In this mystery-thriller, Liam Neeson plays Dr. Martin Harris. He awakens after a car accident in Berlin to discover that his wife (January Jones) doesn’t recognise him and another man has assumed his identity.
Ignored by disbelieving authorities and followed by mysterious men, he finds himself alone, tired and on the run. Aided by an unlikely ally (Diane Kruger), he plunges headlong into a deadly mystery that has him questioning his sanity.
Liam Neeson as a lone renegade seeking vengeance. Sound familiar? Despite similarities to Taken, however, the actor’s latest action-thriller is a more stylish outing, set in a wintery Berlin and containing a pack of respectable actors whose CVs (Downfall, The Lives of Others) lend this an air of quality.
Taking a gimmick of a premise, Unknown relies on the charisma of Neeson to carry us through the mystery. Playing his wife is January Jones who, on looks alone, rightfully earns the reference to a Hitchcockian blonde, and Diane Krueger as a street-smart taxi driver who, as is expected, has a romantic weakness to be exploited.
When the mystery is revealed, it all seems a bit implausible and unrealistic, but the journey there has enough twists and details to keep one interested.
By Andrew Hedley, Flicks.co.nz
Despite a cracking cast (including Diane Kruger, Frank Langella, Aidan Quinn, and the brilliant Bruno Ganz) this is yet another "gimmie da money" role for Liam Neeson, which alongside the CLASH OF THE TITANS movies, indicates that this once fine actor might just be reading the zeros in the fee offered rather than the actual script. It all starts Hitchcockian enough, with knowing nods to Hitch's masterclass in movie thriller making, NORTH BY NORTHWEST (1959) or THE MAN WHO KNEW TOO MUCH (1956). Sadly, director Jaume Collet-Serra (the disappointing 'Orphan' and the execrable 'House of Wax') just doesn't have the panache or the script to pull off anything more than a bland by-the-numbers seen-it-all-before bore that at times is so ludicrous and so reliant on chance and coincidence to keep the narrative moving that it resembles the recent Angelina Jolie / Johnny Depp trainwreck, THE TOURIST. A sub-TOTAL RECALL ending only serves to be more ridiculous and implausible than the resolution of David Fincher's THE GAME. If you like Liam Neeson and you enjoy action, then go see TAKEN - a far superior, no-nonsense adrenalin flick. In fact compared to UNKNOWN, TAKEN looks like DIE HARD. It's okay for a "leave-your-common-sense-at-the door" kinda watch, but it remains an instantly forgettable movie, devoid of character, rational plot or even the barest modicum of dramatic tension. One star for the great supporting cast and the one decent scene - a showdown between Frank (I played Nixon in FROST/NIXON) Langella and Bruno (Oh yeah? I played Hitler in DOWNFALL) Ganz.
I really enjoyed this movie, it kept me on my seat til the end & what a twist. liam neeson does well yet again
Great thriller, fast pace, action packed and entertaining. A great watch!
Movie was pretty average. Got to hand it to Neeson though, hes in his 50s playing a 30 something year old spy/agent. I wonder if I'll be able to pull moves like him when I hit that ripe old age. hahahahaha
I enjoyed this movie a lot. I chose it purely on the basis of 'I want to go to a movie - I don't know what to see - let's try this'. I was very pleasantly surprised and really enjoyed the film. The acting was excellent and the storyline provided lots of twists and turns with a particularly unexpected twist at the end! Not a film I would want to buy, but a very entertaining way to spend an evening.
Director Jaume Collet-Serra provides a steady flow of suspense and a very Polanski-esque feeling of paranoia.
The movie's disinterest in character might be forgivable were its plot not riddled with holes.
After a whole lot of buildup, and a real letdown of a payoff, the only enigma left is why we should care.
Beyond the occasional plot frissons and juicy supporting turns, it's an emotionally and psychologically threadbare exercise.
We've been told the NZ release date for this flick is Thursday, 17th Feb 2011.
Release date: February 17th 2011.
We haven't received times for this movie in this location yet. However these are updated as cinemas announce them, so check back soon. Hopefully the lovely cinemas in your location will choose to play it shortly. ~Ed.
