MYST Post #5: Taken 2

Going into Taken 2 I didn't expect much, in fact, I didn't expect anything.  The original Taken was a poor excuse for the aging Liam Neeson to give audiences a reminder that he can still "kick ass", even though we all know what a joke that is.  Usually I'd give some background information and try and work my way into my review but this movie doesn't even deserve that kind of recognition.  If it were possible, I'd ask Comcast to give me the 6 bucks I wasted on this money making excuse for a movie but I can't and I guess I deserve it for even wanting to watch it in the first place.  

The old adage that you're only as good as your weakest link rings true yet again and this time it starts right at the top.  Olivier Megaton, the same guy who directed Transporter 3 and Colombiana, is notorious for producing terrible films.  In fact, Transporter 3 received 36% on rotten tomatoes and Colombiana received a 26% but I guess if you're into those cliche action movies, this is the guy for you.

That being said, this movie does have some really cool action scenes.  It's obvious that Megaton knows how to overload our visual senses with a lot of violence and adrenaline.  One of my favorite scenes is the one linked above, in which Neeson helps his daughter locate his position.  It's actually really interesting how Megaton manipulates overhead shots, long shots, closeups, dutch angles and a ton of other cinematic elements to make the audience feel the suspense of his daughter.  Within this scene alone we see the vastness of the setting.  It's clear that Taken 2 had a huge budget to be able to shoot and use such a big part of Istanbul.

In the end, Taken 2 is a horrible excuse for a film and just continues to remind me of the deteriorating direction film is taking.  Taken 2 is entertaining and gives us the action fix we need every once and a while and that's all it delivers.  The plot is extremely dry and simply a remake of the original, the action is fluid but unrealistic, and the acting is nothing special.  Taken 2 deserves a 5 out of 10, and while that does seem a bit critical but like most sequels, it's deserving.

1975 Film: Let's Take a Trip

1. Let's Take a Trip follows the journey of a band, and their manager, en route from California to upstate New York for their first big gig at Woodstock.  This feature film begins with the band receiving an initial payment of $10,000 in gratuity for accepting the gig at Woodstock and in essence follows the band's decision to blow all of it on drugs.  The movie culminates with the final gig at Woodstock and an eventual falling out between band members shortly after.  More importantly though, the movie serves as a commentary on the youth movement and counter culture at the time.  We wanted to go with a very indie, almost cult classic type feel to the film and I think that is very apparent with the shock value we bring with the heavy drug influence and sex/rock and roll appeal.  I honestly believe this film would be successful because it calls on the whole rock and roll culture, and it brings a lot of the same elements Easy Rider brought out in film, especially during the 70s, a time where audiences really wanted to be pushed.

2. I'm not really sure what genre this film constitutes as, we really blended a couple genres together.  Like I mentioned earlier, the film sort of follows the adventures of this band on their way to their performance, but we incorporate a lot of action and drama to build the tension between the characters.  In other respects, we wanted to get the feel of almost a documentary type film to show the realism of the plot, but also crime and corruption factor in.

3. We chose United Artists as our major studio/distributing force because they best fit the style of film we wanted to put out.  It's a film that really challenges conventional roles and at this time UA was known for really pushing the button, in fact they released over 100 X rated films at the time, so we figured it'd be appropriate to go with them.  The great thing about UA was that we could have the independence we wanted, but still be able to sell a major market film, and that was ultimately what sold us.

4. For this film, we chose Milos Forman as our director, and the main reasoning for that was simply his familiarity with Jack Nicholson, one of our main actors.  Forman directed, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and has had several films released through UA- it was a natural fit.  Warren Beatty stars in the film along side Nicholson, and we chose him for his role in Bonnie and Clyde, and his ability to act as an anti-hero.  Both leads are extremely versatile actors and can act as the unconventional protagonists.  We decided to focus on sound, and aside from the obvious reason that the film follows a band, we figured that we'd ride the bandwagon of releasing the soundtrack before the film release to publicize the film as well as promote artists at the time.
5. We've decided to make Let's Take a Trip an R-rated film, and the reason for this is because we wanted to really hit the audience hard with the shock value that drugs, sex, and violence can bring.  It's also R-rated because a lot of the scenes involve really touchy subjects, like the Vietnam War and such, and the commentary isn't appropriate for anyone under 17.  We've blurred the lines of good and evil, and we lead the audience to falling for both characters.  It's a very auteur vision film, and much of it features commentary on society at the time I could see it as an iconic 70s film.
6. The only thing I would change about our film is that I'd want it to be more of an event film.  Like as in we really advertise it and hype the film up a lot.  Maybe even switch from UA to MGM or 20th Century Fox.  I feel like even though it's really out there, this film could do really well.