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Just what I expected

Don't listen to the Hype. It's awful

Brilliant and touching

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

An enjoyable film from start to finish, twists and turns and plenty of action, similarities to a Harrison Ford film, if I recall correctly.

'Unknown' won't be everybody's cup of tea, something that is clear from reading the reviews and the mixed critical reception for it. It did have good potential, with an idea that although very familiar seemed interesting and the always watchable (and more often than not very good) Liam Neeson is enough to peak anyone's interest.Potential that wasn't quite lived up to fully. Enough of 'Unknown' does work, or at least to me it did (not everybody will agree and that's fine by me), but also from personal opinion what could have been a pretty good film turned out to be an above average but uneven one that could have done much more with what it had. It entertains and intrigues, but doesn't wow. Mostly 'Unknown' is a good looking film. the cinematography is slick and stylish, that and the suitably bleak setting often adding to the atmosphere created, and the lighting is moody and neither garish or drab. Editing is mostly tight. It's nicely scored, not intrusive but having presence, and the direction is solid.There is enough taut suspense and fun to keep one gripped and a few interesting twists. The action excites and the more dramatic scenes don't fall into the trap of losing momentum. Liam Neeson is likeable and commanding, while charming Diane Kruger and an immensely engaging Bruno Ganz as the most interesting character fare best of the rest of the cast. Frank Langhella similarly makes his mark, although his role is small. Sadly, there are exceptions to the acting, with Aidan Quinn blandly uncharismatic in his role. Worse is January Jones, playing her character as too much of the frostiest ice queen which to me seemed a wildly inappropriate approach to her character. The characters generally are pretty sketchy and too much of the dialogue is hammy and vague. While enough of the film grips, it does get preposterous, credibility-straining and less clear in story in the later stages up until the final twist and ending that is neither clever, original or satisfying. In the busier moments, the photography/editing tended to go wayward and look rushed rather than the controlled and slick film most of the film has. In summary, decent if unexceptional film that's worth staying known. 6/10 Bethany Cox

While the stunts, chases, fights and so on that pepper Jaume Collet-Serra's "Unknown" seem at times to push credibility to and beyond its limits, it transpires that they do not do so quite as much as we at first think, for this complex thriller story mostly hangs together well enough, if one is patient enough to wait for the twist in the tale to appear. There have been no shortage of "respectable guy goes to a foreign city and forgets who he is" kind of movies, and they are mostly worth a watch. But here an extremely intricate setup is involved, and mostly it's interesting and fun to see how it can possibly all work out...With that, a lot hangs on how credible Liam Neeson can seem as Dr Martin Harris ... and not Dr Martin Harris. Mostly Neeson seems up to the job, but if his character is to reform, the love and support of a good woman (at last) is a necessity, and a lovely (in every sense) Diane Kruger here comes over very well indeed as "Gina", an immigrant from somewhere to the east whose non-legal status in Berlin has given her some of the experience needed to "keep up" when Harris's life gets VERY complicated. Two other huge presences in the film are a spellbindingly-good Bruno Ganz as an ex-Stasi man (where we of course know that there can never be such a thing as an ex-Stasi man), and Frank Langella, who - as usual - puts in a great performance, this time as the coolly-likable-yet-horrible Rodney Cole.For me, a further star of the film is the (to me quite familiar) city of Berlin itself - tamed maybe, compared with its former status, but still giving the impression that anything just might happen there. Playing a key role is the Hotel Adlon Kempinski, just a stone's throw from the Brandenburg Gate, which has seen it's fair share of history (though what we see now is mostly the 1997 rebuild). There are plenty of other settings too, sumptuous or downmarket, and all help contribute to the tangible atmosphere that does quite a lot to make up for other, occasionally over-the-top elements.Overall, then, an intriguing and satisfying watch with a couple of very good parts well played to savour.

Judging by the poster and the plot synopsis this movie seemed like a cash-in on the success of "Taken" (even more so than "Taken 2"), but I was surprised by the different style and the fact that Neeson is slightly less implausibly bad-ass. He's just an average guy that tries to prove everybody is framing him, he doesn't do much fighting but it isn't required to keep the compelling plot interesting. The story is genuinely well-crafted and gives you a conclusion that you don't see coming from miles away (unless you're amazing at that type of thing). Oh, and Bruno "hey, isn't that Hitler from Der Untergang?" Ganz is in this, a highly underrated actor that effortlessly adds a bit of class to any movie he's in. In the end things may get a bit unbelievable, but the movie's twist is such a great find that I doubt you'll mind the lack of realism.