Taking Lives (2004)

Originally Written

Thursday, March 6, 2008

The best ingredient in a thriller is mystery. If you can't keep the viewer guessing and on the edge of their seat then you haven't reached the goal of making a successful thriller. Taking Lives usually receives a bad rap, and that's because it fails in this one necessary ingredient. While the film boasts some talented actors, the script and their performances are at most times short of average, with a mystery that's a little too predictable.

Angelina Jolie is an FBI pro-filer named Illena, brought in to investigate a string of serial killings in Canada. The killer assumes the identity of the victim and lives out their life until discovered or the urge to kill again arises. Illena's investigation in the case begins to slowly turn up leads but she begins to get distracted when she starts to begin a relationship with one of the key witnesses to one of the murders, a man named Costa, played by Ethan Hawke. Their romance leads Illena to make some major mistakes which could cost her not only her job but her life.

Taking Lives isn't as horrible as most people make it out to be. It's true the film is incredibly predictable and you'll probably have a pretty good guess who the killer is and what the "surprise" twist will be within the first 20 minutes, but as a film in general it's really not Razzie material and I was a little surprised Angelina Jolie was actually nominated for a Razzie for her role in this. I'm not a big fan of Jolie or Hawke but I thought they both portrayed their characters well enough, although I didn't think the two of them had any chemistry going whatsoever, which made their romance seem forced and the pointless sex scene even more forced. Overall, it's not a great film, and I don't recommend running out to rent it, but if you happen to catch it being shown on TV and you have nothing else to do it's a descent crime thriller with a few scenes that do catch you a little by surprise.

5/10