Takers

Theatrical Release Date: 2008 (USA ) / 2010 08 27 (USA )

UPC: 043396349971

Studio: Sony Pictures

MPAA Rating: PG13   Contains:[Violence, Brief Nudity, Sexual Situations, Mild Language]

Summary: A Los Angeles detective races to bust a group of notorious thieves before they can carry out a 20-million-dollar heist in this crime thriller from director/co-screenwriter John Luessenhop and writing partner Avery Duff. Their heists are planned to perfection, and they never leave behind a shred of evidence. But when greed gets the best of the gang and they agree to one last job, one seasoned detective (Matt Dillon) vows to put them behind bars for good. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

Category: Crime

Features: "Yeah Ya Know (Takers) by T.I. - Music Promo
Filmmaker & Cast Commentary

Explosive Blu-Ray Exclusives: Executing the Heist - The Making Of
Take Action! - Inside Look at the Stunts
Movie IQ

Takers

Format: Blu-ray

Release Date: 01/18/2011

Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1 2.40:1

Audio: DHMA null

Runtime: 107 Minutes

Sides: 1

Number of Discs: 1

Language(s) English,French,Spanish

Subtitles: English,French,Spanish,Portuguese

Mark Deming

What is it about thieves in movies that causes them to lose any sense of practicality? Don't they ever think about setting up a retirement plan so they don't have to pull that "last big job" that invariably goes wrong? And when someone offers them a deal that seems to be too good to be true, don't they know that it almost certainly is, as we've all been told? I mean, a lot of thought goes into a big heist, or at least that's sure what the average caper movie leads us to believe. So how do these master criminals never see the obvious flaws in their plans? All of these thoughts might run through your mind while watching Takers, though admittedly not for long -- while it's even more improbable than the average heist movie, the picture is fast and stylish enough to roll over the lapses in its own logic like a tank over a pothole, and Idris Elba's performance is strong enough to give the movie some much-needed gravitas. Takers wastes no time introducing us to its crew of upscale burglars in the midst of a heist. Gordon (Elba) is the cool, thoughtful leader of the crew, and John (Paul Walker) is his quietly confident second-in-command. Jake (Michael Ealy) is the weapons expert and sensitive guy of the group, while his younger brother, Jesse (Chris Brown), is bright and fast on his feet but a little too cocky for his own good. And piano-playing A.J. (Hayden Christensen), who looks like a lost character from Swingers, is the gadget and hardware expert. These guys are clearly very successful and live like high rollers, flaunting their wealth and expensive good taste at every opportunity (so much for not calling attention to your ill-gotten gains). While celebrating their latest score, they're visited by Ghost (Tip "T.I." Harris), a former member of the team, who after six years has just been released from prison. Ghost has a beef with his former partners, especially Jake, who is now engaged to Ghost's former girlfriend Rachel (Zoe Saldana), but is willing to forgive and forget in exchange for helping stage a daring robbery of an armored car loaded with 25 million in cash. However, the big job needs to take place in a week, and this pushes the crew's planning capabilities to the edge, especially when Gordon's drug-addicted older sister, Naomi (Marianne Jean-Baptiste), decides to check herself out of rehab early and appear at his doorstep. Meanwhile, Jack (Matt Dillon) is an obsessive police detective in the classic style -- divorced, loves but ignores his daughter -- who has been investigating the bank job that opens the movie and is grimly determined to put the thieves behind bars, while his more laid-back partner, Eddie (Jay Hernandez), worries about him when he isn't dealing with his chronically