Abduction (2011)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Alexander D

  
  ABDUCTION isn't a total bomb, but there are two key areas that proved enough as misfires to bring it pretty close. The first of these was the characters. Putting aside the fact that even by the end of the film, we still can't differentiate the trustworthy characters from… More
  ABDUCTION isn't a total bomb, but there are two key areas that proved enough as misfires to bring it pretty close. The first of these was the characters. Putting aside the fact that even by the end of the film, we still can't differentiate the trustworthy characters from the cunning criminals, I'll state the main headache plain as day: we don't really care about Taylor Lautner's character (self-proclaimed "Team Jacob", I won't try to argue with you). Had we a more likable character with a same situation, rather than one who started the movie off by passing out on a friend's lawn, the story would have been more interesting. His character got uneven as the film went on: what kind of "cool kid" cries five times in the course of less than two hours? We would think that someone who was taught to be a great fighter by his father (the one who raised him) would have enough emotional strength to hold back tears, but it often doesn't happen. And that's probably the only point at which the story (misfire number two) isn't predictable. Believe it or not, I watched this because I wanted to see how awful it actually was. I had not heard one good thing about it at all. Once I heard from someone that every action was predictable, I tried to rent this as soon as possible to detect how much of an exaggeration that was. I was shocked by the infinitesimal amount of stretching imposed upon the truth with that statement. I wouldn't say I predicted 100% of the film, but it's somewhere around 80%. Which is a bummer, because I'm terrible at predicting even the most broad points of movies. The premise was so open and familiar that the twist on which the film ended became obvious to me a good amount of time before it actually occurred. That said, followers of "Team Jacob" (*cough, cough* the main part of what's wrong with the world today) will love this film, but that's because they'll be looking over everything except Taylor. I'll admit to turning off my mind for a few minutes to try and enjoy the action sequences, but after a few minutes or so, I got bored. READ THE FULL REVIEW OF THIS DREADFULLY TYPICAL ACTION MOVIE: themoviefreakblog.wordpress.com/2012/04/13/review-abduction/

• Candy R

  
  It's like a young Bourne Identity. Teenager discovers his parents aren't his real parents. He doesn't know who to trust.

• ♥˩ƳИИ &

  
  Cast: Taylor Lautner, Lily Collins, Alfred Molina, Jason Isaacs, Maria Bello, Michael Nyqvist, Sigourney Weaver, Antonique Smith, Denzel Whitaker Director:John Singleton Summary: When teenager Nathan comes across his own childhood picture while scrolling through a missing persons… More
  Cast: Taylor Lautner, Lily Collins, Alfred Molina, Jason Isaacs, Maria Bello, Michael Nyqvist, Sigourney Weaver, Antonique Smith, Denzel Whitaker Director:John Singleton Summary: When teenager Nathan comes across his own childhood picture while scrolling through a missing persons website, he begins to question everything he ever took for granted -- including the people he always assumed were his parents. My Thoughts: "I wasn't looking forward to seeing this film, I had been warned how awful it was, but yet here I am giving my thoughts on it and I have a 13yr old to thank for it. Now to the movie... I tried to look past how ridiculous Taylor Lautner's acting is but I couldn't. It was like instead of acting, he was trying to make sure he was coming off really cool. His acting leaves something to be desired. I did think Lily Collins was good in the movie. So was the small parts of Maria Bello and Jason Issacs. The movie is filled with talented actor's and actresses who unfortunately aren't used nearly enough. Lautner comes off too stiff and needs to relax and become the character and not try to put himself into it so much. Oh and am I the only one who thought the kissing scene on the train was gross and awkward? I felt sorry for the girl. It sounded like her face was being sucked off. I actually liked Taylor in the 'Twilight' films. I don't know what went wrong in this one for him. But his acting wasn't the only bad thing. I could also blame the weak story. Maybe he'll do better in future film with a better script."

