Taken Abduction Scene Analysis

Kim on the phone to her dad hiding under the bed.

This memorable and iconic scene is acted spectacularly by Maggie Grace and Liam Neeson, who play daughter (Kim) and father (Bryan). The scene is based on a phone call between Kim and Bryan as she has arrived in Paris with her friend Amanda. The first camera shot is a zoom which shows the discomposure of Kim as people break into her apartment. The sharp non diegetic sound is heard and as it fades back getting louder Kim steps back. This is called synchronous sound. Kim isn't speaking very quietly as she is alarmed that what is happening to her friend could happen to her. She is crying and very emotional in contrast to her father who is very calm and knows what to do. The camera shots in this scene are all zooms to show her panic.

The diegetic sound of the phone call is played most of the scene with no background music. This makes it seem more realistic and emphasised the horror of this action. Bryan (Liam Neesom) is fiddling around with his equipment whilst his daughter is answering questions moderately loud about people she has met or spoken to since being in France. The mise-en-scene is passports in a rubber band, which suggests he travels a lot and brings up the question of why he has more than 1 passport. He then pulls out what looks like a voice recorder and a speaker which are plugged into his phone.

He continues to ask questions like 'how many people are there' as the men approach the room Kim is hiding in. The sound is very fuzzled through the phone which creates suspense. The lighting in the room is very light to when she is told to move into the bedroom it is dark, the two room contrast. The dark room brings a bad atmosphere with it. The front on shot of Bryan shows his determination to help his daughter. We also get a sense of his feelings which connote that he is showing no emotion but behind his blank facade he is really nervous for his daughter.

As Kim slides under the bed, there is a tracking shot following her from the bathroom to here. The close up of her emphasises her emotions. As her dad is giving her advice on what to do, there is a diegetic sound of footsteps and creaking floor, this creates a spooky feel and suggests something negative will happen. There is also close ups of the shoes to emphasise how close they are to her. As she holds her phone up after being commanded to, the camera angle is a low angle to show her lack of power at this point in time. There is then a zoom into her face which signifies a sense of panic which suddenly changes to a sense of relief when the two men walk out the room.

She whispers 'They're leaving... I think they're...' The camera stays still as Kim proceeds backwards away from the camera to show that she is going to have to be found. The loud scream alerts Bryan and the camera slowly zooms in on his face as he listens to his daughter being abducted. The screaming then fades out and all is silent. Someone picks up the phone as Bryan gets up in sync. He says "I don't know who you are. I don't know what you want. If you are looking for ransom, I can tell you I don't have money. But what I do have are a very particular set of skills, skills I have acquired over a very long career. Skills that make me a nightmare for people like you. If you let my daughter go now, that'll be the end of it. I will not look for you, I will not pursue you. But if you don't, I will look for you, I will find you, and I will kill you." There is another silence where after a few seconds a reply of "good luck" is heard and the phone is put down. Bryan's facial emotions are very distressed as he draws the phone away from his ear which foreshadows the girl being kidnapped.