A predictable and far fetched crime film that tries really hard to be the next SE7EN.

(Uncut Version) Far better than the reviews across the internet indicate. Striking visuals and auteur style direction.

nothing special. the plot is something that is too obvious and you need just ten minutes to understand who's the villan.

The best thing about the movie is the Cast but I don't think the Cast is proud to be associated with this movie. Very low level of a plot thriller, some jumps, some nudity, some car chase, some impossible explosion, some twists poorly produced. Deja vu.

Storyline is predictable (to some) but in a good way, jump scares that you know are coming but still get you. And a perfect performance by Ethan Hawke.

"Taking lives" vive e muore con i suoi primi minuti, in cui un giovane Paul Dano con l'aiuto di una regia coraggiosa e forte, crea il colpo di scena più impetuoso del film, facendo sobbalzare sulla sedia lo spettatore. Da quel momento in avanti, la sceneggiatura resta in un limbo tra indagini, rapporti personali e profiling del serial killer; il tutto senza riuscire ad essere soddisfacente in nessuno di questi temi, toccandone solo la superficie e collegando il tutto con una serie notevole ed esagerata di grosse forzature, sia nelle azioni che nei dialoghi. Il riassunto perfetto di ciò che non è stato e ciò che invece (purtroppo) è, si presenta con l'ultima sequenza improbabile nella ricerca di un colpo di scena sempre più grosso del precedente. Pregio iniziale e condanna in seguito è proprio questa lunga ed imponente sequenza di colpi di sena improbabili.

Extremely boring, story that makes no sense and bad acting. Don't waste your time watching this crap.

Ill always be a sucker for older days thrillers.

The interesting plot in a roller-coaster ride

While not perfectly a fit into the giallo, Taking Lives does have a heroine who gets involved with the killer, a Phillip Glass score and the changing identity of the killer having a central part of the story. D.J. Caruso has some interesting films like Disturbia and The Salton Sea to his credit — we'll ignore I Am Number Four and XXX: Return of Xander Cage — and this time, he's telling the story of Martin Asher, a serial killer who assumes the identity of life of each victim he kills. FBI Agent Illeana Scott (Angelina Jolie) has traveled to Montreal to get treated poorly by male cops and help solve the case. She soon discovers that Martin felt unloved and in the shadow of a twin brother, whose death pushed him into madness. In the childhood home of the killer, she finds a passageway that reveals Martin's special room, a place in which she's attacked by someone who runs before she can catch him. Her only lead comes from art dealer James Costa (Ethan Hawke), who was a witness to Asher's last murder. And, as these things happen, the two engage in naked investigative action while surrounded by murder photos and James bleeding everywhere from stitches he needed after his latest run-in with Asher. It's not all that simple, of course. Wait — where's Kiefer Sutherland? Well, he has around three minutes of screen time in this. He still got billed third, so the real star of this movie is his agent. Taking Lives is fine for an American thriller. The ending has some nice twists and Gena Rowlands is great in her small role. For a movie with four writers (there was a lot of script doctoring), you may expect a bit more, though.

Irritating. Barely made sense. Acting chops are wasted in this terrible script and plot.

It was okay. Not great. Not bad. Okay. The long con. Have you noticed that your attitude to watching and rating films changes when you join rotten toms? You start getting the impression that your interpretation is number based. Do you pause to reflect (and write) whilst watching? And be super-critical, instead of just watching the movie for enjoyment sake? D.B.

Brilliant premise. Well acted. Predictable story

A dumb and predictable plot with weak performances.

I honestly watched this just because of Angelina Jolie. I think she was the life of this movie. The plot wasn't too great, a little predictable if you ask me. But it was fine.

Probably saw this movie for the first time when I was 14 or 15 and the beginning always stuck with me — Paul Dano was creepy. How Dano becomes Ethan Hawke was… interesting. Almost immediately after those first few scenes this one goes downhill. Jolie's character comes off as weird for weirdness's sake — lying in the grave, eating with horrific pictures of murder victims taped to the chair in front of her — as if being odd should be equated with brilliance. Unfaithful heartthrob, Olivier Martinez, is an unbearable dick who insults Jolie in French whom — surprise, surprise — also speaks French; didn't see that one coming. I especially enjoyed his line "You learn your theories from books?" Yes Detective, they're a common tool for education. The "chase" scene stunk; one detective backpedaled instead of pursuing the killer? The big reveal was more confusing than shocking. The end? Ehh, still haven't fully mulled it over and probably won't give it much more thought. Probably pushed this one into the (40s) instead of (30s). It's a shame because when I read the synopsis, it's a wonderful story (and likely a solid book) but it just didn't deliver on screen.

Good concept but weak execution

Great suspense drama.

This movie tries to do the whole crime psychological thriller but not nearly as good as other movies. Generally don't like Angelina Jolie but I actually enjoyed her in this movie. That's the only praise I have for it. The main plot of the movie doesn't make sense to me as the investigators somehow tie a crime decades old to the suspect and watch a guy that supposed to be the next target when the whole point is it's a serial killer that wants to be someone else. Like if the suspect wants to be that guy and knows he's with the cops why bother? Well that explained in a dumb twist. Forgettable movie.

There are a few thrills, but not nearly enough.