princpauper

(2012-04-29 03:00:24)

Parkour

Actually, a sub-par heist movie, but entertaining enough. I found thefirst heist more enjoyable to watch than the second which held nosurprises for me. The first pokes fun at local television crew typeswhich the writers apparently find predictable, stupid and gullible.The plot and characters are not memorable, but as I said entertaining.What really impressed me about the film was the use of Parkour by theChris Brown character. They brought it down from the rooftops of Europedown to the busy streets of Los Angeles. This free running art was usedto go through a subway station, a park, a commercial building andthrough moving traffic. To me Parkour is much more exciting than a carchase. The one unbelievable part was that the the two cops, played byDillon and Hernandez, could keep up the chase without being trained inthe art. It was not the best Parkour I have seen in a movie, but Iapplaud the effort and it made watching the film worth it and for awhile suspenseful.

(2012-04-28 15:19:17)

Nothing better than watching all of the handsome eye candy plot!!

I really enjoyed this movie. It was action packed. So what if you have seen this scenario before it was still very satisfying. And watching the likes of Idris Elba, Paul Walker and Micahel Ealey kept me glued to the screen even more. I can't wait for the sequel. TI and Chris Brown were stellar as well!

Robbie Collin

(2012-04-28 07:25:40)

You could write ten thousand words about the outlandish cack-handedness of Takers, but I'll limit myself to just seven. Crap, crap, crap, crap, crap, crap, rubbish.

gradyharp

(2012-04-27 12:30:18)

The Perfect Heist Gone Wrong

TAKERS is a movie about those who take - in this case organized thieveswhose take no prisoners reputation stumbles on vengeance form withinand a cop who takes on the impossible bunch for his own reasons. It isa group written piece (and that shows...), directed by John Leussenhopwho specializes in these kinds of noisy thrillers, and packs a cast ofwell- known actors who with a few exceptions have little characterdevelopment written for them, making them relay on their screenpresence to create credible images. The practiced groups of bank robbers who are living the good life fromprevious crimes include Idris Elba, Hayden Christensen, Paul Walker,Chris Brown, and Michael Ealy. A previous member of the gang has justbeen released from prison - Ghost (Tip T.I. Harris) - who approachesthe old gang with a new challenge worth millions and despite some badomens the gang prepares to make the heist to end all heists: a majorproblem is that Ghost is double dealing with a group of Russians andthat pits two crime syndicates against each other. Some subplots arepresent: Idris Elba's sister played by Marianne Jean-Baptiste isrecently out of drug rehab and puts a damper on plans; Ghost's oldgirlfriend played by Zoe Saldana is now Michael Ealy's sweetheart andthat churns up problems form the vengeful Ghost; the two cops who havebeen partners - Matt Dillon and Jay Hernandez - face a surprise inHernandez' past that leaves Matt Dillon alone to fight the heist. The problem with this film is not so much the fact that there isnothing new here - the cast makes it well-worth watching - but that thecinematography keeps the lighting level so dark that it is difficult tofollow the action except for the expected fire explosions thataccompany it. It is a technical problem that could have been fixed -and that may have created a better response at the box office, or maybeit is a law of the DVD. Grady Harp

(2012-04-24 00:33:35)

I LASTED 20 MINUTES

This was a confusing and mostly boring heist picture. I lasted about twenty minutes with it and didn't see it getting any more interesting so I tossed the DVD into the air and blew it away with my shotgun. WHEN WATCHED: mid April 2011; MY GRADE: C minus.

NickieQ

(2012-04-23 03:01:06)

Worth watching at least once

Who doesn't want to watch a movie with actors that have the looks andthe talent!? Minus TI, he should just stick to music. I thought themovie was entertaining. It kept my attention throughout the whole hourand a half. Its not a movie that will stand out in my mind for a longtime. Its not one of those movies i would watch over and over but it isdefinitely worth seeing at least once. The story line is a typical butits just a different twist to a typical robbery movie. Over all I sayits a good movie, i liked it. Kept me entertained. Its one of thosemovies you have to see how the end turns out. Do they away or do theyget caught?

