Liam Neeson is Badass

Hancock
Hancock wastes a great premise but does manage to entertain as a mindless popcorn flick. Will Smith does a decent job as a bitter alcoholic superhero and Charlize Theron does a decent job of being pretty, but Jason Bateman is gratingly annoying. The villain was uninspired, the comedic possibilities of a drunk superhero were squandered, and the "twist" surprises no one but the characters. But I was at least mildly entertained for most of it.

Wanted
Angelina Jolie is sexually attractive. Which is good for Wanted, since her role is just to stand there and look hotter than scientists previously thought possible. Her spoken words are few and far between, which is probably for the best given how ridiculous everyone else's lines are. The plot, style and dialog appear to have been generated by a marketing team that took note of how much young people enjoyed Fight Club, The Matrix and The Fast and The Furious. But Wanted lacks the satire of Fight Club and the ambition of The Matrix, which makes it just about on par with The Fast & The Furious. That's not a compliment.

Taken
Liam Neeson plays an absentee father who is slowly trying to integrate himself back into the life of his daughter (Maggie Grace). He missed out on her growing years while he was "working for the government." His former occupation is never fully revealed, though it is strongly implied that he was involved in some form of espionage. Famke Janssen plays Neeson's ex-wife, who uses every opportunity to undercut Neeson's attempt to be a part of their daughter's life. When the daughter is given tickets to travel around Europe, Neeson is resistant to the idea. Janssen guilts him into signing a release (the daughter is only 17, and needs both parents' signatures to leave the country). Sure enough, the daughter almost immediately gets herself kidnapped. While a contrived development, the kidnapping is perhaps the best standalone scene I've watched this year. Neeson is on the phone with his daughter when it occurs, and he immediately switches into Jason Bourne mode and starts giving her instructions on what to do. I mention Bourne because that is basically who Neeson turns into once his daughter is taken. He flies to Paris and begins tracking down the kidnappers, leading him into a world of human trafficking and corrupt law enforcement. The plot elements are nothing new, but when co-scripted by Luc Besson, the formula is at least infused with some serious energy. But it's Neeson who holds the film together as he relentlessly tracks his daughter down. Like last year's sadly unnoticed Seraphim Falls, Neeson has one goal and moves towards it like a juggernaut. He's enthralling in this role.