72 - Taken

Connection To POISON IVY 2 - Xander Berkley

"I don't know who you are, I don't know what you want...", this speech that Liam Neeson delivers to his daughter's kidnapper in Taken as in six shorts years already reached iconic status and single handedly change Neeson into an action star.

Taken for me was a thrill ride, the beginning is pretty much just to set up a non-stop revenge thriller, Neeson goes around beating up or killing the people responsible for taking his daughter (Maggie Grace), which is not personal they just picked the wrong girl with the wrong father.

Whether you except this premise I think can alter your enjoyment, the idea might be far-fetched - she happens to be on the phone with her highly trained dad the moment they come into get her, his ex-wife's new mister happens to have a private jet that can clear and get him to Paris quickly, and little things like the reflection on a photo helps him in his quest - 

I always assumed his daughter's friends death (who is taken the same time), was just death by plot convenience, she dies so you don't have to worry about her after her scene, because after all it's not her story. Things that didn't really work for me is the sub-plot at the beginning of Neeson doing security for a singer played by Holly Vallance that is randomly picked up at the end and I don't know I felt like the finale could have been something better.

Overall very enjoyable if perhaps relies on things like coincidence a little too much, Neeson is cool as fuck here though and he's on screen a good percent of the time. 

71 - Poison Ivy 2: Lily

Connection to DANCE 'TIL DAWN - Alyssa Milano

Dear Alyssa Milano,

I hope you are well, I am just writing this letter to know that I wanted to thank you so, so much for helping me through puberty - the likes of Poison Ivy 2 and Embrace Of The Vampire - I enjoyed watching those films late on a television and went to bed with pleasant thoughts. I still thank you are something of a goddess. 

Yours sincerely 

Me

So puberty heh - do I really have to spell it out? --- I've got to be honest during those oh so important puberty years, late on before sleep-time I would scour the Satellite (Sky) channels, even those in German looking for actresses (remember this was pre-internet days for me) hoping for some skin and would sometimes get lucky, Drew Barrymore flashing in Boys On The Side, Uma Thurman in Dangerous Liaisons, Juliette Lewis in Strange Days - there was other of course, but it was with Alyssa Milano I felt like I hit pay dirt - with both Poison Ivy 2 and Embrace Of The Vampire.

I should acknowledge that I am not under any pretenses that these are good movies - I know they are not - the sad truth is Alyssa Milano is someone who is lacking in decent starring roles, there is just some actresses I really like and that is the case, but they'll get watched because they are in said movie.

Poison Ivy 2 is not as good as the first one, which you might recall I said was not great but better then it had any right to be, and yeah the story just isn't as compelling here - but, but Alyssa Milano droooooooooooools...

This time Poison Ivy is Lily, who starts the film more naive then damaged, she's an art student who finds a box with a diary and nude photos (of the girl who's diary it is - Ivy) and she gets the desire to have the same sexual desire/conquest that she has and the begins acting more like the girl of the diary.

Xander Berkley gets to be the old guy this time around that we don't want to see them do stuff with (but they do), he's her art teacher and she babysits his kids and we have a paranoid beau for her this time rather then a female friend (which was an asset for the first movie I think).

We do indeed get some Milano boob action, so for that alone I am entirely grateful for this film (1998 me is very happy so is 2014 me to be honest).

Overall, feels more soft core then the predecessor which is only good in the that because of you know Alyssa Milano, but as a film taking away the moments that I am clearly a pervert it's just not an overall interesting film.

P.S. seriously sorry for being a pervert.