular as Kim Mills. Grace's performance is one of the highlights of the film. Dougray Scott is good as Stuart St. John. Taken 3 is a must watch for action movie buffs & fans of the Taken franchise. The series ends with a bang. You will not be disappointed.

Worth watching it!

[svenchrist619 · 7/10 · 13 February 2015]

The story of Brian Mills comes full circle. But is he finished? As a movie franchise I believe it is worn out. This movie although packed with action, fights and shooting, is a little worse than the last, which was already worse than the first.

I like Liam Neeson as an action actor because he is a little different than the usual suspects, but I hope Luc Besson doesn't make this another Transporter. I had a lot of expectations regarding this movie but I was a little disappointed but the story which tends to be predictable.

Forest Whitaker is always a good addition to the group, making it a little better, but even he – the ever suspicious FBI detective, tend to just follow Liam's character as he moves the script around.

It is a good action movie but don't get your hopes up. It won't last in your memory.

Mistaken

[thesar-2 · 1/10 · 2 April 2015]

Oh, sure, there are a ton of sequels that both "take" down a series, but also "take" it too far. Taken 3 is the A Good Day to Die Hard of the series and by God, I hope both movies end the two franchises.

I recently gave Taken 2 another chance after not liking it the first time it was released. Wow. If anyone thought that movie was bad, just watch the third chapter I initially was hoping would be the Last Crusade of the series. False. And I actually like Taken 2 the second time a whole lot more than the first viewing.

This absolutely atrocious sequel that has nothing to do with the series, let alone anything to do with "TAKING," is basically a sometimes action script that was altered to piggyback on the successful series. Yes. Just like Troll 2 and just about as bad.

After an incredibly stale opening that, again, feels nothing like a "Taken" movie, it continues with basically, the same dumb opening of Alien 3. What follows is an amazingly predictable movie where a wrongfully accused 62-year-old actor acts like someone as athletic as someone a third of his age and can escape explosions as easily as Batman dodging a nuclear explosion in under 5 seconds. It's no wonder Liam Neeson starred in The A-Team movie – he never has a scratch on him after unbelievably surviving multiple car wrecks that would easily kill 999 out of 1,000 people.

What this movie should've done was to fire Liam, hire Jason Statham, rename this as Transporter 4 and acknowledge the silliness like that series did.

The decision is clear: Watch 2008's Taken and repeatedly. No need to see #2 or #3. Dear God, please let there be no fourth Taken. I can't possibly "take" this anymore.

* * *

Final thoughts: Lesson learned – to clear your name from a crime you didn't commit, kill as many people in cold blood while leaving more than enough evidence behind – not to mention, admitting to the police that you murdered someone – and then you can live happily ever after. For shits and giggles, run a car into a plane taking off that's holding the very person you're trying to protect. Don't worry, it'll survive the explosion, as, um, most planes do.