Luc Besson

A pure meat and potatoes "guy movie" that really delivers the goods. It's not too over-the-top like other films of this nature tend to be. (Think an aging Jason Bourne with a teenage kid that someone nabs) I enjoyed the character set up and the tracking of the perpetrators of the kidnapping. Retribution is nasty, fierce and fitting and it was just what I was looking for with this movie. There?s some nice tension throughout the film and great justification for the lead's actions.

Because that's how I felt after watching this movie -- taken for the $4.95 it cost to rent this piece of crap. The movie plays out as if a first-year screenwriter had filled in a screenplay template with cliche after cliche after cliche: absentee father trying to win his way back into his daughter's heart; ex-wife remarries wealthy man who gives daughter everything bio father cannot; entire sophisticated crime syndicate brought to its knees by a retired spy gunfighting his way across Paris. I kept wondering what Liam Neeson was thinking when he took this role. I was actually embarrassed for him in many scenes. In fact, I'm still embarrassed for having watched the entire movie. "Jean Claude, I'll tear down the Eiffel Tower if I have to!" Seriously, who says that?! Steven Seagal, that's who. Had it been Mr. Seagal in the title role, I could have easily bypassed this stinker and saved myself 1.5 hours I'll never get back.

Liam Neeson seems like an unlikely bad-#!@%*#. However, that's what helps make this movie so awesome. His skills seem to be as innate as his determination. Word of advice: Do Not Watch the PG-13 Watered Down Version. There are a few scenes that really can only be appreciated by seeing the R or Unrated version of this film. Although it's somewhat predicable, the story and the action are top notch. There's one scene in particular, in the dining room of his French counterpart, where Liam's character uses a highly unexpected method to glean information from his "friend". Great story, great acting, great movie. Enjoy. Good Luck