Tooken (2015)

Good story, Not enough for a whole film

good back-story, and good acting

best movie i've ever seen.

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

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.

As someone who grew up with the Airplane! and Naked Gun series, I have a soft-spot for these types of spoofs. At some point the Zuckers gave way to the Wayans and all subtlety in humor was erased in favor of shock-value and "in your face" crudeness. While "Tooken" certainly has bits and scenes you wouldn't want to watch around children, it also has very good writing and performances to give something for everyone. Lee Torgleson should be the next action hero (I hope he gets a lot of work after this) and Margaret Cho gets to do some character acting away from her usual stage persona. All in all, I'd say for a good night in of laughs with friends, Tooken is a good choice.

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 porn 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.

They could've done a funny movie. Let's face it, each sequel to Taken became more and more of a spoof of itself, so this movie wasn't necessary. With that said. This movie sucked. I do not recommend. I gave this a 1-star rating, and it's not a solid one-star. More like 1/10 of 1-star. Yes, folks, it was that bad. Do not watch this expecting a funny take on the Taken series. If you want a good spoof on a movie, "The Three Musketeers" with Kiefer Sutherland was good. "Hot Shots, Part Deux" was fun. "Tooken" sucks so much, it puts porn stars to shame. Again, yes, it was that bad. If you watch this, don't say you weren't warned.