User Reviews

This entertaining movie contains lots of fun, action, laughters and impressive races . The film is developed in Marseille where again we find the sympathetic young named Daniel, (Sami Naceri) driving a spectacular taxi . The foul-mouthed cabbie join forces with the bungler inspector named Emilien(Frederic Diefenthal). Daniel is the fastest Cabman with an attractive fiancée(Marion Cotillard), while Emilian goes after a gorgeous Inspector woman(Emma Sjoberg) and commanded by chief Commissaire(Bernard Farcey). The police Inspector is a complete inept behind the car and Daniel helps him to investigate the kidnapping a Japanase high authority and his love interest ,Inspector Sjoberg. When Daniel has problems , then he's forced to collaborate with Emilien. They pursue a gang of Japanese who attempt to kidnap the Minister of Defense and when they are on the heels of the band , the crooks drive a speed demon pursued by the taxi in a fast and furious race . This is an action-comedy film , chronicling the relationship between the narrow-minded cabdriver and the botcher cop ,among others amusing happenings.

The motion picture mingles noisy action , car pursuits, humor with tongue in cheek, shootouts, rip roaring and lots of amusement. From the beginning to the end the action packed is fast moving, provides fast and furious entertainment with overwhelming scenes. Displays nonstop action and is extremely bemusing and hilarious. There are chases galore in breathtaking velocity and with impressive finale race cars, filmed by magnificent stunts and excellent visual effects. Colorful cinematography and appropriate musical score fitting to action by Khemya. The picture is lavishly produced by great producer and director Luc Besson and well directed by Gerard Krawczyk (Fanfan La Tulipe, Wasabi, Heroines). Followed by more sequels Taxi 3(2003) y Taxi 4(2007), all directed by Gerard Krawczyc and same actors ; furthermore an American version with Queen Lafitah, Henry Simmons and Jimmy Fallon, being directed by Tim Story. The flick will appeal to adrenaline enthusiasts and those young people looking for amusing and strong emotions. It's a must see for the cars aficionados.

As usual, the IMDB users who feel they belong to the upper eschilons of film society have mocked this, a film which is genuinely funny.

From the start the film is funny - a rally car being overtaken by a taxi - 'Tourists!' as he calls them. Some great exhibition driving, good stunts and a black impenetrable car which starts when someone says ninja to it.

Some good gags, good laughs and overall a very funny film. Although I feel it loses some of its charm in translation, my very limited knowledge of French helped me appreciate a bit more than I would have.

This is definitely better than the original, it's more efficiently directed, faster in pace and funnier. The plot may be predictable, there are occasional moments of weak dialogue and Marion Cotilard who was so sublime as Edith Piaf in La Vie En Rose is given little to do as Lilly. That said, it is very funny, with some good gags. Plus the french locations are stunning, the car chases are awesome and the martial arts sequences are absolutely great. Other pluses are the snappy direction, a cool soundtrack and a smoking hot Emma Sjoberg (aka Wiklund). Also the pace is faster, and other than Sjoberg another standout was Bernard Farcy as Chief Inspector Gilbert who was hilarious at times. All in all, this is a fun sequel, and better than the first film in my opinion. 7/10 Bethany Cox

Though it isn't burdened with a heavy plot or serious acting, it's a great comedy. I don't know how it did in the USA, but here in Taiwan it was a hit. It's fresh and clean, and shows some nice French locations. But it's funny. Certainly, there are things taken from other films, but it really is funny.

This is a film which the whole family can enjoy, as there is very little violence and, as far as I could tell, no foul language. I rented the DVD, and unfortunately, it did not have an English soundtrack, only subtitles, but the translation was excellent, bringing a lot of the play on words into the mix.

I wonder how much those Peugeots go for...

I spent a nice time watching this movie. I was laughing nearly all the time. Although I can speak French but it was not enough to understand many of the wordplays which are also surely not appropriately translatable in the subtitles. As usual in the French comedy they have to mock of the authorities like the government, the police or the army. Even the French president and prime minister did not escape this fate. Generally it's a movie to have fun in it . Since the movie takes place in south France the Arab immigrants has to show up in it with their accent. Many of the dialogues were in fact a critic against things that happen in France like among others the maltreatment of some foreigners by the police.

There is nothing special concerning the scenario or the direction. Anyway one cannot expect to see a movie with a totally coherent scenario. It's rather a light movie for having fun not in a totally stupid manner as is the case in many comedies. The actors played there roles in an appropriate manner also without any special or outstanding acting.

