Kurt Loder Reviews Taken 2, The Paperboy, and Pitch Perfect

Taken 2 is even more frankly preposterous than its predecessor, writes Kurt Loder. Genre fans may enjoy seeing Liam Neeson reprise his role as retired black-ops agent Bryan Mills, but spoilsports will quickly realize they've seen all this Bourne-like action before. The Paperboy, on the other hand, Loder writes, is a swamp-gothic shocker filled with wild narrative jolts and juicy, whole-hog performances by Matthew McConaughey, Nicole Kidman, and John Cusack. It's never dull, and it has a vintage B-movie scumminess that sucks you in. Finally, there's the new pop musical Pitch Perfect. Even those with no interest in the world of collegiate a cappella competitions—or no idea that such a world existed—are likely to respond to the movie's many pleasures, Loder says.