Taking Lives: Blu-ray Movie Review

Directed by D.J. Caruso, written by Jon Bokenkamp, based on the novel by Michael Pye, 103 minutes, rated R.

In spite of a benign title and the fact that it inexplicably tries to pass Quebec City off as Montreal, the grisly thriller "Taking Lives," now out on Blu-ray disc, initially creates a controlled mood of tense unease.

In it, a drifter is brutally murdered by a young man who quickly assumes his victim's identity. Twenty years later, the bodies start to pile up again.

Unable to get a handle on the case, the baffled French Canadian police seek the help of Santa Angelina Jolie's Illeana Scott, a savvy FBI profiler who can lie in a victim's grave and give specifics on how they got there.

Of course, she can--it is, after all, Jolie in the role. And not surprisingly, Illeana isn't exactly welcomed by some of the cops working the case. Still, she proves invaluable when an eye-witness to a new murder is called in for questioning. His name is James Coster (Ethan Hawke), he's an art dealer and how he recounts what he saw generates a mystery. Either he's the murderer or he's in danger of being hunted down by the real murderer, who might just be an angry tough guy played by Keifer Sutherland.

Which is it? That's anyone's guess, though Illeana does side with Coster, which sets the movie up for a steamy romance, several well-done chase scenes and one noteworthy jolt that lifts the movie. Unfortunately, just when it appears that this is going to be a reasonably smart, atmospheric thriller of note, the film jack-knifes into a series of audacious plot twists that break it in two.

The ending is particularly absurd, a major cheat with a mean edge that goes too far, doesn't add up, and which brings the movie down.

Grade: C

Features:
Crime Lab: A Taking Lives Documentary In 4 Parts:
- The Art Of Collaboration
- Profiling A Director
- Bodies Of Evidence
- Puzzle Within The Puzzle
Gag Reel
Theatrical Trailer