Taking Lives is a
2004 psychological thriller film starring
Angelina
Jolie and
Ethan Hawke. The film was
marketed with the tagline "He would kill to be you."
The
original music score was composed by Philip
Glass and the main title's theme was composed by Austrian
Walter Werzowa, best known for the
Intel
jingle and his work in the band Edelweiss.
Story and writing credit
The film was based on the
novel of the same
title by Michael Pye. Numerous hands had a part in the
screenplay as
script doctors. The
cover page of the screenplay credits Jon Bokenkamp with the
original draft,
Nicholas Kazan with
subsequent revisions,
Hilary Seitz with
more revisions, and
David Ayer with the
last revisions (to February 28, 2003). The
WGA screenwriting credit
system ultimately awarded screenplay and adaptation credit to
Bokenkamp alone.
Plot summary
The film opens in the early 1980's where the young and shy teenager
Martin Asher (
Paul Dano) is seen fleeing
from home, taking a bus in Canada. He befriends another teen on the
bus, Matt Soulsby (
Justin Chatwin)
and the two talk about their plans for the future.
When their bus breaks
down, the two decide to rent a car and drive all the way to
Seattle
. However, all ends badly when the car gets a
flat. While Matt is changing the tire, Martin comments on how he
and Matt are both about the same height. He quickly pushes Matt in
the way of an oncoming truck, causing a major traffic accident that
kills Matt and the driver of the other truck. He is last seen
taking Matt's guitar and walking away singing in the fashion that
Matt had been in the car.
Picking up
twenty years later, a successful FBI
profiler,
Illeana Scott (Jolie), is summoned to help out Canadian
law
enforcement in Montreal
, to hunt
down the serial killer Martin Asher,
who assumes the lives and identities of the people he kills as he
travels across North America.
Asher has killed multiple men, assuming their identities for a few
years before killing again and beginning a new life. Illeana has to
adjust to working in a strange city with a police team that she
does not really fit in with. Meanwhile, Mrs. Asher (Rowlands),
Martin's mother, claims she has recently seen her son in Montreal
and tells the police she truly believes Martin is evil.
The team meets with art salesman James Costa (Hawke), an eyewitness
who saw Asher kill his last victim. James makes a drawing of Asher
and within a couple of days, Asher is found. Illeana discovers
Asher's next target is Costa, so protecting him is priority number
one. During the time they spend together, Illeana and James begins
to develop feelings for each other, though Illeana refuses to
become involved with him because of the ongoing case.
After kidnapping Costa with Illeana in pursuit, Asher supposedly
dies in a car accident and the case is closed. At this time,
Illeana and Costa become romantically involved (even having sex)
and Illeana finds herself really falling for Costa. However, when
Mrs. Asher comes to identify the body of her son, the body turns
out not to be her son's, and that Martin is still alive somewhere.
A terrified Mrs. Asher flees the hospital morgue and into the
elevator, but before Illeana can follow her in, the doors shut.
When they finally open, Illeana sees James covered in blood,
standing over Mrs. Asher's mutilated corpse, and realizes Costa is
Asher, that Asher killed the actual Costa months ago. An
investigation shows that the man the real Asher had identified as
Asher was really Christopher Hart, an art thief who did business
with Asher and was cheated by him. The Montreal police chase Asher,
but he escapes in a train station and disappears, and approaches
his next victim, a travelling sports talent scout. After that, he
calls Illeana on the phone and makes fun of her. Consequently,
Illeana is fired from the FBI.
Seven months later, Illeana is living in a desolate farmhouse by
herself in rural Pennsylvania, clearly pregnant. It is revealed she
is pregnant with Asher's twin boys. One day as she sits alone in
her home, she discovers Asher has broken into her house. She
frantically tries to escape, but Asher overpowers her, punching her
and throwing her to the ground. Asher tells her he could live as a
family with her, and a disgusted Illeana tells him she doesn't know
who he is, that she is carrying 'James Costa's' babies. In fury,
Asher begins choking her and eventually stabs her in the stomach
with a pair of scissors. Illeana, seemingly unharmed by the
stabbing, shocks Asher by stabbing him in the heart with the same
pair. As Asher lies dying, Illeana removes a prosthetic pregnant
belly, and tells him the past seven months have been a carefully
planned trap. The film ends with Illeana calling the police, saying
"It's over," and staring out her window. Asher is now finally
dead.
Cast
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