When I was a kid, I watched this movie many times with Azerbaijani, Russian and Turkish dubbing. I knew this movie was set in France, but I didn't know how the French language would sound. Actually from my childhood movies, funny, entertaining.

An improvement on the first movie, Taxi 2 cuts loose and delivers bags of silly OTT comic book action and comedy and even adds ninjas into the mix for good measure. Pretty much the whole cast return and the movie has a great sense of fun from start to finish.

This time around, Émilien helps bumbling cop Daniel foil the plans of an evil Yakuza gang, who kidnap a top Japanese ambassador and try to hypnotise him to kill the French president. The plot may be incredibly silly, but it is hugely enjoyable.

Once again, there are loads of crashes and smashes (including a massive pile-up of police cars) and Daniel's 406 returns too, more souped up than ever (it even has wings!). There is also a smattering of martial arts action, which always goes down well with me: a team of ninjas perform some incredible acrobatics (involving Parkour-style free running), and Emma Sjöberg and Tsuyu Shimizu kick ass in a couple of fun scenes.

My only gripe is that Marion Cotillard doesn't get an awful lot to do in this film other than sit around and wait for Émilien to return; what a waste of a perfectly good honey!

Taxi 2 is undemanding, energetic fun and gets a respectable 6.5 out of 10 from me (rounded up to 7 for IMDb).

Taxi 2 is a classic example that it IS possible to make a great sequel ! It's got everything you'd expect from a future classic action-comedy ...and it's French !?! Well, it's no surprise to this critic. Author and producer Luc Besson hasn't let me down yet. The guy just doesn't make a bad movie ! Just go see it, you'll know what I'm talking about !

Yes, I found this sequel superior to the original. Action-wise they're on about the same level, but the comedy is much sharper here. The opening sequence alone, involving a woman giving birth right on the back seat of Daniel's taxi and his girlfriend on the phone mistaking the whole thing for something else entirely, is funnier than anything in the first film. There are good lines....

• "Petra, I didn't know you can speak Japanese"

• "It's on my file, sir. Right after my measurements"

• "Ah, I must have stopped reading at that point!"

...and even some elements of political satire. The energy level goes down a bit somewhere in the middle, but bounces back up in the last 20 minutes. Emma Sjöberg gets a more active part this time around, and there are some incredible martial arts moves performed by her, Tsuyu Shimizu, and a masked ninja. Daniel's taxi has increased capabilities, which include flying (!) and require the assistance of special effects, but the crashes (and the fast driving) still look smashingly real. There are also certain gags (how Emilien finally gets his driver's license, for example) that work much better if you know the original, so make sure to watch that one first. (**1/2)

Utterly xenophobic, ridiculous concepts, bumbling police officers and that Peugeot 406, Taxi 2 follows on from its predecessor, and while the term sequel is rather derogatory, it is a furthering of the story of the lives of Daniel and Emilien. And it's rather funny: but also slightly disappointing.

There are genuine moments of hilarity that course throughout this film, and Luc Bessons' "Taxi" brand is seemingly rather successful. The opening gambit launches you straight back into the world that we came to know with Daniel the, non-license holding, part time Taxi driver part time speed demon up to his usual tricks of 'saving the day' (albeit getting a pregnant woman to the hospital on time) and all feels rather natural and enjoyable. However, the trouble with sequels is that something extra or different must be added to the cocktail as to "prove" that there has been an evolution in the script writing, and that it's not merely a regurgitation of a previous concept. The point being that what they put in, is somewhat gimmicky and fan boyish.

In place of the ultra slick dead panned German Mercedes Gang, enabling classic lines such as "don't worry Sir we'll get the Krauts" or "Stuff the special German-French relationship, my grandfather fought in the trenches, this is personal", we are introduced to the Jacuzzi...I mean Yakuza. Amusing moments are achieved, as fore-mentioned, in particular an example of wonderfully xenophobic scripting whereby political cars are started and stop by saying either the word "ninja" or "nip". But you can't help feel it's a touch "Kiss Of The Dragony", in that the Japanese were introduced merely for the purpose of the xenophobic jokes and because Yakuza are seemingly "cool". There is no contextual binding that keeps the flow together as there is with the obvious animosity, or political lack of, between the French and Germans. Therefore, we are gifted a funny film, which unfortunately does feel a little forced, especially for plot, in places.

