Taken!

Taken is a movie about a teenage girl who goes to Paris with a friend and end up getting kidnapped and sold for prostitution.  Her father, Brian, played by Liam Neeson, goes after the slave traders to try and save his daughter.  Throughout the movie there are many different shots that are used to portray different meaning of certain scenes to the viewer








http://www.rlapl.org/adultservices/docs/taken.jpg

http://content.internetvideoarchive.com/content/photos/6106/190670_306.jpg

The first shot is the close up (CU).  The one that is the most significant in Taken is the scene where the father gets a phone call from his daughter while she is being abducted from the pent house she is staying at.  The significance of using a close up shot of Brian is so one can see his reaction and emotions up close, which is what a CU shot is usually used for.  One can see through his expressed emotions of fear and anger, as well as the feeling of alarm and helplessness since he can’t be there to protect his daughter.

http://www.smh.com.au/ffximage/2008/08/08/300taken_080808014754098_wideweb__300x263.jpg

The next type of shot is the Medium Shot, which is used to show the relationship between characters and as visual information about the specific scene.  This clip from the movie is during a scene where Brian goes to meet with a former friend named Jean-Claude, who works for French Intelligence.  After finding out that Claude is not on his side and has information about the whereabouts of his daughter that he isn’t telling him, Brian decides to take matters in his own hands.  The Medium Shot shows Brian holding a gun up to Claude, showing that he has the power and is going to do whatever he has to do to save his daughter.  Here is where their relationship starts to change from friends to foes.  

http://www.allmoviephoto.com/photo/2009_taken_006.html

Then last shot is the Long Shot, the orientation shot, which usually shows loneliness, sadness, and/or isolation.  In this picture clip it shows Brian talking to a young girl, who has also been abducted and drugged and forced to sell herself on street corners.  Brian goes to her to try to get any information from her about who might have his daughter and where she may be.  The two of them standing alone, both in need of help, are seen as sad and isolated characters when taken as a Long Shot.