• Al S

  
  A fairly entertaining and thrilling action movie. A surprisingly smart, stylish and suspensful stunt-packed thriller that keeps your heart-pouunding every step of the way. Its full of fire-power, fist, kicks and fantastic stunt work.

• Everett J

  
  "Abduction" is a movie made for one sole purpose, to show off Taylor Lautner. While he has the look, he can't act and has zero charisma. Just like this movie, so it's a perfect match. The movie is bland, the story is weak, and the action is lame at best.… More
  "Abduction" is a movie made for one sole purpose, to show off Taylor Lautner. While he has the look, he can't act and has zero charisma. Just like this movie, so it's a perfect match. The movie is bland, the story is weak, and the action is lame at best. Lautner(Nathan) is a teenager who feels "different" on the inside from everyone else. Then one day he comes across a website that shows his picture as a missing child. From there, he is chased by Russian assassins and the CIA. Actually, no one gets abducted in this movie(and its called abduction!). If your a Lautner fan, or a fan of horrible action movies, then this is for you. Otherwise, steer clear of this cause it'll be found in the crap section.

• Mark R

  
  John Singletonâ(TM)s ABDUCTION is the type of movie not seen as often nowadays as in the past: the action star vehicle. These films, which seemed to come in an endless supply during the 1980s action star heyday, usually exist for no other reason than to promote their leading man (or… More
  John Singletonâ(TM)s ABDUCTION is the type of movie not seen as often nowadays as in the past: the action star vehicle. These films, which seemed to come in an endless supply during the 1980s action star heyday, usually exist for no other reason than to promote their leading man (or occasionally woman) and their often dubious talents. Here, Taylor Lautner steps out of his supporting role in the TWILIGHT franchise and into his first starring role as Nathan, the high schooler on the run from a past he knows nothing about. As is typical of the star vehicle, Lautnerâ(TM)s shortcomings as an actor, not to mention those of dreadful love interest Lily Collins, are minimised by surrounding him with strong supporting players such as Sigourney Weaver, Alfred Molina, and, clearly having a blast as Nathanâ(TM)s â~parentsâ(TM), Maria Bello and Jason Isaacs. The trick works for the most part, with Weaver being the only disappointing exception, as she delivers her lines in such an unconvincing manner, and is clearly only in it for the paycheck. As colossally stupid as the film is, ABDUCTION moves along at a brisk pace and never feels particularly boring. Thereâ(TM)s a certain masochistic pleasure in watching Lautner do his best to display any kind of emotion other than broody squinting, and while at times he honestly looks like he has no idea what he is doing, Singleton gives him several opportunities to take his shirt off and show the only real reason that heâ(TM)s a star. Which brings me to maybe the most underwhelming aspect of this entire mess, Singleton himself. How did this filmmaker, the youngest ever to be nominated for a directing Oscar (for BOYZ IN THE HOOD), end up making this kind of throwaway teen trash? With the exception of 2001â(TM)s excellent but underseen BABY BOY, Singleton seems to have moved further and further away from the initial promise he displayed, and ABDUCTION is without question his lowest point yet. In the right crowd, it is probably a fun film with plenty to poke fun at but, much like its star, is ultimately a vapid and moronic product wrapped in a pretty package. tinribs27.wordpress.com