There are moments introduced to connect the two films together, which are not entirely necessary. Obviously the policing units will be the same, but to introduce subsidiary characters for incoherent "in-jokes" is tedious. Also the "modifications" to the Peugeot 406 are most unwelcome, providing an ending which is completely anti-climatic (or perhaps not depending if you can justify a building 'to' a climax) and does not carry the same interest and comic genius the original possessed (everyone I know who has ever seen the first films ending has positively wet themselves).

Taxi 2 is definitely amusing though, and I was torn between presenting this film with a five or six, because why the film is a good lark and entertaining viewing, it's neither funny enough, entertaining enough or original enough to warrant the praise of its predecessor. It is certainly worth a viewing, but I would advise watching the original first for a multitude of reasons, the in jokes yes, but mainly because it's a better film, if you have however and you're feeling like an amiable comedy to brighten up your evening, then make your way to your local video rental or hit the highstreets. Taxi!!..

Sometimes you're in mood to see an "Easy-to-watch" movie, a movie that not requires you to sit tight and be concentrated while watching. Taxi 2 is certainly such a movie, and if you're a Car-fanatic, you're in for the ride of your life! As it is not necessary to have seen the first film, I strongly recommend it, especially if you like this one!

I just felt like mindless entertainment yesterday and this fills the bill nicely. Luc Besson follows up his successful Taxi with taxi 2, and a new director Gérard Krawczyk (The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc), who he will keep for the next two sequels.

The regulars are back: Samy Naceri as Daniel, Frédéric Diefenthal as Émilien, Marion Cotillard as Lilly, and Emma Wiklund as Petra. Jean-Christophe Bouvet (Marie Antoinette) joins the cast as a General and Lilly's father.

A family meeting with Lilly's parents is interrupted as Daniel once again is thrust into the savior role and works with Emilien to save the Japanese ambassador, who is inspecting a new police vehicle and anti-gang tactics. Of course, the Yakuza is involved, as they do not want these things in Japan.

The usual action and laughs with some karate thrown in. Petra dazzles us with her moves sans underwear, along with Japanese beauty Tsuyu Shimizu.

This film sees Emilien make the moves towards Petra, while Daniel's love life with Lilly is constantly interrupted.

Good clean fun as only the French can do.

This movie is a sequel to the first film Taxi(1998) this movie isn't a continuation of the plot of Taxi (1998). Plot is confusing since this movie is in French and I had to watch it with subtitles. I Couldn't take this movie seriously but if you really like Taxi (1998) then I guess you can watch this movie. Some Characters are not in the action scene but camera is brought back to them when they shouldn't be in the movie or at least as much as they received. The Jokes and scenes that are meant to be funny are out of control. The camera control is okay and the movie has weaponry which shouldn't be required or used in the scenes that they are used in. This is a movie that has Criminals be smart and effective but the police be less effective than a security guard. Seriously a security guard with a hard gun is more deadly than 20 of the police men from this film.

this is a not bad series in my mind.when i saw "Taxi 2",i felt that it could make me laugh always,especially at the beginning when that woman who was pregnant got on that taxi:P also it was very funny when he explained to his girlfriend.dont ya think that it was very smiliar to the movie named "Meet The Parents"when he got home to meet the parents of his girlfriend?and that father also was so funny! anyway,for me,"Taxi 2" was really a good movie.but one problem here is that it was 2 short!when i felt so high,"the end"coming to the screen!it really made me feel a little disappointed! whatever,have to say that this movie was good for someone who likes laughing always just like me.cuz it was really easy to make ya feel fun!

... the first part, but still funny enough and worthwhile. If you liked the first one, you'll like this one too. Is it necessary to know/have seen the first movie? It really isn't, but I'd still watch it, if I were you.

Luckily the US-remake wasn't successful, so there wasn't a second part. On the contrary the french original got the remake and although not improving anything in particular from part one, it still is a nice addition to the movie franchise. With the main characters still struggling with their problems (some of which are still present from part one), you can enjoy this nearly as much as the original take. Still no story/plot to be found, but that was to be expected!

I like many French comedies and it is good that there are new ones made. But the jokes in Taxi 2 are silly. This film is in fact no stand-alone piece of cinema, rather just a longer advertisement for Peugeot. OK, this is an all-European cliche: good guys drive home-made cars, the bad guys drive foreign cars. But here, it just goes too far. Only one question is really interesting: has Petra her pants on in the final fighting scene or not? Check your slow motion button... Forget the movie: go rather for French hip hop on the soundtrack.

