Take (2008)

Fresh and Exciting

Did you people see the same film I saw?

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

I caught this little indie flick off HULU a couple days ago, and wow!- what a powerful film this turned out to be. Two great actors- Minnie Driver and Jeremy Renner- star as a struggling mom and a thief on the verge of getting possibly executed, whose lives collide all over the course of one day. The film is mostly done in flashback sequences, and it confused me a little at first until I realized the scenes with Renner on the "inside" are the present-day ones. The film starts out a little slow, but once it gets going, you really find yourself absorbed in their lives. Renner is just great in roles like these, sort of a weasily-type character, but you still find yourself empathizing with his character, and hoping things will turn around for him. The role is something similar to the kinda character Al Pacino may have done in the '70s, like "Panic in Needle Park" or "Dog Day Afternoon". Definitely worth checking out...

As I was watching 'Take' I kept asking myself why this movie had been made. Very early on we know that a man is going to be executed and a child will be killed. I kept waiting for the child to already be dead to get it over with. Why show the abduction in such graphic detail? Why show the mother repeatedly wailing? We all know that having your child murdered is maybe the most horrible thing that can happen. The film was NOT made to advocate the meeting of victims/ perpetrators like it says at the very end. The set up for that is nonexistent. The director/ writer tries to be artsy with all the confusing flashbacks and set ups that don't lead anywhere (you see the mother waiting for her boy to come out of the rest room at a rest stop and he never does. It's totally unclear that he's a ghost at this point. The woman's husband whom she has a good relationship with just disappears. To me it was a film made for effect and gratuitous in terms of subject and violence. The actors were very good. I always enjoy Minnie Driver's work.

Heavy subject, but wonderfully executed. There was enough detail to make the story line real. I loved the "real" feeling of the cinematography as well, it made it more believable. The actors came across as real people. The movie did a good job at letting the audience get to know the main characters - which was absolutely vital for this movie to be a success. I think this movie will be better the second time around - all truly good movies are - as you catch even more of the details. I gave it a 9 instead of a 10 because there were a couple of scenes where the acting was a little bit bland/did not quite hit the mark. This is a movie I would recommend to friends and it is a movie that keeps you talking and thinking long after you have seen it. I am so glad I got to see it. I can't wait to see it again.

The movie "Take" is definitely a brain teaser type of movie. I went to see it at the "Tribeca Film Festival" and I really enjoyed it. Its very interesting how it only focuses on the two main characters and how it goes into the present and past and then you end up in the future. Its very fascinating because the movie kind of takes you into a journey into the lives of the main characters Saul and Anna as we see what happens the day that everything changed for them. And its interesting just to see how each of their lives are so different, yet the same in a way. The most important part of the movie and probably the biggest lesson of and in real life is forgiveness. Can we forgive that easily? I found it very interesting. I really enjoyed it, the cast and crew did a wonderful job with it.