Taking Lives (2004)

Director:

D.J. Caruso

Writers (WGA):

Michael Pye (novel)
Jon Bokenkamp (screen story)

Release Date:

19 March 2004 (USA)

Genre:

Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

He would kill to be you.

Plot:

An FBI profiler is called in by French Canadian police to catch a serial killer who takes on the identity of each new victim.

Plot Keywords:

FBI | Serial Killer | Profiler | Police | Exploding Car

Awards:

3 nominations

Cast

Angelina Jolie	...	Illeana
Ethan Hawke	...	Costa
Kiefer Sutherland	...	Hart
Gena Rowlands	...	Mrs. Asher
Olivier Martinez	...	Paquette
Tchéky Karyo	...	Leclair
Jean-Hugues Anglade	...	Duval
Paul Dano	...	Young Asher
Justin Chatwin	...	Matt Soulsby
André Lacoste	...	Cashier
Billy Two Rivers	...	Car Salesman
Richard Lemire	...	Québec City Cop
Julien Poulin	...	Québec City Inspector
Marie-Josée Croze	...	Medical Examiner
Christian Tessier	...	Interrogation Officer

MPAA:

Rated R for strong violence including disturbing images, language and some sexuality.

Runtime:

103 min | USA:109 min (unrated version)

Country:

USA | Australia | Canada

Language:

English | French

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Japan:R-15 | Ireland:18 | Indonesia:Dewasa | Iceland:16 | Malaysia:18SG | New Zealand:R16 | Argentina:16 | Australia:MA | Brazil:14 | Canada:18A | Canada:R (director's cut) | Chile:14 | Finland:K-15 | France:-12 | Germany:16 | Hong Kong:IIB | Hong Kong:III (director's cut) | Netherlands:16 | Norway:15 | Peru:14 | Philippines:R-18 | Singapore:M18 (director's cut) | Singapore:NC-16 (edited for re-rating) | Singapore:R(A) (original rating) | South Korea:18 | Sweden:15 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:16 (canton of the Grisons) | UK:15 | USA:R | USA:Unrated (director's cut)

Filming Locations:

Chemin du Lac, Knowlton's Landing, Québec, Canada

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

A scene was shot in which Angelina drives back to her house with the old pick-up and a branch from a tree falls and breaks the windshield. It took several takes to get the shot, and apparently destroyed the last remaining windshields for the pick-up available anywhere in North America at the time. The scene was not used.

Goofs:

Errors in geography: When Scott is eating breakfast in the restaurant with the other detectives, a French-style police siren can be heard in the background. Canadian police sirens sound just like their American counterparts.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Cashier: Where are you going?

Movie Connections:

References Psycho (1960)

Soundtrack:

1919 Rag

Poor taste mars otherwise dumb-fun thriller...

Angelina Jolie as a special agent with the F.B.I. investigating serial murderer case in Eastern Canada, with a killer who takes on the identities of each of his victims, usually drifters he befriends in bus stations and train stops. Adaptation of Michael Pye's novel is full of ridiculous moments (including the pre-credits opening, which involves three broke-down vehicles and two dead bodies, all scored to songs by U2 and the Clash!). Jolie gets paired with two local police detectives who are evidently playing a game of 'good cop-bad cop'--one is congenial and the other is belligerent and rude, at one point even slapping Angie across the face. Kiefer Sutherland and Gena Rowlands have facetious roles, but Ethan Hawke (as a witness to one of the killings) is gaunt and wild-eyed, giving one of the twitchiest performances in memory. Once he locks lips with Jolie, one can't help but to roll his eyes over this overbaked, derivative scenario, which director D.J. Caruso keeps plugging with inexplicable close-ups of everything (he's prop crazy). The film has a few jolts, and Jolie is pretty if awfully stoic (at one point, when a body falls out of an opening, she barely reacts). Still, the predictably suspicious finale has some over-the-top violence which doesn't quite play--even if Caruso is winking, his lack of taste coats the final product with a sour residue. ** from ****