Genres

Visitors Review

CW 2013-05-12 12:14:52

Sooooooo slow and boring

After the first few minutes, this thing slows to a crawl and never picks back up. Yeah, a couple people get shot later, but that is nowhere near enough to prop up this tortuous, sleepy waste of time. John L.'s character is an idiot who we don't care about, and the ending is non-existent. This thing is a total waste of time.

johnnyboyz 2013-05-12 06:22:47

Take an hour and a half out of your time to catch up on this seemingly buried 2008 crime drama, as a single shot affects a man and those close to him.

Drawing on clear influences from recent gritty, crime infused piecessuch as 2000's Traffic and 2002's Narc, 2008 film The Take seems tohave come and gone at a Canadian film festival before being banished tostores so as to increase profits on DVDs. It would seem there was narya distributer at said Canadian festival willing to invest in BradFurman's film; an overall shame, not a crying one but a shamenone-the-less. The Take squeezes an amount of substance to do with malemachismo; the tearing apart of a family unit; the sub-genre of thevigilante movie and the dealing of the aftermath of a heist plus allthe crime drama conventions of mistrust between gangsters: honouramongst thieves, if you will, into 96 minutes. However, all too oftenthese ideas jostle uncomfortably with one another – a persistent vyingfor power, a struggle between genres and sub-genres; content and study.This renders The Take less interesting than it might have been, butgood enough to see in order to observe a moderately interesting, wellacted independent American drama.I think the film thinks it's more powerful and more affecting than itis in actualité. The tale is of a righteous man wronged, and thesubsequent fall out it has on both his life and the lives of thosearound him. But for all the substance, for all the promise and for allthe content; to have The Take boil down to a chase sequence on footthat, again, certainly thinks it has more of a sense of drama involvedthan it actually does, was just a mite disappointing and anti-climatic.Furman likes his visual tricks and gimmicks, with someone somewherefailing to realise that spectacle and visualness ought to have beensecondary to this screenplay's agenda as gritty, Hispanic-Americanliving conditions; seams in a family becoming unravelled; a man loosinghis mind and sense of masculinity plus brutal shootings during a heistsequence were the order of the day. Furman tells the story with everytrick in the book: the visual flair ingredient to the editing andcamera work; the speeding up of footage; transitions and the hand-heldcamera technique on top of a number of scenes set in rooms that areclose to all being entirely blacked out for sake of mood.John Leguizamo plays the role of Felix De La Pena, a man of Hispanicdescent living with his wife Marina (Perez) and their two kids in LosAngeles. De La Pena is a nice, upstanding man with a great deal offondness for his family and the work he does. His large friend-baseplus the fact his job sees him adopt a certain role of honour and trustin driving an armoured truck instills a sense of responsibility on topof the other positive conventions. But one day, things go spectacularlywrong when Tyrese Gibson's criminal Adell holds up the truck; has De LaPena drive it back to the HQ before robbing the place of its money andfatally wounding De La Pena. We've seen people shot following heists infilms many-a time before, usually hard-bodied; no nonsense criminals inhard boiled neo-noirs, but they'd always get back up again after abrief lay off and plough on ahead, seeking money and revenge. TheTake's sequence of wounding feels grainer than usual, De La Pena'spained reaction to his injuries are stark and cutting in ways that I'verarely felt a gunshot wound in a film before. The injury feels morepainful than usual because of the film's delicate buildup of thevictim: a well mannered; rather slim, though not necessarily 'weak',and supremely upstanding character in De La Pena. From here, a processof recovery for both the mind, body and soul begins as FBI agent StevePerelli (Cannavale) hunts the wrong-doers.It's here the film beds down for a long stretch of content similar toone another. De La Pena's sense of self vanishes and he gets a lotangrier a lot more often than usual, with Leguizamo really ratherbrilliantly portraying this new character: this fresher, more frothingat the mouth person. He installs security equipment in a fit ofparanoia and undergoes a process of long recovery that sees him sense aonce-present notion of 'manliness' now gone. Subsequently, he cannotmake love to his wife; gets agitated as a result and seems to maintainthis odd sense of being unable to really 'feel', as if to cry or getupset at the shooting is to fatally expel a sense of male machismo,with an ideology that might read something like: 'men don't cry - menget over this sort of thing'.I wrote a while ago in an observation on a Finnish film from 2006entitled Lights in the Dusk about the film's over-emphasising on the'little-guy' in a big situation. In said film, a hapless turnkey isrendered fall guy so a gang of thieves can swipe some diamonds his jobit is to contain. I cited 2001's sprawling and maddening heist flick3000 Miles to Graceland, in which during a heist sequence at a casino,countless numbers of body guards and members of law enforcement aredispatched like the many nameless, faceless bad guys that pop up at youin certain video games, each one of them as fatally injured as thenext. The Take, like said Finnish film, rejects the generic notion tofollow those perpetrating the heist and instead opts for an unbeatenroute down into the gloomy undergrowth of a victim of the shootingrecovering. Needless to say, a lot of people that were shot in 3000Miles to Graceland would've gone through what De La Pena goes throughhere – it's when these sorts of films dry up that we know we're introuble. I notice that at the present time, The Take has a lower IMDbrating than 3000 Miles to Graceland: good grief!