Taxi 2 is the 2000 sequel to 1998's French answer to many-an American buddy films filtered by way for car enthusiasts, which was simply entitled 'Taxi'. While it's fair to say I barely liked either, Taxi 2 didn't frustrate; annoy nor bore me as much as the first film did, in fact at times it was pleasant to see it venture down the routes it did purely because it meant refraining from doing what it did so badly in the first film. Although Taxi 2 certainly sees a similar set up for the first one. Rough-and-ready cabbie Daniel (Naceri) is called upon to help out fumbling and bumbling police officer Émilien (Diefenthal) in taking down some criminals for sake of global relations between nations France and Japan. Some annoying things are retained from Taxi, others were banished; some new problems came about, others didn't bother me so much. On the whole, it's 88 minutes of some rather cynical entertainment that's stupid enough to work if you excuse the odd thing; but this is probably the highest amount of praise you can give to it.

Taxi 2's been moved to French capital Paris from the sunny, southern city of Marseille; I'm thinking because the first was such an unexpected hit and most international audiences have been deemed too stupid to know what or where Marseille is, thus shifting it to somewhere French they have heard of is the easiest way to give them a sense of familiarity. The jump is a shifting of which is so senile, that the arrival by way of parachute into said city goes so far as to encompass the Eiffel Tower planted within the composition. The film begins with Daniel and his taxi, a suped-up Peugeot, winning a rally race without meaning to. He's speeding, and it's all made to look like a lot of fun; but where the first encouraged reckless driving and fetishised automobiles in a way that was positively ridiculous, Taxi 2 pokes fun at these criticisms by having him in the process of rushing a woman to a hospital as she's about to give birth. His urgent driving suddenly given a sense of justification and there feels a meek reason to it; whereas in the first, it was breaking speed limits and traffic codes under a sickly banner of the 'fun' and of the comedic. Daniel's girlfriend is Lilly (Cotillard), and he wants her to be his wife; but this is something he has to get past her father, a general, and a real strict case. Eventually, the film will branch out into a daft process of Daniel proving himself to this individual as he undertakes the given quest.

The first Taxi film's inclusion of the odd relationship between French state and French civilian remains in this sequel, captured resolutely in a scene that sees a top ranked French state official attempt to don hero of the hour Daniel with a suit, but it's too small and Daniel's build tears through it - his blue French football jersey piercing through the fabric in what is an attempt at all encompassing, all consuming state formality being torn through and therefore foiled by working class, knock-about French youth in the Zidane labelled football kit. His buddy Émilien is still a loser, and the police are still generally incompetent; Émilien finally passes his driving test out of his instructor's pity and then gets beaten up by his crush Petra (Wiklund) in a karate class. Overseeing most of the film's events is the xenophobic as-ever police Commissaire named Gibert (Farcy), a somewhat disgraceful customer whose chief source of humour revolved around nationalism and racism in the first and continues the trend here; the film going so far as to encompass a racial slur towards the Japanese which casually switches off a voice-responsive car, something Gibert blurts out with much glee every time the time comes to utter it.

The loose, loose plot sees the Japanese minister of defence visit France but then kidnapped by some gangsters; it was Germans in the first film, now it's the Japanese Yakuza, whom aren't cackling Aryan's like the Germans were but are black leather jacket and shades sporting nasties whom do not smile. Also, because it's all linked to the Far East 'n' all, the film goes so far as to incorporate daft kung-fu sequences purely there out of the fact the Japanese are the enemy. All this allows Daniel to, as mentioned, prove himself to his father-in-law-to-be General and the everyman to bail the state out of trouble once again.

What I liked was that the car chases do not exist in the writer's mind to purvey a negative sense, rather they were encompassed righteously for positive reasons instead of 'crazy driving is funny/good'. Petra and Émilien's relationship sees her match him and adopt a stronger role this time round, rather than have her merely exist so as to be ogled at by the aforementioned inept cop. Additionally, action is not as key in this addition and the cars are not given as much of a focus as they were in the first; when eerie fetishisations of the things were given more due attention. Taxi 2 is pretty infantile, but there was something consistently interesting on a very basic level in the two leads doing everything they do out of love for respective people; the speedy car sequences servicing a point rather than just having them there for sake of it and that sense of something at stake feeling more prominent this time around. This, while the basic sense of nationalistic pride, in the commissioner's character, being punished and put through a series of humiliations for possessing these beliefs, when his entire operation is sabotaged by those he deems unworthy; inferior and below him ie; the Japanese. Taxi 2 won't be for everyone; as it was, I found it just about interesting enough.

