Idris Elba’s character sums the movie up well though with the phrase, “We’re takers gents. It’s what we do”. This entire movie is about that phrase, and the repercussions of being “takers”, or greedy. Takers shows both the physical and emotional effects of allowing greed to overcome common sense and reason. So while this movie is easily enjoyed for its cinematic qualities, storyline and plot twists; if one looks deeper there is a lot of psychological and moral lessons that can be learned. Also, if one cares, the lessons can easily be observed in everyday life.
The plot of this movie is anything but simple. Not only does the major storyline of Takers have a number of twists and turns, there are a lot of subplots running through this entire movie. As with most theft based movies, this one opens up with an original heist that sets off the story. In this case it is an awesome bank job, that opens with an ingenious escape. After this, comes the release of Ghost, played by T.I., from prison. He comes to the crew with a plan for a job, surprisingly codenamed in the thief community as the Italian Job. You guessed it, they are after an armored car filled with money.
Ghost tells the crew that the armored car job will have to be done in a matter of weeks, rather than the usual year that the group of thieves use to plan and execute a job. The crew had mixed feelings about taking the job because of the past. in the past, Ghost was a member of the crew, who was left for dead after he was shot on a job. A number of the men think that the character Ghost can’t be trusted, and do not want to work with him. However, the greed of the collective wins out and they agree to attempt the heist. While working on the heist there are a number of other twists and turns, and subplots that develop.
I won’t get into all of them, but I will list the two most important ones. The first subplot centers on the police officer who is in charge of finding the crew. Unfortunately, the bank job was given to a L.A. detective, that is relentless in his pursuit of the crew. This leads me to one of, if not the major subplots of Takers. This surrounds how his job as a cop is so time consuming, that he has lost his family and is, throughout the movie is in the process of losing his relationship with his daughter. The other major subplot features the leader of the crew Gordon Jennings, played by Idris Elba, and his relationship with his druggie sister. This helps to show the kindness and humanity of the movie.
The actors in Takers do a great job of capturing the brooding, dark personalities that make the movie so good. The cast is full of well known actors, who do a great job of meshing well together. From watching the movie, I can honestly say there was not just “one” star, each person exemplified their roles. If there had to be a breakout, surprise performance, from an actor it came from Tip ‘T.I.’ Harris. While he is well known in the music industry, he is a relative unknown in the acting community. He does a great job of playing the vengeful architect that is looking to get paid. I had no problems believing that he belonged whether it was in a three piece suit discussing plans to steal millions of dollars, or beating on a couple of toughs from the Russian mob.
Idris Elba added to the movie Takers the sophisticated leader who always has a plan. He plays this role with precision, and honestly it is partly due to his awe some British accent. Due to this, he just sounds like the man with the plan that always has backup strategies to keep his crew safe. The other master strategist is played by Matt Dillon, who plays the detective out to catch the crew. He plays a single minded individual, who is willing to give up whatever to achieve his goals. Once again, this actor plays this role perfectly, creating the quintessential cop character for this style of movie. Michael Ealy adds a sense of seriousness and brooding to this cast. He is the one who is usually the voice of reason, when the others are blinded by greed. He was also the romantic one, showing a lot of the feelings, other than rage, that were present in this movie. This is a role he filled exemplarily . Also, Ealy teamed up with Hayden Christensen as the masterminds. These two were in charge of planning and technical execution, and I must say their demeanors in the movie would inspire me to put my life in their plans or explosives expertise.
Of all the characters, Christensen played the mixture of genius and bad boy. He was covered with tattoos, but could be seen playing classical piano. Throughout the move, he was a constant example of opposites within his own character. No matter what the differences, he played the different facets with amazing clarity. Another noteworthy actor that plays a major role in Takers, is Paul Walker. He brings a little bit of levity and upbeat personality to a majorly dour, mysterious cast. Of course, this is a role that Walker plays often, and is quite skilled at bringing to life on the big screen.
As I said before, Takers is a worthwhile movie to watch for more than just pleasure. There are many life lessons, and life struggles that are evident throughout the course of the movie. When I watched this movie I felt my emotions being tugged, as well as beginning to think about the issues raised. One of the major facets that I noticed was that of greed. This is quite evident, from the most memorable phrase to the plot twists. This movie does a great job of showing the price of greed; whether it is the physical death or pain of a person, or the emotional pain of loss and friendships gone.
Another life factor that can be examined is the cost of placing work above all else. When watching the Takers I became so annoyed that the cop, Jack Welles, kept ignoring his daughter in the hopes of catching a bank robber. He ruined their day together and then sat there and wondered why he was a bad father. This showed how too much work can ruin lives, when a person chooses it over their family or friends.
The third major facet worth looking at surrounded drug use, and the effect it has on the user and the family. Throughout the movie, Gordon Jennings sister is going through rehab and relapse. Not only does this show how difficult the habit is to kick, it shows how terrible doing drugs really is. On top of this, the value here shows how the families of users are affected, through Gordon’s actions and emotions when dealing with his sister.
In all, this was a very good movie, and was pleased when I walked out of the theatre. However, this was not one of those feel good movies. I did not feel all warm and tingly inside after watching it. If you are looking for a great action/drama that makes you think, while entertaining you, then this movie is a great choice. Just don’t expect the same levity and humor as the Italian Job. Takers can easily match it in action, but it prefers depth to levity. In conclusion, I was happy to pay to experience this movie, but will more than likely wait to rent it in order to watch it again.