2013-05-05 01:44:45

What a waste of film

this movie sucked so bad, its like watching a train wreck. and it just doesn't get any better as it goes onbut at least the train wreck finaly ends, and thank god, so did this movie

zachfurman 2013-05-05 01:01:11

Best movie of the Year!!!!!!

This movie was the best flick I have seen in years. Both the acting &directing were phenomenal. Anyone who has posted negative commentsabout "The Take" is a complete fool and must be delusional orsomething. The director of this movie, Brad Furman is a genius. Hisunique style of portraying the characters in the film and the way thecamera work was done was amazing. The directing was truly on thecutting edge, and was most definitely ahead of its time. John Leguizamowas truly amazing in the film and his performance may have been one ofhis best ever. Bottom line is the movie was the bomb and I wouldrecommend definitely checking it out!

2013-04-07 00:36:26

i wish i could give it 6 stars

i just watched this movie on hbo and i'm buying it on amazon.... i wish it was in blu-ray... one of the best movies i have watched and one i will watch again. i think the low reviews may have been because of expectations.... this movie would be tagged as drama or suspense.... if you are looking for super eye candy and action adventure watch transformers... this was a gritty almost too realistic thriller... the only negative and the reason for 6 stars instead of 7 was the sex scene.... i felt it was unnecessary and a fade away would have been better served.... anyway its now cheap buy it and enjoy,,,, i did.

Mike Barnes 2013-04-06 11:21:32

Criminally underrated

Some of these negative reviews are interesting. Of course you're notwrong, everyone has a right to their own opinion, but come on. Onereviewer is complaining about how it's not an action movie, another iscomplaining about plot holes. You wanna see plot holes? Watch DeathSentence, another revenge film which is rated higher than this despitenot making any sense. This film is amazing. The performances areamazing. The story is intriguing and gritty. The ending is reallyintense. What's with all the hate? sure there are some problemsoccasionally, but all in all, it's a really, really good movie. Ithought it was incredible.

squanjaili 2013-03-29 14:14:24

Boring, bad cinematography

No spoilers here. What could have been a good, gritty L.A.crime/revenge flick was spoiled by SLOW pacing and the ridiculouslyoverused shaky camera technique and grainy and way-too-dark (to put itmildly!) final cut. I'm not an expert on film, so I don't know what youwould call this extremely washed-out look, but it spoiled the movie.Many scenes were so dark as to be completely unwatchable. I am SO SICKof these "hip", modern film techniques. What is so awful about notshaking the camera and allowing viewers to actually see what's goingon?If any aspiring filmmakers are reading this, take it from me (a totalmovie junkie): STOP SHAKING THE CAMERA! STOP WASHING OUT THE COLORS!The story and acting are what matters to us. Please stop trying tobring attention to the direction. I've been a professional musician myentire adult life, and to me a film director should be like a good bassplayer: If the song sounds right and I don't notice anything wrong,then he's doing a great job!

2013-03-29 11:43:37

0 stars.. Only gave it 1 because 0 wasn't an option

Awful awful awful... Did I say it was awful? situations that make up sol situations that make no sense. The acting is awful the writing is awful the movie is awful. that was 100 * more well done than this movie real resolution or expla real resolution or explanation or understanding of why the characters had the attitudes they had.I actually fell asleep towards the end of the movie which is supposed to be the exciting part

PersianPlaya408 2013-03-29 06:19:55

Underrated

This is one of the lowest-rated action films, that i found to be highlyentertaining, and a gem in my eyes. Its the story of an armored truckdriver, who is wounded in a heist, and battles rehabiliation and tryingto track down the person who committed the crime. Leguizamo shines inthe lead, while Tyrese, although not entirely convincing, does betterthan his previous work in Baby Boy and 2 fast 2 furious...Meanwhile,Bobby Cannavale was very good here. I thought the music was wellincorporated, and Lukas Ettlin did a good job with the cinematography,and the editing was also good. THis is one of the better Hollywood lowbudget b-movie esquire films i have seen. It may not be Oscar-worthy,but as far as a high- paced action flick, i thought it got the job donebetter than a lot of films with 3 or 4 times the budget, i would almostforget at times that the films estimated budget was less than amillion. --IMDB Rating: 5.2. MY Rating: 9/10