• Manu G

  
  What if your entire life was a lie? Not bad yet not that great either. The movie entertains at times but it's also a little slow for my taste, there were a few holes undeveloped in this movie and few were not even clear. Could have been way better than it was. I can't… More
  What if your entire life was a lie? Not bad yet not that great either. The movie entertains at times but it's also a little slow for my taste, there were a few holes undeveloped in this movie and few were not even clear. Could have been way better than it was. I can't really say that the movie sucks because it doesn't but this was all the writer's and director's fault. Can't recommend this film because you might like it or not so you decide. Nathan, a teen, along with his friend, Karen finds a website that has photos of children who are missing or believed to have been abducted. They decide to age one of the photos and discover that is of Nathan as a child. He contacts the person who placed the photo to find out what's going on. The person on the other end only wants to know info about Nathan so Nathan hangs up. The person then contacts someone in Europe and shows him a photo of the one who called. He then heads for the U.S. Nathan then wonders is it true, was he abducted. He tells his "mom" who then tells him she and his "father" will tell him. But before they can, two men claiming to be cops show up wanting to talk to Nathan, and when he isn't found they pull guns and demand Nathan be given to them. His parents fight them but are killed. Nathan runs but remembers that he asked Karen to come over and one of them tries to get rough with her but Nathan saves and they escape just as the house blows up. They go to the hospital so that Karen can treated. Nathan calls 911 to report what happened but finds himself talking to a man named Burton who says he's with the CIA and that his parents were too. He tells Nathan to wait for some people he is sending to pick him. But Nathan's therapist shows up telling him that they have to go. She tells him that she and his parents were asked by his real father to take care of him. She warns him not to trust Burton. She tells him to go an apartment in Virginia. When he gets there, he sees the kind of person his father is. When Karen tries to call her relatives, her call is again intercepted by the CIA. Nathan decides to get out and sets out to find his mother whose address he found in his father's apartment.

• Tyler C

  
  The 4th worst movie I've seen this year. Yes Taylor Lautner's acting is awful, but he's definitely not the biggest blame for how much this film sucks! Trust me there's a lot more reasons!

• Dead A

  
  Not as exciting as it tried to be. It was worthless.

• Scott G

  
  would you expect any less from such a low rated actor like Taylor? I didn't.

• Cory T

  
  With the same furrowed brow and inexpressive face, the interminably wooden Lautner leaps around the screen like a frog. The plot is similar to a lobotomized John Le Carre spy novel without the ensnaring political factions or plausible plot. Everything is telegraphed early on. For… More
  With the same furrowed brow and inexpressive face, the interminably wooden Lautner leaps around the screen like a frog. The plot is similar to a lobotomized John Le Carre spy novel without the ensnaring political factions or plausible plot. Everything is telegraphed early on. For example, his black friend is adept at creating fake ID's which is handily implemented when they must go off-the-grid. His friend also possesses game tickets to a Pirates baseball game which is where the climax takes place. Most of the exposition scenes are unintentionally funny such as when a calm Weaver explains to a panicky Lautner that he must dive out of an accelerating vehicle and discard his girlfriend. John Singleton has officially retired from profound, meaningful filmmaking about the urban jungle for an unbearably self-serious CW teen soap opera pilot.

• Brad W

  
  Abduction is a incredibly boring a worthless action film, and is just another excuse for hating Taylor Lautner. The story is about Nathan (Taylor lautner) who discovers his parents are not really his parents. When men come and murder his parents, he must escape men trying to kill… More
  Abduction is a incredibly boring a worthless action film, and is just another excuse for hating Taylor Lautner. The story is about Nathan (Taylor lautner) who discovers his parents are not really his parents. When men come and murder his parents, he must escape men trying to kill him and discover who his real parents are and why all this is happening. A story this terrible is hardly ever found in movies, because I truly thought the film was so boring, so stupid, and so pointless that it stands as one of the worst story lines of this year. The cast in this film is like watching a bunch of 5 year old playing in the backyards with toy guns, I mean seriously, the only resaon they had Taylor Lautner was to make retarded girls scream "OMG Taylor Lautner" and come on Sigourney weaver, you can do better than crap like this. The action was pretty pointless, I mean there was not one moment where I was excited, or into it, all I saw was Taylor Lautner trying to be a bad@$$ but in reality he is a wimp. This is not the worst movie of 2011, on the contrary there are many worse than it, but it still is one of the worst and I truly hated this movie and plan on never watcing again if I am lucky.

