Act of Saving Daughter in the Taken - Movie Review Example

An Investigation into Liam Neeson’s Act of Saving his Daughter in the Movie ‘Taken’ Introduction: The movie Taken, released in 2008, is an action flick directed by Pierre Morel and features Liam Neeson, Maggie Grace, Leland Orser and Famke Janssen. This research paper focuses on the main theme of the movie, where Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson) puts everything in line to save his daughter, Kim Mills (Maggie Grace). The paper thus discusses the reasons as to why Liam Neeson should save his daughter despite the arduous journey he has to undertake and all that he might lose in its wake. Therefore, on a closer analysis of Taken, one can understand that this act stems from the primary responsibility of Liam Neeson as a father and his opportunity to repent and clear his conscience of the guilt he has in leaving his family for his job. Just like any father, Liam Neeson holds his daughter as the most precious thing to him and naturally he loves her more than his life. Thus, he has a responsibility to keep her safe from harm’s way and he lives up to his responsibility by tracking her down in a foreign country and removing any obstacle that stands in his path. It is to be noted that he warns Kim in the beginning, saying that he does not think “a seventeen-year-old should be traveling alone,” as he “know(s) the world” (Morel, Taken). He further suggests that he would tag along with Kim and that she would not even know he was there. But Kim disagrees and Bryan has no other choice but to approve, when his ex-wife (Famke Janssen) further urges him to “sacrifice a little” for Kim (Morel, Taken). Thus, it can be seen that Neeson tries his best to avoid his daughter’s fate, but reluctantly has to let go in the end leaving her to her misfortune. Therefore, it is his responsibility to fight against all odds and get his daughter back from the hostile Albanian troupe. Being a retired CIA agent, Neeson possesses “a very particular set of skills” that he uses to track down the criminals responsible for his daughter’s abduction(Morel, Taken). He also has certain resources and contacts that he makes use of to find his daughter. However, he takes on this mission alone, representing courage as well as heroism. Moreover, his boldness and sheer determination to get Kim back is illustrated when he warns the Albanian criminal, Marko, “I will look for you, I will find you, and I will kill you” if Marco does not let Kim go (Morel, Taken). Furthermore, Sam (Leland Orser), his ex-colleague, tells him that to find Kim, Neeson only has “a ninety-six hour window from the time she was grabbed to never finding her” (Morel, Taken). Thus, Neeson needs to get to his daughter in that time frame, and it may be believed that this time restraint forces him to act solely as gathering help would result in him losing precious time. This time frame adds to the horror and intensity already instilled in the minds of the audience. Moreover, Neeson is well aware that he cannot fully rely on anyone to help him, as he sees the world for what it is. Neeson seeks help from Jean-Claude, a French ex-intelligence officer, to get a start with his chase. Jean-Claude offers some information, but backstabs Neeson, by reporting to the police about him and warns him about deportation. But Neeson does not flinch and keeps to his mission, deciding to even “tear down the Eiffel Tower” in order to save Kim (Morel, Taken). Another major reason why Neeson wants to desperately rescue his daughter is so that he can get rid of the guilty feeling etched in his soul. Neeson had to sacrifice his “marriage” for the “service of the country,” which meant Kim lived with her mother and stepfather (Morel, Taken). Thus, Neeson stays away from the lives of his daughter and wife during his “very long career,” leading to estranged relationships with his family (Morel, Taken). Therefore, he wants to clear his guilty conscience by rescuing his only daughter from the villains. Furthermore, Neeson hopes for a better future with his family in the coming days once he is done with his mission. He is sure he will succeed and he believes that by saving his daughter he will definitely become closer to his family and be accepted with more love. He believes he can payback for his earlier decision where he chose his job over his family. Therefore, the hope Neeson has to set things right again justify his action of saving his daughter. Despite Neeson’s perfect knowledge of the world and the threat it poses to his existence, he does not retaliate from his mission of bringing his daughter back to safety. He risks everything he has for this and he does not care if he gets deported or if he has to go to jail for the large number of people he kills. His only goal is to get to Kim and bring her back home no matter what price he has to pay, therefore this is exactly what he does. On a deeper level, one can yet again find another motive in Neeson’s keeping quiet about his mission, that is, to keep his daughter’s abduction a secret. He does so in order to maintain the public image that his family upholds and not to let a black mark ruin his daughter’s social image as well. Therefore, by keeping his daughter’s kidnapping hidden from the media and public, Neeson protects his family name as well as his child’s status in the eyes of the society. Furthermore, if he acts on sudden impulse and lets all the officials know, there will still be a lot of risk involved. A planned official strategy will take a lot of time, and if the criminals find out about it, they would finish off the girls and escape from their hideouts. Thus, Neeson’s decision to keep the mission of saving his daughter strictly confidential is further justified. Therefore, he skillfully evades the possibility of losing his daughter to death in the onset of escape the criminals will pursue once they have news of being found. Liam Neeson’s heroic deeds are further highlighted when he saves the girl whom he finds at the brothel and escapes taking her to a hotel. The girl has Kim’s jacket in her possession and she is able to provide Neeson with ample information about the house where she met Kim, and where he would be able to find the gangsters. It can be assumed that Neeson made arrangements for the girl to be taken care of. Furthermore, he also finds Kim’s friend, Amanda’s dead body at the brothel, and the audience can assume that he later informs her parents about it. The difficult and almost impossible task Neeson takes on himself is most complimentary to his role as a father. Being a parent to a child, especially a father to a daughter, demands a lot of responsibility on the part of the father and no matter how much protective he gets, he cannot be termed overprotective. Neeson never compromises his role as a father and always keeps his arguments clear. Despite his opposition and reluctance, both his daughter and ex-wife force him to comply, thus he is left helpless. However, in the end both mother and daughter realize the truth behind Neeson’s words and why he was being so protective. It is thanks to him that the mother gets the daughter back and the daughter her life, whereas Neeson gets his family back. Therefore, one cannot but agree with Neeson’s act of putting everything in line to rescue his daughter. Conclusion: Thus, by analyzing Taken, it is construed that Liam Neeson’s act of saving his daughter basically stems from his primary responsibility as a father and his opportunity to repent and clear his conscience of the guilt he has in leaving his family for his job. Therefore, Neeson risks everything he has and also his future to rescue his daughter from the Albanian kidnappers not fearing death or any other element that stands in his way. Thus, in the end he emerges victorious protecting his daughter from harm as well as gaining entry into her heart. Reference List Neeson, Liam, perf.Taken. Dir. Pierre Morel. EuropaCorp. Distribution, 2008. Film. Read More