Review of "Taking Lives" (2004)

In the hands of a lesser director, Taking Lives could have been a real disaster. It's trite, contrived, and predictable. And yet, I liked it.

The talent of the director (D.J. Caruso, The Salton Sea) and his cast (Angelina Jolie, Ethan Hawke, and Olivier Martinez) elevate this otherwise pedestrian serial-killer gore thriller to a worthwhile viewing experience.

Loosely based upon the well-received novel of the same title by Michael Pye, Taking Lives focuses on Jolie as Illeana Scott, a rather macabre agent for the FBI (undoubtedly standing for Fabulous Babe Indeed) who is called in by the Montreal PD to help them solve a baffling series of murders. Within two minutes of arriving, she theorizes that the chameleon-like killer is "life-jacking" -- taking lives, and living them until he's tired of them, then moving on to a new host.

The murder victims, shown in utterly graphic detail, have all had their faces severely bashed in after being killed with a garrot. Scott lives, breathes, and even eats with the post-mortem pictures as she immerses herself in the case. She is a bit morbid and obsessed, and has no problem with blood, graves, or rotting corpses. Somehow (grin) Jolie makes that aspect of the character believable. Her temporary partners, Detectives Paquette (Olivier Martinez) and Leclair (TchÈky Karyo) are the stereotypical "bad cop/good cop" but the actors do very nicely in their limited roles. Gena Rowlands makes a rather hammy appearance as the possible mother of the serial killer. Despite the third from top billing, Kiefer Sutherland has a small cameo role and much less screen time than Jolie's lips.

Utilizing the stark winter backdrops of Montreal, Quebec City and Saint-Ours, Caruso and Salton Sea cinematographer Amir M. Mokri effectively show how Scott is alone in unfamiliar surroundings with no one she can trust. The music by Philip Glass, while mostly just irritating, does do it's job in that it keeps you feeling edgy and anticipatory. Wonderful editing by Anne Coates puts the bow on top of this pretty package which really doesn't have much inside.

Although it wants to be another Silence of the Lambs or Seven, at the end of the day Taking Lives is just "shear" entertainment -- and there's nothing wrong with that.

Review by Staci Layne Wilson for Horror.com