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Trick 'R Treat. Just as good as Creepshow, and my last avatar was the main antagonist...so cute!!
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Andy_Panthro: I found "Taken" to be more funny than anything else.
I mean, it's a cliche ridden action-fest, which stars Liam Neeson of all people!
Also, he's so single minded about finding his daughter... all the other crime gets pretty much ignored.
Entertaining though, and I'd agree with the 7/10.

The worst thing is, If Tony Gilroy, or even a Stephen Gaghan had written the screenplay, it would have been a much less action-reliant film. It had all kinds of potential, and it delivered in a lot of ways, but it seemed to resort to mindless action cliches far too often.
BTW, if your daughter was in that situation, and you had the skills, you would do what it took as well. Well, I hope you would.
I just saw the three return of the living dead movies in a row. too ... much ... eighties ... . I'd still recommend them tho.
Just watched Taken (like, finished 10 minutes ago).
Gotta say i was kinda disappointed. Neeson is always reliable. But other than that i found it rather derivative and cliched.
Nothing wrong with derivative and cliched if done well, but there really wasn't anything TO the movie. There was a lot of set up, but then not much. No real story, and very repetitive structure. Go here. Hit guys. Go there. Hit guys. Go there. Shoot guys. End.
Not terrible, but it felt like a poor man's Bourne. I'd rate Casino Royale above it too. Maybe even the latest Bond movie, even though that was kinda forgettable.
Man on Fire is a good comparison... though that was rather light and forgettable too.
Not at all what i was hoping for. But not terrible. Maybe it would have been more impressive on the big screen.... at least then i couldn't have gotten bored and gone to make a sandwich and some coffee.
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Finally watched Battle Royale last week. That was ok, but i wasn't impressed by the ending... and it could seriously have done without Beat Takeshi.
Taken was a nice movie. I liked it quite a lot. Only if it was just Neeson killing people methodically.
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michaelleung: Taken was a nice movie. I liked it quite a lot. Only if it was just Neeson killing people methodically.

I think it just needed more variation. Many action movies are light on plot, and just involve killing bad guys.. but they need either creativity or variation. Some, like Jet Li movies get by by having them kill them in varied and creative ways. Some, like bond movies, mix it up with a few car chases, big set pieces or big stunts. Most build up in some way towards a climax. This one felt like the last fight was the same as the first fight.
It seemed like they were going for gritty-realism for much of the film, hence the lack of variation. But then the end bit in the mansion just gave up totally on any pretence of realism - so they should have chucked in a few more impressive action set pieces.
I just saw Fourth Kind. It is amazing, but not in the way you would think. It pales only to The Room in terms of movies that are unintentionally hilarious. There's this one particular scene in a dining room that's too awful (good) to pass up.
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michaelleung: Taken was a nice movie. I liked it quite a lot. Only if it was just Neeson killing people methodically.
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soulgrindr: I think it just needed more variation. Many action movies are light on plot, and just involve killing bad guys.. but they need either creativity or variation. Some, like Jet Li movies get by by having them kill them in varied and creative ways. Some, like bond movies, mix it up with a few car chases, big set pieces or big stunts. Most build up in some way towards a climax. This one felt like the last fight was the same as the first fight.
It seemed like they were going for gritty-realism for much of the film, hence the lack of variation. But then the end bit in the mansion just gave up totally on any pretence of realism - so they should have chucked in a few more impressive action set pieces.

I guess I just found it refreshing to see one of my favorite actors stepping into a new type of role, plus the plot was somewhat Bourne-ish, and I mean Paul Greengrass Bourne, not Doug Liman Bourne.
The movie was somewhat formulaic, and as I already mentioned, tended to fall back on cliches when things got bogged down, but for a recent hollywood film, it's pretty damn good.
A time for Drunken Horses.... fanfreakingtastic, mainly I think because of where I have been the last couple of years....
I watched "The Lives of Others" yesterday.
Fantastic film about the Stasi and Eastern Germany. A real eye-opener for me, since I didn't know very much about the time (was very young at the time, and wasn't taught anything about it at school either).
The cast/crew interviews are good too, especially the guy who plays the main character, who actually had been under surveillance at the time.
Just saw that Adrien Brody movie, The Jacket. WHY HAVE I NOT SEEN THIS BEFORE
Post edited November 27, 2009 by michaelleung
Just saw Away We Go, by Sam Mendes. Very funny and very touching movie, wondefully played, with a lot of crazy characters. See it if you like to get out of a theater with a big smile on your face.
I just finished Let The Right One In. Like Twilight, it focuses on a boy/girl vampire relationship, but unlike Twilight, it isn't shit. Instead of focusing on "hunky hot models lusting after each other, but they can only stare wistfully, or one will turn into a vampire, it focuses on a powerful friendly relationship between two children. The cinematography and acting are powerful, particularly in one climatic scene near the end. The only thing is I wish the ending would've left less to the viewer's imagination. Admittedly, I'm not so good at filling in those blanks myself.
Favorite - Hmmmm....this changes all the time. Right now, I'd have to say American Beauty and Spun
Last one I saw - 2012 and it was the shiz
Recommendation - Spun, since most people havent seen it, and Identity, because I'm on a John Cusack stint now.
Most likely everyone here has seen it, but The Evil Dead was fuckin epic.