Taking Lives

Review by Clint Morris

Never as good as the book they say. Well, if that’s the case, then D.J Caruso’s Taking Lives has taken an early exit off the freeway of conformity, because there’s much more excitement here than in any one page of Michael Pye’s so-so novel.

Granted, Taking Lives isn’t Ben Hur, it isn’t even a landmark moment for the thriller genre, but what it manages to be is a stylish leave-your-brain-in-the-foyer popcorn thriller, and it’ll leave the hairs on the back of your neck standing up 'til weeks end.

You know the type. There’s a killer in the loose. He could be this guy, he could be that guy. No one’s quite sure.

Then there’s the easy manipulated agent on the case, that one person who we all know will outsmart the rogue by film’s end.

In this case, it’s Angelina Jolie carrying the cuffs and credentials as FBI profiler Illeana Scott. Turning up in Montreal to find a serial killer who is robbing his victims of their identities, Scott gets close to art dealer James Costa [Ethan Hawke], someone who’s sprung the executioner in action.

Believing he will lead them to the man, Costa is roped into helping the agency with their investigation, and yes, ultimately Mr Bad [Kiefer Sutherland] does come a-knocking.

The problem with serial killer thrillers is that we’ve seen too many of them over the years. They usually follow a standard formula, and it’s relatively easy for anyone to guess what’s going to happen next in any given scene.

Taking Lives suffers somewhat from the fate of such conditioning. We know that there aren’t too many avenues for the film to take, so guessing the who’s and why’s of the film are about as easy as unravelling chewing gum from under the theatre seat.

It’s hardly the film’s fault though – and obviously knowing it’s comparatively conventional does throw in a few welcome twists towards the end of the movie.

What works for this thriller that hasn’t worked for some of the other genre offers of late, though, is the cast. They’re first-rate.

Ethan Hawke is suitably mystifying, yet likable, as the token ‘bait’, Kiefer Sutherland is aptly cast as the shadowy suspect no.1, and Angelina Jolie – in a role very reminiscent of the one she played in The Bone Collector – immerses herself in the role of a smart, cordial agent that the audience can easily root for.

Funnily enough, Jolie’s character doesn’t even exist in Michael Rye’s book, but you seriously can’t imagine the movie without her. Okay, so it’s predictable as a cat near water and about as expected as an inebriated Caucasian near ouzo, but Taking Lives is a decent film all the same.

It’s sexy, smart and will probably be responsible for the lady from the back row jumping frontwards into your seat. Treat yourself to a good jolt.

3.5 out of 5

Taking Lives
Australian release: Thursday April 15th
Cast: Angelina Jolie, Ethan Hawke, Kiefer Sutherland, Olivier Martinez, Gena Rowlands.
Director: DJ Caruso.
Website: Click here.

Brought to you by MovieHole