gregorysiff2 2013-03-28 19:29:34

Thrills, Excitement, and Emotion THE TAKE TAKES YOU THERE

I am a big movie fan and look out for movies that have an emotionalheart but also a witty edge to them. Here is a flick that is worth yourten bucks with solid actors and a great story. Hands down one ofLeguizamo's most interesting roles to date and weaved fluidly by ayoung director with a keen eye for what excites, Brad Furman. Not a lotof good out there to see and I highly recommend this picture. You willnot be let down. The editing is sharp as well and unique to what ishappening with way stories are being told. I look forward to seeingmore from this team. Rosie Perez is adorable and charming and still hasthe glow she started with when she first was introduced in the motionpicture world. Root for the underdog and check this film out.

2013-03-27 18:52:08

This is a very depressing film

This is a very depressing R rated movie. A family man who drives an armored truck is hijacked, his family is threatened, is made to participate in a robbery, and then shot in the head. He survived but was left with mental and emotional problems. He acts strangely. This affects his family and the FBI begin to believe that he was an inside man for the robbery. He stumbles upon some information and feels that the FBI isn't doing all it can to find who did the robbery and shot him, and he decides to go after the criminals himself.

TSTARX 2013-03-27 15:59:27

Excellent old fashioned film-making

The Take isn't one of those films you'll remember forever, it's plotsimplistic, and script not without some flaws, but you will definitelyremember the performances by the entire cast.I always defended Leguizamo as a serious actor, while some claim he'salways typecast. I knew he was talented, and he immediately sets thetension in this film. He does a great job in every scene. Rosie Perezwas also intense, nice to see her always. Lequizamo drives the film,he's clearly not just a supporting actor. He deserves to be A-listed.Another honorable mention is the directing of the film. I loved theUrban cinematography! East LA was never covered better. The oldfashioned town is shown well, and gritty atmosphere adds to the alreadydark tale. Overall, a good old school revenge tale, a modern western perhaps! 7/10

2013-03-26 19:22:36

I got took alright

From the previews this movie looks like it is an action packed thriller with a semi decent cast. Not the case. This movie is a major snore fest. There is action at the beginning and at the end. The whole middle and story builder part of the movie is boring as can be. This is supposed to be a story of revenge, but by the time you actually get to the revenge you are fighting to keep your eyes open. Watching Leguizamo have mood swings for 40 minutes straight does not make for a good movie. Also the glue on beard that Tyrese wears in the movie looks utterly ridiculous (LOL). The story is poorly written and never really develops. I guess they put the best parts of the movie in the trailer to fool the viewers. This is a really really slow movie. I would not recommend this movie at all.

Robert J. Maxwell 2013-03-26 02:11:53

Moody Crime and Revenge.

John Leguizamo is an earnest security guard in Los Angeles who loveshis wife, Rosie Perez, and his two children. He is coerced into takingpart in a robbery of an armored car by three husky guys led by TyreseGibson, who threatens his family if he doesn't comply. A couple ofother guards are caught by surprise and deliberately murdered by thethieves. Gibson shoots Leguizamo in the head and arranges the crimescene in such a way as to make him look guilty.Leguizamo manages to survive. He's comatose for a while but eventuallyrecovers, as much as you can recover from a bullet wound in the frontallobe. "His personality may be changed," the surgeon warns his wife.Indeed it does change. Frontal lobotomies were discovered by means ofaccidents. They tended to cut down on the more virulent hallucinationsbut they also made patients' manners coarser and impaired their abilityto plan for the future. That is, these kinds of wounds, whethermedically induced or otherwise, kneecap your judgment.Leguizamo is thrown into easy rages over trivial things. He can'tsatisfy his wife anymore and smashes furniture, driving his familyaway. He sasses the cops and the cynical FBI agent coolly rendered byBobby Cannavale. Then he undertakes to find the criminals on his own,skipping out from under surveillance. There are only a few chases andshootings.It's a taut and credible story and the performances are good. Leguizamodoesn't exemplify celluloid magic, and Gibson, as the chief malefactor,isn't given the kind of non-stereotypical license that, say, DelroyLindo is, in some of Quentin Tarantino's work. But Cannavale is justfine and Rosie Perez does as well here as she's done anywhere else. Herfeatures are more lined, her dimples deeper, and she's not twenty yearsold anymore but who is? The movie's virtues are almost destroyed by the direction, photography,and editing. They are to the film's integrity what that bullet was toLeguizamo's brain.It's not as bad as the last two "Bourne" movies -- but it's pretty bad.The camera wobbles all over the place. There are instantaneous cuts,some negative shots. I don't have the technical vocabulary to describethe photography but it's high contrast. There were times when I thoughtthe images would lapse into nothing more than blinding light sourcesand reflections, leaving the remainder of the screen entirely black. Ascene in the OR is shot with the lighting mostly coming from the side,so that the gaping wound in which the doc's forceps are probing is adeep, dark void. And this is an operating room! The pallet seems tovary from white and black to gloomy green.Sometimes this sort of thing, done in moderation, works splendidly, asin "Seven." Other cop/crime stories of unimpeachable quality haven'tused this faddish stuff at all -- "L. A. Confidential," "To Live andDie in L. A.", not to mention "Chinatown." I mean, really, there is asimple extended close up of a cell phone -- and the camera oscillatesfrom side to side like the head of a snake in a fairy tale.Well, I guess we don't want to bore the fourteen-year-old minds in theaudience, who would be snoring if five minutes passed without some kindof action -- if not the characters, then the camera. Still, it's badenough in mindless action movies but this story deals as much with thedrama of Leguizamo and his family as it does with the unfolding of thecrime plot.