I think this film is above average. Most of the jokes work and the stunt scenes are really good. And of course you got to see Emma Sjöberg, doing some very, ahm, impressive karate/judo moves ;-) Then there are some cameos of characters from the first film, which really make you laugh. On the other side some things really bring the film down. First the on-screen time of Chief Inspector Gibert. It was way too much! Secondly the computer animation is pretty obvious (because you can see directly what is done via CGI). And of course the ending... I mean what is this? Big action sequence, gangsters are trapped, suddenly the screen goes black and the credits roll... Hello??? What is that supposed to be? Had Luc Besson no ideas left or what?

This film brings nothing new to the screen compared to the first Taxi. Still it had its moments, so if you got some time to waste, then this one may be something for you. 6/10

The plot of the movie is very thin. This time, the gang is Japanese. It kidnaps the Japanese minister of National Defense. Chases in Marseilles and Paris to save him. The same actors, the same gags. The characters are caricatures. Frederic Diefenthal still can't drive, Samy Naceri goes faster than the best pilots in the best cars. The police is very, very stupid (huge pile-up of police cars in a Blues Brothers style). The captain of police is ridiculous, the nice young German girl shows us her legs more. But the chases are somewhat better, with real collisions and accidents. But it still doesn't dethrone 'Bullit' or 'the burglars' chases. However, sometimes the stunts sound strangely out of tune, compared to classical American comparisons (Ronin, Striking distance and so on...) It is fun, but really dumb. Special thoughts for the two victims of the accident that occurred during a car stunt shot.

Having seen the first Taxi movie and anticipating release of the 3rd this month, I've decided to rent this film on DVD. Well, it wasn't really worth that warm summer evening.

The plot line stumbles already in the beginning. It seems like the director has just finally managed to get his previous cast together and decided to film whatever was available scrip-wise by that time. Not much was it. Apart from nice decor of south-France landscapes and some parts of the film so typical to the French comedies in 70's-80's (dinner with a father-general is a perfect example), all the signs are that so promising Taxi-franchise has turned into a cheap ninja-production.

For the second franchise, the director changes, but not the screenwriter (still Luc Besson). The change in direction does not affect the film. Perhaps the direction of the actor, which seems less heavy, less schematic.

The screenwriter takes up the framework of the first: here the Marseille police face Yakuzas, and adds more information on the secondary characters (the father of Mario Cotillard for example, a career soldier). The whole remains an action comedy, with beautiful images of Marseille in the background. The canvas is therefore the same, with the resourceful Samy Nacéri, and the stupid Frédéric Diefenthal.

This franchise is an anthology of caricatures: Japanese (necessarily Yakuza), military (necessarily military...), women (necessarily sexual issues or in the kitchen or good at making children), except the German, rather not too disadvantaged even if it is a sexual issue for the moron on duty, the Marseillais necessarily lazy and resourceful. Etc.

The stunts remain spectacular and the "old-fashioned" side, that is to say without the complete digital arsenal (98% computer-generated image) gives the crumpled sheet metal a texture of which the digital is incapable (even with a rendered ultra realistic, it sounds necessary).

This franchise is perfect as a catalog of the chromos of the time (music, societal).

The main interest of the film remains Bernard Farcy, whose delusions and misogynistic, phallocratic or racist antics give the character a human side, surprisingly. He does so much that he becomes sympathetic.

I saw this one earlier than I expected. Fortunately I had the chance to buy the DVD in Paris. Even though it had no subtitles at all, I managed to understand almost every word, a thing which didn't happened in the first one (which I could see subtitled). I had an anxiety to see this one, since "Taxi 1" was really cool and funny. What can I say from this one? Well, I'll quote one of the people who made a comment: It's really more stupid and more idiotic, but it's more fun and really more exciting to watch. There was more money thrown in this one, and it shows. Even so, a thing keeps me from liking this movie more: there was a novelty and a freshness to the first that "Taxi 2" doesn't have. Even so, like the director Krawczyk said "it's like a new tintin episode: same characters, new plot". This really makes us think that there is no definite storyline between the two movies, which can really encourage the eventual production of "Taxi 3", which could be really exciting if the production team can notice the trouble with the first and the second, take some of the most basic humor, add maybe some cool charismatic characters (Jean Reno in the Taxi series would be simply magic, for example) and maybe using a 406 coupé this time ;). Altogether a cool movie, with quite incredible moments. A star of its own, detached from the first movie. 7 out of 10.