Taken (DVD)

Executive-produced by Steven Spielberg, the ten-episode, 20-hour miniseries Taken was one of the most ambitious projects undertaken by cable TV's Sci-Fi Network, ultimately costing 40 million dollars a price that proved well worth it, inasmuch as the series posted the network's highest-ever ratings. Covering a period from 1947 to the present, the story focused on three different families, each of whom was profoundly affected by extraterrestrial visitation. The Keys family was headed by WWII bomber pilot Russell Keys (Steve Burton), who spent virtually his entire adult life haunted by his close encounter with aliens. The Clarkes were originally represented by lonely Texas waitress Sally Clarke (Catherine Dent), who was impregnated by a charming stranger (Eric Close) who turned out to be an alien survivor of the Roswell crash. And the lives of the Crawfords were dictated by ruthless Army officer Owen Crawford (Joel Gretsch), who was determined to prove that the government had covered up the truth about Roswell by dedicating his life to tracking down all space aliens and their half-human descendants. The story was narrated by Allie Keys (Dakota Fanning), a hybrid child of the present day, whose story determined the outcome of the final episodes. Boasting impressive computer-generated special effects and eye-popping facial makeup, Taken was seen over a two-week period, beginning December 2, 2002, and ending on December 13.

Starring: Julie Ann Emery, Julie Benz, Emily Bergl, Steve Burton, Chad Donella, Dakota Fanning, Willie Garson, Adam Kaufman, James Kirk, Alonso Oyarzun, Andy Powers, Chad E. Donella, James N. Kirk, Eric Close, Catherine Dent, Heather Donahue, Matt Frewer, Joel Gretsch, Desmond Harrington, Ryan Hurst, Ryan Merriman, Chad Morgan, Michael Moriarty, Gabrielle Rose, Anton Yelchin, Tina Holmes, Julie Emery, Stacy Grant, Sadie Lawrence, Stephen E. Miller, Rob Labelle, Ian Tracey, Jason Gray-Stanford, John Hawkes, Kevin Durand, Philip Granger, Malcolm Stewart, Andrew Johnston, Ryan Robbins, Fred Keating, Fred Henderson, Colleen Winton, Esther Purves-Smith, Karen Austin, Bob Frazer, Glynis Davies, Shauna Kain, Alexander Pollock, Connor Widdows, Brenda James, Laurie Murdoch, Lachlan Murdoch, Helen Siff, Andrew Jackson, Enid-Raye Adams, Jonathon Young, Kurt Evans, Jerry Wasserman, Bob Wilde, Fred Koehler, Terry Chen, Sarah-Jane Redmond, Brent Stait, Branden Nadon, Ken Pogue, Jay Brazeau, Emily Holmes, Matthew Currie Holmes, Erin Karpluk, David Paetkau, Matt Hill, Fulvio Cecere, James Ashcroft, Ken Roberts, Keely Purvis, Jim Byrnes, Matthew Walker, Devin Douglas Drewitz, Alessandro Juliani, Ken Camroux, John B Lowe, Stephen Makaj, Terry David Mulligan, Taylor Anne Reid, Dean Wray, Brittney Irvin, Camille Sullivan, Byron Lucas, Joe MacLeod, Antonio Cupo, Ben Cotton, Alexandra Purvis, Elle Fanning, Brian Markinson, Janet Wright, Ralph Alderman, Nathaniel DeVeaux, Linda Ko, Rondel Reynoldson, Eileen Pedde, Jeff Topping, R. Nelson Brown, Tom Heaton, Don Thompson, Roger R. Cross, Michael Soltis, Timothy Webber, Max Martini, Tobias Mehler, Peter Bryant, Ty Olsson, Kurt Max Runte, Catherine Barroll, Christopher Harrison, Alison Matthews, Justin Chatwin, Sam Easton, Tim Henry, Michael Jeter, Gwynyth Walsh, Roger Haskett, Shawn Reis, Wendy Russell, Kevin G Schmidt, Suzette Meyers

Director: James Lima, Steve Beers

Rating: NR