I will find you. I will kill you.

For those who haven’t seen this film, I know what your thinking.  Liam Neeson!? Liam Neeson!? Liam WHO!? Liam Neeson … a bonafide, terrifying, death dealing bad ass!? Are you kidding me!? Point blank, no.  It never seems to surprise me on the roles Liam Neeson can be casted in and excel beyond immense proportions.  Just like such films as Schindlers List, Batman Begins, and Gangs of New York this is no different.  However, the surprising “it” factor is that this is just a different level of machismo.  This is a man with a purpose.  A purpose of realism that any Father who watches this film can sit down ball up his fist and root for a good guy as he demolishes anything in his path in between reaching his goal.  To hold his daughter again, for the  righteousness and taste of her freedom.

Purchase Taken [Blu-ray]

Taken will do precisely that.  It will take you on an intense suspenseful thrill ride!  Oh, and did I mention tons of action?  Let me be frank, Liam Neeson is an absolute bad ass in this movie.  For my younger crowd, I have a better analogy for you.  Quoted from Eminem.  “You take some Big and some Pac and  mix them up in a pot, sprinkle a lil Big L on top what do you got? You got the realest and illest killas tied up in a knot, the jugganauts of this rap shit like it or not!” 

So what the hell am I saying?  I’m saying you take some Creasy and Bourne and mix them up in a pot sprinkle a lil John Rambo on top what do you got?  Bryan Mills.  Hahah, no really. It is … “Creasy” (Denzel Washington – Man On Fire) meets “Jason Bourne” (Matt Damon – The Bourne Identity) and a touch of “Rambo” (Sylvestor Stallone – Rambo: First Blood) to the fullest extent.  He is the definitive of a man on a mission, and will stop at nothing to complete his objective. 

The plot is simple, his daughter gets kidnapped. Oh wait, before you think how lame and how over done and redundant this is, just know this … It’s the script, director and choreography that make this one special! Pierre Morel knew how to capture intensity, and did an absolutely fantastic job at it. It’s the cut throat rapid action that will keep you glued to your seat on this one. If you like suspense, this one is for you! If you’re an action junkie, this one is for you! If you want some drama, this one is for you!  Shall I go on? /fanboyism

So what are the cons? I’d say for the beginning of the movie his daughter can be rather annoying and it seems like sometimes she tries to oversell on some of the acting.  Whether that was an intentional act or not, I dont know.  Oh, and she runs like she is 5 years old. :-p

Fox spares nothing on this title with a beautiful 1080p 2.35:1 transfer.  For such a gritty film with alot of dark sequences I was really expecting to see some unintentional grain.  It was very hard for me to find any, there were some instances, but it was so light that it didnt even matter.  The scenery is always clear and breath taking.  Rich colors throughout, great fleshtones.  Thank you Fox for a great transfer on one of my favorite movies of last year.  I am however borderline on the rating on this one.  I’m leaning towards a 4.5 but for many it could be considered a 5.  I guess just coming off of watching The Transporter 3’s oustanding PQ doesnt help when watching this next.  I do however stand behind my decision and will contest anyone who says otherwise.

Wowzers!  The gun shots were ridiculous!  They’ll put your sub to work!  It got so loud I had to turn the volume down during extreme mass shooting sequences.  Top notch audio track brought from Fox on this one.  DTS HD MA 5.1 Lossless.  The gun shots really are something, they are pounding like and very strong sounding yet distinct when different guns fired.  They really put your speakers to work engulfing you in the sound by utilizing your rears at precise moments.  The abduction scene sticks in my mind as well, the footsteps, screams, and crashes all are portrayed excellent through great audio work.  Hats off to the technicians.  Reference quality sound here folks!  Blu-ray at its finest!  Audioholics rejoice!

• Black Ops Field Manual is available on the UNRATED version of the film only. This uses Bonus View which requires the viewer to be on a “Profile 1.1” or higher Blu-ray Disc Player to deliver a Picture-In-Picture experience. As you watch the film you will get a geographical locators that goes along with the scenes in the film. This little “self-updating dashboard” that also boasts trivia and death kills and such, its sweet!
  Audio Commentary with co-screenwriter Robert Mark Kamen (Extended Cut)
• Audio Commentary with Director Pierre Morel, Cinematographer Michel Abramowicz and Car stunt supervisor Michel Julienne (Extended Cut)
• Le-Making of (18:24 – SD) is your standard making of with cast interviews. Nothing too juicy or spectacular
• Avant Premiere (4:48 – HD) features premier footage from when the film debuted in 2008.
• Inside Action (11:05 – HD) serves up a few key action sequences with a side-by-side storyboard to final film finish comparison.
• Digital Copy: Here we get a digital copy of the film for either PC or Mac, both iTunes and Windows Media formats.

This is a must see.  This film deserves a viewing at the very least if not a purchase.  I totally enjoyed the flick and believe it received a great transfer and treatment for Blu-ray.  Fans of the film will be happy and blind purchasers alike.  Fox did a great job with this release and it deserved every bit of it.  I whole heartedly recommend Taken on blu-ray.  This was a very fun film to watch and I didn’t expect Liam Neeson to be this great at playing a bad ass.  Liam Neeson is probably one of the most overlooked actors of our time.  For those who already know about this film and enjoyed it I would also like to recommend both Schindlers List and Seripham Falls if your looking for some more great Neeson roles.

Purchase Taken [Blu-ray]