Taking Lives - Director's Cut (Widescreen Edition)

Taking Lives - Director's Cut (Widescreen Edition)


Starring:Angelina Jolie, Ethan Hawke, Kiefer Sutherland, Gena Rowlands, Olivier Martinez, Tchéky Karyo, Jean-Hugues Anglade, Paul Dano, Justin Chatwin, André Lacoste, Billy Two Rivers, Richard Lemire, Julien Poulin, Marie-Josée Croze, Christian Tessier, Brigitte Bedard, Dominique Briand, Alex Sol, Shawn Roberts (II), Martin Brisebois
Director: D.J. Caruso
Studio: Warner Home Video
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Amazon.com
While it doesn't rank with such grim classics as The Silence of the Lambs and Seven, D.J. Caruso's Taking Lives offers similarly heavy atmosphere, beginning well before fizzling into absurdity. Freely adapted from the novel by Michael Pye, and set in Montreal (although it was filmed in Quebec City), the plot trades in several familiar tropes of the serial-killer genre, beginning with the FBI agent (Angelina Jolie) who brings her unique skills (and brooding, low-key demeanor) to the vexing case of a killer who, out of apparent self-loathing, steals the identities of his victims and lives their lives until it's time for the next gruesome murder. Ethan Hawke plays the killer's alleged next victim, and in a film filled with twists that grow increasingly unconvincing, Keifer Sutherland is menacingly cast as a shifty suspect. Caruso's previous film was the creepy drug thriller The Salton Sea, so he's well-qualified to infuse Taking Lives with a darkly stylish sense of dread and at least one good shock to keep your adrenaline flowing. The second half essentially betrays the promise of the first, but there's enough going on to hold your interest to the end. --Jeff Shannon
Description
A psychological thriller, Taking Lives is the story of an FBI agent who becomes involved with her key witness while tracking a prolific serial killer who assumes the lives and identities of the people he kills. She finds herself surrounded by numerous suspects and no one to trust.

DVD Features:
Additional Scenes
Documentaries:Four probing documentaries with the Cast and Crew. * The Art of Collaboration: How the filmmaking team came together * Profiling a Director: Inside D.J. Caruso's Mind * Bodies of Evidence: Stars confess their secrets of working on an ultra-intense thriller * Puzzle Within The Puzzle: The teamwork of Caruso and veteran editor Anne V. Coates
Outtakes
Theatrical Trailer

Taking Lives - Director's Cut (Widescreen Edition)
Average customer rating: 3 out of 5 stars
  • Brilliant, but not as the typical thriller
  • Taking Lives
  • A thriller until the end
  • A good thriller
  • Days of Our Lives
 Taking Lives - Director's Cut (Widescreen Edition)
Starring: Angelina Jolie , Ethan Hawke , Kiefer Sutherland , Gena Rowlands , and Olivier Martinez
Director: D.J. Caruso
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Similar Items:
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ASIN: B00005JMWP
Release Date: 2004-08-17

Amazon.com

While it doesn't rank with such grim classics as The Silence of the Lambs and Seven, D.J. Caruso's Taking Lives offers similarly heavy atmosphere, beginning well before fizzling into absurdity. Freely adapted from the novel by Michael Pye, and set in Montreal (although it was filmed in Quebec City), the plot trades in several familiar tropes of the serial-killer genre, beginning with the FBI agent (Angelina Jolie) who brings her unique skills (and brooding, low-key demeanor) to the vexing case of a killer who, out of apparent self-loathing, steals the identities of his victims and lives their lives until it's time for the next gruesome murder. Ethan Hawke plays the killer's alleged next victim, and in a film filled with twists that grow increasingly unconvincing, Keifer Sutherland is menacingly cast as a shifty suspect. Caruso's previous film was the creepy drug thriller The Salton Sea, so he's well-qualified to infuse Taking Lives with a darkly stylish sense of dread and at least one good shock to keep your adrenaline flowing. The second half essentially betrays the promise of the first, but there's enough going on to hold your interest to the end. --Jeff Shannon

Description

A psychological thriller, Taking Lives is the story of an FBI agent who becomes involved with her key witness while tracking a prolific serial killer who assumes the lives and identities of the people he kills. She finds herself surrounded by numerous suspects and no one to trust.

DVD Features:
Additional Scenes
Documentaries:Four probing documentaries with the Cast and Crew. * The Art of Collaboration: How the filmmaking team came together * Profiling a Director: Inside D.J. Caruso's Mind * Bodies of Evidence: Stars confess their secrets of working on an ultra-intense thriller * Puzzle Within The Puzzle: The teamwork of Caruso and veteran editor Anne V. Coates
Outtakes
Theatrical Trailer

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Brilliant, but not as the typical thriller.......2007-05-13

In terms of the question, "who is the killer really?", this film was completely predictable, so I wouldn't recommend it as entertainment for people who love to solve murder mysteries themselves.

I give it five stars for two main reasons, the lesser of which is the brilliant character development and acting by Jolie, and Hawke's equally chilling performance.

But mostly, Taking Lives managed to grasp that last star because it is a complete master of psychology. Sure, I knew where the film was going, but watching it happen was the fascinating part. The interplay of the characters and the storyline, the well-paced plot, the looks on peoples' faces. My eyes were riveted to the screen. Taking Lives does delve into the psyche of the villian like most other thrillers, but what sets it apart is the deeper analysis of the protagonist. That element, and Jolie's haunting portrayal of it, were what really caught me.

Then, to secure itself among my top five, the movie ended with a fantastic sequence playing off the starkness of human emotion and twisted mind games. The final conclusion is completely satisfying, neither happily-ever-after nor dismally pointless.

I might have given this movie the average three stars if I was basing my review solely on plotline. But the complex nature of the heroine and her relationship with the killer make this into a horribly, compellingly beautiful masterpiece.

4 out of 5 stars Taking Lives.......2007-05-12

This is an excellent movie but I didn't find it to be up to angelina Jolie's work on other movies I have seen.

4 out of 5 stars A thriller until the end.......2007-05-08

If you are an Angelina fan, you will enjoy watching this movie. Angelina develops her role really well in this movie.

4 out of 5 stars A good thriller.......2006-08-15

While not on the level of "The Silence Of The Lambs","Taking
Lives" is still a good cat-and -mouse film noir thriller on
its own terms.Sharply directed by D.J. Caruso and well-written
by Jon Bokenkamp from Michael Pye's popular book,backed by a
solid production and brilliant editing by Anne V.Coates,the
film moves along briskly and works up a good head of suspense.
The performances are excellent,with Angelina Jolie and Ethan
Hawke especially outstanding.It's nice to see Hawke playing a real creep for once.The movie has enough twists and turns to keep you interested thoroughout.Not as good as "Mystic River",
but worth watching.

3 out of 5 stars Days of Our Lives.......2006-07-10

Taking Lives has 3 things going for it:

1. Angelina Jolie
--Angelina has a presence and sensuality that can't be denied even as you realize her only really GREAT role was in Gia.

2. Oliver Martinez
--he's very nice to look at.

3. It's better than Ashley Judd's Twisted.
--Not saying much I know, but you have cling to whatever you've got.

I assume everyone who likes this particular genre has seen Silence of the Lambs and 7even, so I recommend a movie that flew beneath the radar--Identity--with John Cusack and Ray Liotta. While Taking Lives is the down syndromed child of 7even and ...Lambs, Identity is their respectable, very competent first cousin.

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