Takers Reviews

Honestly, I wasn't expecting much from this flick. Indeed, the poster for this movie has been widely known as the worst movie poster ever made (just check this beauty in its full glory here underneath). Still, since there was a pretty impressive cast of B actors (Hayden Christensen, Matt Dillon, Idris Elba, Jay Hernandez, Zoe Saldana, Paul Walker, even Chris Brown!), I thought I should give it a try. Surprisingly, even though the whole thing was still rather underwhelming, it was actually not bad at all. It definitely had some potential and it could have been an awesome darker and tougher version of 'Ocean's eleven'. Personally, I really enjoyed the two heists which were pretty spectacular and after the 2nd heist, there was a really impressive chase with Chris Brown. It did really look as if he did the stunts himself but even if he did not, it was then very smartly filmed and edited. Too bad that the shaky-cam in this sequence was terribly nauseating, some of the worse I have ever seen. Unfortunately, except for those two pretty cool scenes, the movie didn't have much else to offer. Indeed, the actors did their best to give some life to their characters but since there were so many of them, they were all poorly developed and the sub-plots involving them were even worse. Anyway, to conclude, in spite of its ugly ass poster, this movie actually had some potential, but at the end of the day, it still remains a rather average heist flick and it is not really worth a look, even if you like the genre.

An impressive diverse cast of mid-level celebrities and some pretty stunning action scenes highlight this bank robber / obsessed cop heist film directed by newcomer John Luessenhop. The cast includes Matt Dillon, Idris Elba, Paul Walker, Hayden Christensen (who after having to deliver such awful dialog and mellow drama in the last three 'STAR WARS' films has actually done pretty well for himself career-wise, compared to like Mark Hamill or Carrie Fisher), Jay Hernandez, Zoe Saldana, Michael Ealy, Jonathon Schaech, pop singer Chris Brown and rapper T.I. (Brown and T.I. Also executive produced the film). Like 'THE EXPENDABLES' this film made the smart choice of putting all these actors together, any one or even two by themselves wouldn't have drawn much attention or cash but adding them all together made for a flashy looking film (It made $21 million in it's first weekend, that's pretty impressive for this type of film). The movie is a pretty routine cops and robbers film, sort of a second rate 'HEIST', but it's also surprisingly entertaining!

The film follows a team of five expert and professional bank robbers (Elba, Walker, Christensen, Brown and Ealy) as they team up with an ex-partner of theirs (T.I.), who was just released from prison, on a dangerous armored truck heist, worth $20 million. The movie also focuses on an obsessed cop (Dillon) hot on their trail and his seemingly more 'by the book' partner (Hernandez). Drama ensues as the 'loose canon' cop neglects his young daughter and the bank robbers feel friction and mistrust for their ex-partner. There's also a side story revolving around the crooks leader (Elba) and his drug addicted sister (played by Marianne Jean-Baptiste).

For the most part the characters are underdeveloped and what is developed isn't something we haven't seen hundreds of times before but the cast adds a lot of character and charm to their roles. Each actor is cast perfectly in his or her part; Dillon and Elba are always at their best but actors like Walker and Christensen are actually given a brief chance to shine in movies like this. The action scenes are also stunning. The two heists are extremely impressive and there's a breathtaking foot chase scene! The movie is surprisingly entertaining. I went into the movie expecting to be mildly amused but I was hooked for the most part, largely due to the cast and action.

"You look like shit, man."

"I'm alright."

"You keep telling yourself that."

In other words, this is why I stopped listening to Rammstein awhile ago. In the end, the trick with the helicopter, say, just isn't worth it.

In other words, is this the movie to cure you of your desire to be a Jedi...or a loose cannon?

"All signs point to it."

It was almost just an average movie, but in the end, it added up to a little bit more...

There was always a little bit more there, than I thought there would be.

(9/10)

When this first came out, I thought that it would totally suck, until I saw it. It isn't that bad. Takers is a pleasant surprise that really starts off with a bang and ends with a bang. It is defiantly not the best movie but yet not the worst. It was worth watching. I wasn't impressed by the screenplay at all, the writing and lines were just heard before and nothing original. The story was really good and had a good twist. The acting wasn't special just your average acting in an action film. One of the biggest surprises I ever saw, worth checking out

I wasn't expecting a lot from this movie but ended up really enjoying it. Idris Elba is great as always and Paul Walker gives a good performance as the stoic second in command, who is all about getting the job done while remaining calm and in control. Even Hayden Christensen is entertaining as the young guy of the group who can handle himself surprisingly well in a fight.