• Liam G

  
  ''Abduction'' met my expectations. Those expectations were very low. It's not a god-awful piece of garbage, but across the board it's very weak. The acting is mediocre but the dialogue is absolutely horrible, laughable at times. The film's plot is… More
  ''Abduction'' met my expectations. Those expectations were very low. It's not a god-awful piece of garbage, but across the board it's very weak. The acting is mediocre but the dialogue is absolutely horrible, laughable at times. The film's plot is extremely convoluted which forbids you to care about what is going on. The action isn't particulary exciting or engaging which makes ''Abduction'' a pretty bad action movie. Taylor Launtner has a chance of being a solid action star, but this isn't that chance.

• KJ P

  
  "Abduction" decides to take Taylor Lautner and place him in a career defining role. Only problem, it ruins him. This film truly has no plot, but a mere idea that goes absolutely nowhere and is never answered. We get an A-list cast pushed off to the sidelines and hardly ever… More
  "Abduction" decides to take Taylor Lautner and place him in a career defining role. Only problem, it ruins him. This film truly has no plot, but a mere idea that goes absolutely nowhere and is never answered. We get an A-list cast pushed off to the sidelines and hardly ever seen until a big moment comes, in which they are subdued to cheesy lines that will make any audience member laugh. After the first 10 minutes pass, you begin to feel something good coming, but I must tell you that you are wasting your time. This film is too slow, the action is forced and staged, the acting is wooden and laughable, the plot makes no sense, and it was honestly a waste of 106 minutes. Even though the action is forced, it does have a little bite to it, being the only thing to keep me interested. The camera angles are simple and it seems like a high school film graduate could have handed the director a diploma and walked on set. This film has a lot going for it, but nothing happens, and by the end of the movie, we are told something that we already knew from the beginning, but never told why. The saddest part is that it is left open for a sequel. I hope this film fails, because it has definitely failed as a piece of film. There is absolutely no reason for it to have been made, and it follows every cliche in the book, without an interesting twist. Overall, "Abduction" is a terrible movie, with a couple of intriguing scenes! John Singleton is capable of so much more!

• Michael S

  
  Taylor Lautner in "Razzie" mode fronting what is one of the worst films you'll see all year (or not see if you're lucky). John Singleton has always been hit-or-miss as a director, but "Abduction" is a new low as far as his filmography is concerned. This… More
  Taylor Lautner in "Razzie" mode fronting what is one of the worst films you'll see all year (or not see if you're lucky). John Singleton has always been hit-or-miss as a director, but "Abduction" is a new low as far as his filmography is concerned. This is the same guy that brought us "Boyz N the Hood," "Rosewood," and the very entertaining "Four Brothers," which is puzzling. The supporting talent is really the only positive here. Stay clear folks.

• Shawn M

  
  Despite my hatred for the recent sequels of Twilight, I always wanted to see ah "Jacob" go crazy and actually fight somebody and not turn into a dog. This done it, Thank You! and was a fresh, yet predictable movie, but I still had my eyes glued to the action and… More
  Despite my hatred for the recent sequels of Twilight, I always wanted to see ah "Jacob" go crazy and actually fight somebody and not turn into a dog. This done it, Thank You! and was a fresh, yet predictable movie, but I still had my eyes glued to the action and "Mission Impossible" type story line, Couldn't help but notice how many references of Twilight they put in it, "OMG, THERE IS JACOB ON HIS DIRT BIKE" very cool.... Abduction is a must see movie, don't get me wrong, put your feelings for Twilight aside and give it a try, I'm sure you'll be barely disappointed.

