To all of those die-hard Taken fans, Taken 2 has been released!

 Opened in theatres Friday, Taken 2 is a packed-action sequel starring Liam Neeson as Bryan Mills, a father and ex-husband who would do anything to save his family.

Directed by Olivier Megaton, Taken 2 has grossed an estimated $18.6 million on opening night in more than 3,000 North American theaters. It was predicted to gross about $40 million, according to both Entertainment Weekly and the Hollywood Reporter.

Alongside Neeson is Famke Janssen (ex-wife Lenore) and Maggie Grace (daughter Kim), both who had drastic changes to their roles since the first movie.

Everyone who has seen the first Taken should know that Mills is not to be played with.

In the sequel, it’s now the parents turn to be taken by Albanians, led by a man with revenge in his heart, and it’s Kim who shows that she will not be defeated.

Mills has to go to Instanbul to work and the family follows in hopes of having quality time together.

 One thing turns into the next, and it’s Kim who has to play hero to save her parents from men who are after her father and who clearly wants them all dead.

Grace shows that she can drive with the best of them.  Ignoring her father’s plea to run to safety, Kim runs on rooftops, sets off grenades and takes the bad guys on a high-speed chase.

Ironically, this is coming from a girl who didn’t even pass her driving test until the end of the movie. The test itself, along with other elements from the movie, reminds the audience that even though Grace’s character grabbed control of the situation, she’s still a teenager.

Sixty four-year-old Neeson is once again impressive and proves that age does not slow a man down. It only makes him better as he can still kick butt when he needs to.

Neeson displayed no sign of old age at all other than his panting and slight weakness at the end of his last fighting scene.

Sadly it was Janssen’s turn to play the victim, which was different than her role as the worrying mother in the first movie.

Her performance was pretty convincing and the fear in her face was touching, though the anguish that she experienced was mild violence considering she was kidnapped by heartless foreigners who wanted her dead.

This is all surrounding the plot line which hints that Neeson and Janssen’s characters may be rekindling their love for one another.

The movie itself was quick and fast-paced. It had a slow build-up and it took some time for things to connect, but what action movie doesn’t?  This sequel was just in too much of a hurry to end.

Once connected, it was nonstop and didn’t really slow down until the very end, which won’t be spoiled.

The audience should appreciate the role-reversals and the desperate love between a man and his family.

That’s the reason why Taken 2 gets three out of five stars.