Tooken

Not what i expected, in fact it was better. Having said that i had some much needed laughs, sure it got a little thin near the end , and i was hoping it would end soon. But all in all. Better than a lot of movies i have seen.

For a spoof movie there should be little to expect. Spoofing the Taken series is something which surprisingly took a while to be made (Tooken was released after Taken 3- so they waited until the Taken franchise was complete). With the instant success of the first Taken film, one would have expected a spoof film have been made immediately. This film is quite short in runtime which benefits it as they ensure it doesn't drag on. Some clever gags, the obvious and expected over the top humor, a lot more gross humor (dick jokes) than expected, cheap one liners and innuendoes. The lead actor impersonating Liam Neeson does a great job, the wife has a resemblance to the Taken wife of Lenore and for some reason the daughter is more overly specialized here. Don't expect anything great but in comparison to other spoof films such as Epic Movie or Disaster Movie, Tooken is a clear step above. Reason being, there is a consistency in plot and it doesn't seem like a bunch of random scenes sketched together. It has its moments, some things work while some fall flat. Which was expected.

Bryan Millers is a former CIA agent, now a security guard at a pet store. He still is in love with is ex-wife Lenore who by now is involved with a black former * actor. Bryan has a teenage daughter who's eager to lose her virginity, something he's not about to let happen. He's also interested in trying the latest ED medication, even though as far as we can tell, he doesn't have a woman. One night at work he sees a bunch of Albanians loading explosives. He confronts them and next day he walks up to the pet store HQ to again confront the gangsters. We learn that behind them is some sinister figure. It takes a while but eventually Bryan, his mom--also a former CIA agent, and Lenore get "taken". We learn more about the sinister boss and what he's up to. In the meantime the daughter and Lenore's guy will have to rescue them and Bryan will have to confront the bad guy. The Taken franchise, and for that matter all Liam Neeson movies, are ideal material for a parody. And initially it looks like Tooken will to just that. This Bryan endlessly brags about his special skills but just like the other Bryan rarely displays the alleged skills. For some reason, Mills' lame friends don't make an appearance here. Unfortunately, Tooken instead of being a "serious" parody quickly descends into adolescent territory with countless gross moments, that wouldn't be funny even to teenagers. I counted four instances that made me chuckle but there wasn't any particularly funny scene or line. Tooken could have ridiculed the over the top violence, Mills' absurd obsession with his ex, the annoying daughter. But it doesn't. It comes across more like a really poor comedy that was quickly adapted into a Taken scenario.

Film class should show this movie as how to not make a spoof, satire or comedy.

Bryan Millers (Lee Tergesen) is a former CIA agent who is now a mall cop. His ex-wife (Lauren Stamile) is looking to remarry a * star named Money Maker (Reno Wilson) while his daughter (Laura-Leigh) attempts to lose her virginity. Meanwhile there are evil Albanians who are lead by Brown Finger (Margaret Cho). The film is a near "Airplane" style spoof of Liam Neeson films, mostly the "Taken" series. The humor was on the predictable side, in this smile out loud production. The film copies the Woody Allen "Screw" scene from "Bananas." Guide: F-bomb, sex, nudity? Large fake male organ

We didn't need a sequel to "Taken". It was a fine movie on it's own and one that cemented Liam Neeson as a bona fide action movie star. And since it made money we got a couple sequels that weren't necessary and they weren't as good. But you know what we really didn't need? A spoof of said movie. Where do I even begin? They literally reference the classic phone call scene at the start of the movie. But in context it doesn't even make any sense. Our hero is in the delivery room, his wife is giving birth and the doctor passes out. Just like that. I guess this is supposed to be funny? And our hero is now supposed to delver the baby. So he threatens it, by giving a truncated version of the phone call speech. Is this supposed to be comedy? As the story goes on he's lousy when it comes to things being taken, or maybe tooken in this case, around him from his ex-wife leaving to his daughter's virginity. And then, for no reason, gangsters from Albania decide to stick explosives into puppies. Why? I guess they're supposed to be evil or something? And since his puppy has also been explosiveized, he's pushed too far and does something about it. There was no reason for this movie to be made. Absolutely none. It's not funny. It's not well done. And it totally bombed at the box office showing that parody and spoofs really need a deft hand to make them work.

Like the titles says. Yes, there are too many dick jokes, but there were a few scenes were I couldn't stop laughing, which is rare nowadays. Those wacky Albanians! The main guy did a pretty good imitation of Liam's weird, hovering parental concern, although there weren't very many other references to the 'Taken' films...except for saying "taken" rather than "kidnapped" because it sounds goofy, like it did in the originals.

This movie was hilarious. Definitely worth a watch. Lee Tergeson did an amazing job. The parodies of Liam Neeson movies were piss-pants hilarious.

This much better than 3-4. Its a *spoof*. Dont expect anything else! There are lots of oneliners, lots of cheap laughs, an abundance of innuendos, and some other low-brow content. Lots! The 'plot' is a unholy mix of stalone bond and diehard flix, poured into a blender, and beaten to a pulp, seasoned with a nip of naughtiness. The Credits are hilarious -dont miss them! In summery - If you liked ScaryMovie, you will like this too!

Doesn't deserve such a low rating score - I've seen a lot lot worse ranked a lot lot higher. Tooken is obviously a spoof based in Taken, and it's pretty funny in places - some places more than others for sure; but that's the nature of the genre (or so I believe). It's certainly one of those 'switch your brain off' before watching sort of movies; but it's definitely not worth the negative criticism it's received in many of the reviews. It has that spoof movie feel to it - admittedly, not on the same level or power as the likes of Airplane etc... but it's pretty watchable once you realise it is what it is. Being a fan of the original Taken, and totally hating Taken 2 (like many others); I liked a few of the links relating to them in this movie. If anything, there was maybe a slight overuse of the key telephone conversation from the original, but there you have it. All-in-all Tooken is worth a watch if you've some time to kill. Yes, it's littered with mistakes; no, it doesn't have huge dramatic effects; but I found it OK to watch - and still enjoyed it better than the original Taken 2. Overall: 6.7/10.