After a painfully clunky opening akin to that of the first film (the less said about it the better), Mills makes his way to a new, dangerous and foreign locale; Istanbul. On a routine security detail he is surprised by a visit from his daughter and ex-wife. Unlike the previous trip to that home of human trafficking, Paris, Mills is foolishly fine with their unexpected arrival. He shouldn't be, however, as soon they find themselves under attack from an Albanian mob led by the father of one of Mills victims from the first film.
The violence from the previous outing has been toned down to allow a younger audience to buy tickets, and Taken 2 awkwardly lumbers through proceedings a lot like its hero; who appears to have aged more than the interceding four years allows. Whilst Neeson is more than watchable and his gravelly voice is just as full of menace and resilience as it ever has been, he struggles to command the same sense of awe that he did before.This is not helped by insipid performances from Famke Janssen and Maggie Grace as his wife and daughter. The latter inexplicably manages to navigate the streets of the city, at maximum speed, during a lengthy chase despite the established fact that she’s unable to drive. Sigh. There are some moments where its ridiculousness works and it is able to recapture some of what made Taken palatable, but on the whole this is a lot less effective.
With the money pouring in upon release though, it already sounds as though a third film has been green lit. If Neeson does return for another outing (and there’s no guarantee that he will) here’s hoping that the filmmakers attempt something a little fresher than this tired affair.