(2012-04-22 02:05:26)

Action packed & ok

I enjoyed this movie in spite of the nay-sayers. A good blend of action and entertaining enough to receive four stars. Chris & TI did a better job than many gave them credit for. Ealy, Elba, Walker & Dillon really kept it intense. Zoe's cameo fit well. Yes, there were a few scenes that had me saying 'that could have been done better', and could have pushed the rating stars lower, but over all, I truly enjoyed how the actors blended together to make this a keeper in my collection.

khan2705

(2012-04-21 10:24:25)

Not great but enjoyable thrilling action heist.

i was not expecting any thing from this movie, but it turned outextremely well. really interesting and thrilling action heist movie.pretty enjoyable. Should you see this movie? Yes, it will keep yourattention and most of the action is believable. There is genuinebalance and chemistry amongst the characters. The director did trysomething different by putting a twist in the middle of the movieinstead of at the end. He gets points for that. He also gets points forthe elaborate shoot out scene; I applaud his choice of stringinstrument background music and lack of loud gun noises to give it ahuge impact. If you are into heist movies, ensemble action flicks,westerns etc., you will definitely enjoy this, but do not expect morethan what it says on the box. A Michael Mann-ish heist thriller with apulse-pounding foot chase and some terrific stunt work offsetting itshackneyed plot and dialogue.

Lou Lumenick

(2012-04-14 15:02:34)

A Michael Mann-ish heist thriller with a pulse-pounding foot chase and some terrific stunt work offsetting its hackneyed plot and dialogue.

(2012-04-14 05:23:41)

A vanity cops-and-robbers job that definately blows

This over-produced heist movie is overloaded with subplots that play like cheap televison shows and commercial shoots for a cigar bar. There is an abundance of flashy editing to disguise a low budget and a videotaped appearance. It will work for those who like those pervasive, special-agent, cops-and-robbers shows that pervade the cable airwaves and require little or no actual attention. The hardest thing to take is yet another boom-box muzak score. The blu-ray is glossy and saturated with the look of a digital intermediate instead of a film transfer.

Jakealope

(2012-04-07 22:08:56)

Derivative, Overblown But Still Fun

This movie made me think of "Heat" like in 1) Sweeping LA skyline shots with copters 2) Well trained, well equipped commando robber team, real tight &charismatic 3) One of the robbers is a turncoat 4) Violent confrontations with rival gangs 5) Driven cops dogging the crooks with their own personal problems likea) Neglected daughterb) corruption investigations pending 6) Overblown firefights and chases, including wild gravity defying footchases through offices. 7) Overly complex schemes involving lots of explosives.Okay, Heat set a high mark in this genre and it soared out of thegenre's limitations. Heat provided a good template for lesserdirectors. The only actor I recognized is good old Matt Dillon, who isalways cool in his low key mid western ways. While some of this film isaction and violence for the heck of it and the personal issues can gettrying like the head crook's crack-head sister leaves the rehab "cured"only to relapse in a day and to not really help the story along eventhough she was arrested with the crook's loot. Though it wouldn't hurtif directors abandoned all this POV security and shaky hand held camerashots for some well framed and clear shots, like HEAT hadBut I am sick of every movie being full of Bond-Rambo-Jackie Chan typecharacters who pull all this kung fu fighting skills stuff like theywere trained from birth to be samurai. Even "Heat" was way morerealistic in that respect and had believable action scenes when needed.This one just packed one improbable action fighting scene after anotherto satiate the violence action junkies. Even the big heist scene wasway too hokey and unbelievable, blowing a whole in a major thoroughfareto trap an armored car. Subtlety and reserve are unknown quantitieshere.

Henry Fitzherbert

(2012-04-07 02:22:41)

An empty-headed heist movie which makes no effort to endear us to the slick gangsters or the police pursuing them.

razorcutgarlic

(2012-03-31 08:21:49)

A hodge podge of other great heist films

After reading some of the positive reviews of this movie, I must put mytwo cents in. This film is absolute crap, and if you are one of the fewpeople who like it, you must not have seen many heist movies in yourlife.Spoiler warning for something that happens at the beginning of thefilm. The film opens with a bank heist that desperately wants to belike the bank heist in Michael Mann's Heat, except that instead of ahard-ass bastards like DeNiro, Val Kilmer, and Tom Sizemore, we have abunch of soft-ass pop singers and pretty boys like Paul Walker andHayden Christensen.You're supposed to believe that these guys are highly disciplined andbad-ass outlaws?! Gimme a break! After they grab the cash, they escapeby running to the roof of the building, and tricking a news chopperinto landing so that they can use it to escape! Right there I was like,what if the news chopper decided not to be stupid? Now you're stuck ontop of a damn skyscraper with nowhere to run! Can you imagine ifDeNiro's crew in Heat decided that their only escape plan was tochopper jack an escape vehicle?! It's beyond stupid, and utterlyludicrous! The filmmakers rip off a plethora of classic andnot-so-classic heist films including Heat, the Italian Job, and TrueRomance. If you have never seen any of these movies, you may find thissomewhat entertaining.

(2012-03-30 21:08:23)

If I Could Give Less Stars...I Certainly Would!

This was a lame rip-off movie - an American Gangsta version of the Italian Job or others. The characters were not believable. How do they expect us to believe this cultural diversity dream world where black and white gangstas are hip, civil & hang out like an Ocean's 11 team. These gangstas wear suits for the helluvit just cuz they got such a keen sense of style. Uh huh. Insulting.

