Three stars (out of five). Rated PG-13, and quite generously, for profanity, fleeting nudity and truly insane levels of gunfire
By Derrick Bang • Originally published in the The Davis Enterprise, 09.03.10
Buy DVD: Takers
• Buy Blu-Ray: Takers [Blu-ray]
Director John Luessenhop has a nifty little B-thriller here.
Too bad he doesn't want anybody to enjoy it.
That's the only conclusion to be drawn from Luessenhop's pervasive and obnoxious hand-held camerawork: not only vertigo-inducing but a serious impediment to appreciating the stuntwork and action sequences in his film's frantic third act.
One sizzling foot-chase boasts the breathtaking intensity and hell-for-leather jumps and tumbles of the memorable "free-running" pursuit that opened Casino Royale
, and this one covers considerable territory in downtown city pedestrian and vehicular traffic. Alas, it's impossible to appreciate — and therefore merely tiresome — because it appears as if Luessenhop and cinematographer Michael Barrett "filmed" the entire sequence by running after their two stars, tossing the camera back and forth between them, and hoping for the best.
, and this one covers considerable territory in downtown city pedestrian and vehicular traffic. Alas, it's impossible to appreciate — and therefore merely tiresome — because it appears as if Luessenhop and cinematographer Michael Barrett "filmed" the entire sequence by running after their two stars, tossing the camera back and forth between them, and hoping for the best. We can thank cinema-verite documentaries and low-budget horror flicks for bringing this irritating technique to the attention of hack directors who now believe that it's the epitome of slick: It ain't, and it's time this stylistic hiccup was retired. Without honors.
When he's not succumbing to such self-indulgent nonsense, Luessenhop orchestrates a fairly taut heist thriller, working from a high-octane script he co-authored with Peter Allen, Gabriel Casseus and Avery Duff. It feels a bit like 2003's remake of The Italian Job
on steroids, laced with a soupon of the Vegas-style cool from Ocean's 11
.
on steroids, laced with a soupon of the Vegas-style cool from Ocean's 11. In other words, the de facto villains are much more engaging than the overmatched Forces of Good trying to bring them down.
 |
| Loyalty to a former colleague, or common sense? Faced with the offer of embracing another high-stakes heist very quickly after their previous job, our suave anti-heroes -- from left, John (Paul Walker), Jesse (Chris Brown), Jake (Michael Ealy), A.J. (Hayden Christensen) and Gordon (Idris Elba) -- weigh the pros and cons of getting involved. Alas, they'll choose badly... |
Longtime friends Gordon Betts (Idris Elba), John Rahway (Paul Walker), A.J. (Hayden Christensen) and the Attica brothers, Jake (Michael Ealy) and Jesse (Chris Brown), enjoy an extravagant lifestyle filled with hot cars, hotter women and plenty o' cash. They finance this largess with meticulously plotted and well-coordinated bank robberies: no more than one per year, will no clues left behind.
Indeed, law enforcement has treated all previous jobs as one-offs, and isn't even remotely aware of the existence of these serial criminals.