2013-03-18 19:13:23

Take this one home

Very well acted drama , a man falsely blamed by over zealous police for a crime he had nothing to do with..the direction was outstanding ..rent this one

D Nice 2013-03-18 08:12:07

Great Movie

The movie had me awake and sitting on the edge of my seat waiting for what was going to happen next. I will definitely buy the DVD, and add it to my collection. The casting was very well. The movie had a different plot that was not your normal predictable ending. Great Movie!!!!

Warren S 2013-03-17 21:45:02

Thank you..... fast forward button

The film visuals were good in its realism, not overproduced on purpose and that part worked. End of the positive. Too much phony melodrama and too many "half mile stare" shots while supposed wrenching music played in the background. Then switch to the "ultra real"(sarcasm) thug music and the gangsta bad guy scenes. On and on it went, forever it seemed. I couldn't wait for it to end. Man it was awful I tell ya.

thebogofeternalstench 2013-03-17 05:03:12

Good start, bad ending

The Take started off well but ended terribly.A few things I noticed in the movie was that Felix should of came outof hospital in a wheelchair after BRAIN surgery, and no way in hellwould he be allowed to drive a car or even be able to drive after beingshot in the head.As others have said, the camera was all over the place. It getstiresome and annoying having to put up wit that, even gave me a bit ifa headache.So Felix gets shot in the head and wants revenge, goes after the badguy and finally has him caught on top of a roof with a gun on him inthe end and what does he do? NOTHING. The FBI guy turns up and its allover then, Felix is just 'dropped' off at home. LMAO. Right.What was the point of this movie?????

F_Jenkins 2013-03-13 04:58:14

Another "where's the tripod?" movie

This movie could have been better with a competent director, butinstead we get a guy who, for some reason, refuses to use a tripod.It's almost entirely hand held. Not steadicam, just a guy holding thecamera while riding a skateboard. Even in simple scenes with peopletalking in a room, the camera is swaying all over the place? Cansomeone please tell me why this is supposed to make the movie goingexperience better? A good cast is wasted here. For some reason the copsthink Leguazamo was in on the take, despite the fact he would have beencompletely aware of the cameras watching them at the company's homebase. Surely someone from the department would have done some simpleCSI work on where the downed employee was who supposedly shot Leguazamoand where the actual person had to have been for the bullet to enterwhere it did? It's a little far fetched.The last scene where Leguazamo is chasing the bad guy with his gun inplane sight was funny. You can't drive two blocks in downtown LAwithout a cop driving by. Unless you're chasing a bad guy apparently.And the one cop who happens to be where there's a traffic jam, getstaken down easily.There was a good movie in there somewhere. The cast was all great, justthe script needed some work and it needed a real director. When I comeacross a movie nowadays that doesn't use the shaky-swing the camera allover the place technique, it's like a present.

julienifill 2013-03-12 20:05:19

Quality Movie

A quality movie, very good character development, it shows howLeguizamo's character grapples with rehabilitation after his near fatalgunshot wound and how his wife Perez's character has to adjust in theirrelationship. Gibson's character is a strong character both physicallyand emotionally and these roles suit Gibson as opposed to a Baby Boyrole. The police detectives are relentless in their pursuit of justice.Good movie, one negative aspect was the gross sexual scene betweenPerez and Leguizamo but I guess the director was trying to show how hisinjury adversely affected their intimacy. I recommend this movie toanyone and I look forward to future work from this director