• Bradley W

  
  Abduction is a incredibly boring a worthless action film, and is just another excuse for hating Taylor Lautner. The story is about Nathan (Taylor lautner) who discovers his parents are not really his parents. When men come and murder his parents, he must escape men trying to kill… More
  Abduction is a incredibly boring a worthless action film, and is just another excuse for hating Taylor Lautner. The story is about Nathan (Taylor lautner) who discovers his parents are not really his parents. When men come and murder his parents, he must escape men trying to kill him and discover who his real parents are and why all this is happening. A story this terrible is hardly ever found in movies, because I truly thought the film was so boring, so stupid, and so pointless that it stands as one of the worst story lines of this year. The cast in this film is like watching a bunch of 5 year old playing in the backyards with toy guns, I mean seriously, the only resaon they had Taylor Lautner was to make retarded girls scream "OMG Taylor Lautner" and come on Sigourney weaver, you can do better than crap like this. The action was pretty pointless, I mean there was not one moment where I was excited, or into it, all I saw was Taylor Lautner trying to be a bad@$$ but in reality he is a wimp. This is not the worst movie of 2011, on the contrary there are many worse than it, but it still is one of the worst and I truly hated this movie and plan on never watcing again if I am lucky.

• Cameron J

  
  As creepily obsessed as he is with Bella, it was only a matter of time before Jacob just went ahead and "abducted" her. Of course, I'd imagine that ol' Jakey Boy didn't count on having to face off against Mikael Blomkvist, and with Doc Ock not being entirely… More
  As creepily obsessed as he is with Bella, it was only a matter of time before Jacob just went ahead and "abducted" her. Of course, I'd imagine that ol' Jakey Boy didn't count on having to face off against Mikael Blomkvist, and with Doc Ock not being entirely trustworthy, he's having to count on Ellen Ripley to join him in taking out Rachel Weisz to avenge Maria Bello after her violent death at the hands of Weisz for stealing the Evelyn O'Connell role out from under her. Yeah right; after the reviews of the last installment of "The Mummy" series, I think Weisz will just go ahead and let Bello keep that role, which is a shame, because if Weisz did have a violent grudge on Bell, then there would have been just a slightly better chance of us getting a crazy movie like the one I just described. Man, I wish this movie way that cool, but I think this project was doomed the second they decided to have the should-be awesome main guy be the guy from "Twilight", Taylor... Swift, or which ever creepily tight-faced Taylor he's supposed to be. I wonder how many times I can say, "creepily" before someone asks, "Is that even a real word?" I don't know; how many hack editing missteps does it take before the editor says, "Wow, maybe that wasn't a very good cut"? Okay, the film, surprisingly, really isn't that bad, but neither is it that good, yet it doesn't get to mere mediocrity without the occasional saving grace that's strong enough to keep it going. The pretty bad soundtrack notwithstanding, the film undeniably starts off, not necessarily strong, but enjoyable. It's a touch slow here and there, and the development segment outstays its welcome after a while, but it's perfectly passable, and even after this film goes off to slip up again and again, there's some decent action here and there. Now, there are few terribly upstanding action sequences, but the choreography in every battle is, at worst, decent and, at best, pretty, well, awesome, actually. Still, those action sequences during the weaker body of the film aren't like cases of turning mud into gold, because even after this film's rather considerable drop in quality after the development segment, it rarely, if ever falls beneath passable. It's consistently incompetent, though not terribly so, and unlike something like a "Red Riding Hood" or "Beastly", this film isn't plagued with that deeply unlikable aura of aiming for lowest-common-denominator, partially because genuine effort feels as though it's being injected here. However, while that effort creates a kind of charm that saves this mess of the film, make no mistake, this is a mess of a film, and not just after the development segment. As consistent as the film is with its charming ambition, it's almost, if not decidedly more consistent in its missteps, as well as conventions. The film's early stages as a teen fluff piece is extremely conventional, right down its, as I said, really bad soundtrack (Sorry to bring it up again, but I can't get over the fact that these stupid kids now-a-days, or at least the people that think they know what stupid kids now-a-days like have such an awful taste in "music"), and even when the action-thriller story aspects come into