ill son. Takers was directed by John Luessenhop, who is also one of four credited screenwriters, and most of the time he keeps the story moving relentlessly forward, which is good thinking since this is the sort of movie that trips itself up when it slows down. Most of the characters aren't at all well drawn, and the only one with a backstory that amounts to anything is Gordon, as he struggles with a tricky heist and a complicated relationship with his sister. Idris Elba gives what's easily the film's best and most subtle performance, and his strength, intelligence, and caution carry the movie over more than a few rough spots. (And Marianne Jean-Baptiste, who earned an Oscar nomination for her work in Secrets & Lies, does the best she can in what practically defines the term "thankless role" as his sister.). Matt Dillon clearly tries his best with a role that rounds up most available clich?s about the cop whose life is his work, and the rest of the cast struggles to make much of their sketchy characters. Hayden Christensen's greatest triumph is that you lose the desire to strangle him by the halfway point, while Tip "T.I." Harris' performance is so one-note in its villainy that it's hard to imagine how anyone with any sense would trust him. Luessenhop also subscribes to the current conventional wisdom on staging action sequences that the more your camera shakes and the faster you cut, the better, which reduces several chase sequences to several incoherent minutes of random blurs. But Luessenhop does manage to come up with a reasonably imaginative robbery and keeps the tension steady throughout, even if his obvious John Woo lifts call too much attention to themselves. Takers is a non-think action flick that works just well enough to make its hour and three-quarters move by amusingly and painlessly, though it doesn't hold up to careful thought afterward, and Elba definitely deserves to be the lead in a better and more challenging movie. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Cast and Crew: Morris Chestnut  Executive Producer 
Gabriel Casseus  Executive Producer 
Gabriel Casseus  Screenwriter 
Glenn S. Gainor  Executive Producer 
Paul Haslinger  Composer (Music Score) 
John Luessenhop  Director 
John Luessenhop  Screenwriter 
Peter Allen  Screenwriter 
Tip "T.I." Harris  Producer 
Chris Brown  Executive Producer 
Avery Duff  Screenwriter 
Jason Geter  Producer 
Will Packer  Producer 
Matt Dillon  Actor 
Idris Elba  Actor 
Tip "T.I." Harris  Actor 
Chris Brown  Actor 
Paul Walker  Actor 
Hayden Christensen  Actor 
Michael Ealy  Actor 
Jay Hernandez  Actor 
Steve Harris  Actor 
Johnathon Schaech  Actor 
Marianne Jean-Baptiste  Actor 
Gaius Charles  Actor 
Gideon Emery  Actor 
Zulay Henao  Actor 
Glynn Turman  Actor 
Nick Turturro  Actor 
Zoe Saldana  Actor 
Isa Briones  Actor 
Andrei Runtso  Actor 
Vladimir Tevlovski  Actor 
Tim Sitarz  Actor 
Harrison Miller  Actor 
Karl Knuth  Actor 
Conrade Gamble  Actor 
Jermaine T. Holt  Actor 
Martin Shuler  Actor 
Kelvin Brown  Actor 
Danny Epper  Actor 
Bobby McLaughlin  Actor 
Nancy Wetzel  Actor 
Andrew Fiscella  Actor 
Juna Kim  Actor 
Natasha Ellie  Actor 
Will McFadden  Actor 
Daniel Stevens  Actor 
Troy R. Brenna  Actor 
Gino Anthony Pesi  Actor 
Mike Wood  Actor 
Terrell Lee  Actor 
Noelle Smith  Actor 
Lanny Joon  Actor 
Roger Stoneburner  Actor 
Erik Stabenau  Actor 
Jim Lewis  Actor 
Matt Taylor  Actor 
Marcus Young  Actor 
Jimmy Roberts  Actor 
Dustin Meier  Actor 
Jimmy Martinez  Actor 
Laura Shay Griffin  Actor 
Ashleigh Falls  Actor 
Joanna Rhambo  Actor 
Nathan Bell  Actor 
Joe di Giandomenico  Actor 
Craig Susser  Actor 
Ben Skorstad  Actor 
Gokor Chivichyan  Actor 
Roman Mitichyan  Actor 
Vladimir Orlov  Actor 
Brad Jensen  Actor 
Michael Duisenberg  Actor 
Chris Antonucci  Actor 
John Meier  Actor 
Scott Wilder  Actor 
Patrick Stickland  Actor 
Mike Smith  Actor 
Paul Stephen Hubbard  Actor 

Country: USA