Teddy Durgin

(2012-03-22 04:29:09)

'Takers' is a solid, involving caper that steals liberally from the far superior 'Heat' and 'True Romance' of the mid-1990s. (Parental Review also Available)

Claudia Puig

(2012-03-21 17:47:47)

The dialogue is clichГ©d and laughable. It's a film far more concerned with style -- architectural, vehicular and wardrobe-related -- than substance.

Karen Krizanovich

(2012-03-18 08:43:54)

This take on the classic cop v robbers formula makes for handsome, smart and fast-paced entertainment.

(2012-03-18 02:21:30)

"TAKERS" GIVES PLENTY OF ACTION

The heist genre has seen a number of films released over the past few years, most notably THE ITALIAN JOB. But there have been a number of others to follow including the recently released TAKERS.The film revolves around a group of professional thieves who are just finishing up from their latest job, a bank job where they scored big and no one got hurt. These guys try to make sure no one gets hurt and that the plans are well thought out and executed. In return for their heists going well, they aren't charged with murder and the money they take makes them wealthy men.As this story unfolds another one opens with the release from prison of Dalonte Rivers (T.I.) aka Ghost. Ghost just finished doing time after being caught in a previous job by this same group. In return for his silence they've held onto his share and kept an opening for him. Returned to collect on that debt, he comes to them with a new job.The group is hesitant to do so having just completed one, but the sure thing information he provides them makes them consider it. The biggest problem is that they have just five days to prepare. And five days not only gives you little time to be ready, but no chance at all to make sure that everything will run as smooth as it has in the past.While the thieves are preparing their new target police officer Jack Welles (Matt Dillon) is searching for them. Assigned the case, he and his partner are following every clue possible. At the same time Jack is dodging an Internal Affairs officer, fearing he will be reprimanded for accusations of excessive violence while apprehending a criminal. His focus is the bank job and he won't be deterred in his pursuit of the crew.The paths of these two sides of the story eventually collide and a chance encounter leads Jack to follow the crew's leader Gordon Cozier (Idris Elba). In following him he's led to the rest of the gang and surveillance places them almost in line to capture them before the next heist. But a smart escape leaves them free to complete their task: the robbery of an armored car loaded with cash.The interplay between characters works well in this film, especially since it involves more than one piece of action. Ghost wants back in to a crew that has changed since he last worked with them, including one of the members now dating his old girlfriend. The crew wants to score big but at the same time is hesitant to trust Ghost, even more so since this job appears out of nowhere and Ghost seems to be rushing into a job immediately upon release.And then there's the story of the dogged policeman in Dillon's character who wants to do nothing more than put bad guys in jail but is hampered by the technicalities that, in his mind, hold him back. But there's more to that story as well.All of these elements combine to make an exciting film filled with more story than most, enough action to keep fans sitting on the edge of their seat and plot twists that keep you guessing until the credits roll. Some may figure it out before then, but even if you do you'll stay focused on the film as the story unfolds.I'll admit I had seen the trailer for this film so many times that I had no interest in viewing it. But I thought I'd at least give it a chance. I'm glad I did as I came across a solid action film that kept me watching from beginning to end never once checking to see how much time was left. If you want exciting action filled entertainment, you'd be hard pressed to find another movie to compare to this one this week.

wesley

(2012-03-16 06:13:29)

TAKEN IS SOLID

Going in to see the movie have to admit I was skeptical. There was talk that the movie did not live up to the hype. This movie entertained me from beginning to end. It pulled me in from the beginning and I wanted to know more. Some of the reviewers say that the characters should have been more developed and to a certain point I agree. I think this is where your immagination should take over and you discuss after the movie is over how the characters came to be in their situation. Loved the rat pack feel the movie had and the diversity of the cast. Eventhough they were bank robbers I found myself on their side and rooting for them. When Chris Browns character was running from the cops I was on the edge of my seat. The movie is solid and a great effort. If you like action go see it--I was taken by the movie.

Andreas Siirala

(2012-03-16 01:06:32)

A quite good movie

After reading some of the reviews here I had pretty low expectations.And the fact that this is a budget movie made me even more unsure ofits quality. But despite the fact that it's a more violent version of"The Italian Job" the actors made it work, it might be that Paul Walkeris one of my favorite actors but in a larger sentence the movie was areally good action movie. It might be just me, but i'm a big fan oftypical action movies like Jason Bourne, James Bond and so on, and afact that this is a mash up with both James Bond and Oceans Elevenmakes it even better. It is just a perfect Friday night movie. So tomake a long review short, it is definitely viewable, so buckle up withsome snacks and a soda and enjoy!