play, they're not only just as conventional, but kind of spotty to the point of almost being ludacris at times. The twists and turns in the story are convoluted, a tad forced and over-the-top, adding further messiness to a story already tainted by cornball dialogue and even awkward editing. Now, when it came to timed-to-the-music quick cuts to a different scene, seeing as its such a basic trick (But still one I kind of dig), editor Bruce Cannon seemed to know what he was doing; but in every other aspect of editing, this is some pretty shoddy work, with so much incompetence that there are points where even the sound editing is off to the point of drowning out people's voices with music. Now, while the video editing isn't as spotty as that audio editing, many a scene cuts or even ends awkwardly, whether it be because Cannon cuts too late, or too soon, or just doesn't go with the right take, which isn't to say that he picks takes that make even our classic talents - like Sigourney Weaver and Alfred Molina - look bad. With all the complaints I'm hearing about how this film makes a variety of revered acting talents look weak, or even terrible, the people who have been in the business a while and recieved their praise as great talents are no less and no more than decent, with Maria Bello having an unexpected sequence of genuine emotion that she really delivers on and Michael Nyqvist being a fairly effective antagonist. Of course, the people you really need to worry about are the people who matter most: the leads, whether it be our cheesy, false-feeling love interest, the big-browed, but still pretty cute Phil Collins' daughter-I mean... um...- oh, right - Lily Collins (Sorry sweetie, but good luck shaking that off your record), or our main muchacho himself, Taylor Lautner, who is pulling a major "Bana at His Relative Best", where he's not consistently bad, but just so very mediocre, with very little charisma and the occasional moment where any level of emoting, when it's needed most, faults, sometimes embarassingly. However, where Eric Bana is just an awful actor that's too inept to even realize it (Shut up, overraters), you can really feel Lautner's ambition, giving him some degree of charm, not as the lead Nathan Haper character, but as an actor, and sure, charm isn't going to get him by his entire career, but this film, while still further testament to his weak acting abilities, still reflects some potential, and if nothing else gets you by, it is the palpable ambition of Lautner, who does not at all live up to those ambitions, but still provides enough of the acting presence to sustain your attention through all of his and film's missteps. Overall, the film has its high points in action, but is most of all saved by admittedly charming ambition from both the filmmakers and, yes, even Taylor Lautner, yet the ambitious charmers fail to give this film that extra push past mediocrity, with the filmmakers' work going plagued by conventional, poor-dialogue-ridden and sometimes silly writing, as well as plenty of shoddy editing, and our acting leads falling flat on too many level to earn your investment in them as more than just charmingly ambitious, thus leaving "Abduction" to stand as a passable, but unrewarding mess of a mostly limp thriller. 2/5 - Mediocre

• Dannielle A

  
  Why did everyone hate this movie? (only 4% of critics and 44% of users liked it.) I saw the previews for it, and was very excited based on what seemed to be a promising storyline. While there were a couple of holes (why was Nathan so important that his dad had to let someone else… More
  Why did everyone hate this movie? (only 4% of critics and 44% of users liked it.) I saw the previews for it, and was very excited based on what seemed to be a promising storyline. While there were a couple of holes (why was Nathan so important that his dad had to let someone else raise him and why was he that important to kill so many people when he didn't even have "the list" until after all the action was set into motion and probably never would have even touched it unless he was tipped off where to go by a random person who somehow just knew where to find him.) Yes, there were many holes and lots of unanswered questions, but if you just ignore them and enjoy the movie for what it is... it's actually not a bad way to spend 2 hours. It was a great suspenseful movie and had a lot of enjoyable action scenes. I give it three stars for trying. I disagree with everyone saying Lautner can't act. I think he's a fine actor, and will probably get better with age. Remember, he didn't grow up on screen like so many other young stars so he got a late start. Blame the script if you must... but don't blame the actors or director. I think they did great with what they had.

• Burger S

  
  Lots of great actors with really small parts, but one really terrible actor in the lead. When will this guys voice finally change?

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