Classic story with good guy (well, good might be stretching it), in this case the father, trying to save chick from the bad guys. The bad guys are of course totally dislikeable murderous thugs with a distinctly below average intelligence.
Mel Gibson plays the role of ex-con, caring father and kick-ass protector of his daughter quite well. He pretty much makes this movie which is a roller-coaster action ride. As with most of this type of action flicks the story and script is fairly mediocre. His old and not very trustworthy friend for example was not really adding any value and his actions was soooo predictable.
The thugs, although certainly projecting the required amount of “despicable bad-guy-ness”, were really nothing more than that. Stupid, stupid and more stupid. How they even manage to track John and Lydia down all the time is really beyond me.
With that said it was a enjoyable movie. The one were you just relax in the sofa, watch the scenery and arses being kicked. The stuff that Mel Gibson is really good at.