'Taking Lives' lacks mystery but still produces chills

As a chill-inducing creepy movie, D.J. Caruso's ("The Salton Sea") new film "Taking Lives" excels. As a sophisticated new take on a murder mystery, however, the movie falls short.

Angelina Jolie ("Lara Croft Tomb Raider: the Cradle of Life") plays special agent Illeana Scott, a hardened detective who comes to Quebec City to help the local police solve a series of related murders. Local detective Paquette (Olivier Martinez, "S.W.A.T.") is begrudgingly paired with Scott, whose involvement he considers to be unnecessary.

Together the team investigate murders that they suspect were committed by a man who has been killing others and stealing their identities since adolescence. James Costa (Ethan Hawke, "Training Day") is the police department's newest asset — he's the only man alive to ever see the murderer almost to the point of recognition.

After Costa's arrival, "Taking Lives" then progresses into a typical chase, where the detectives remain one step behind the killer throughout the movie, falling into various plot twists and surprises along the way.

The film starts off with excitement and suspense, as it displays a particularly brutal scene from the past when the serial killer begins his reign of murders. The impact of this scene — when the killer kicks a boy into an oncoming truck — is not even lost by the fact that the trailers for the movie gave the scene away.

However, the use of grotesque images and scenes becomes overdone, as Illeana covers her hotel room with pictures of the dead bodies, presumably to inspire her to solve the case. At one point, she even eats dinner across from a picture of a mutilated corpse.

One of the major downfalls of the movie is its treatment of Jolie's character. Recently, female detectives have been portrayed in movies as stoic, unfeeling and unlovable creatures having been irreversibly scarred by the job they chose. A prime example of this is Ashley Judd's character in the movie "Kiss the Girls," or Sandra Bullock in "Murder by Numbers."

Illeana is no different. She spends her time alone and is unflinching to blood and gore enough to not be moved by pictures of dead bodies or by lying in an open grave to get a feeling about a murder suspect. In fact, she even wants to remain emotionless, having avoided relationships with men by wearing a wedding band even though she is single. A different portrayal of a woman in a detective's role would have made this movie stand out. Instead, it falls into the category of every other film made about a female detective.

James, however, is an extremely fascinating character, and Hawke does a tremendous job with this role. James is, at times, both creepy and charming. The audience wonders constantly whether he truly is good or evil.

Keifer Sutherland ("Phone Booth") makes a small appearance in the film, and his contribution is typical of his usual characters; he plays a character whose unseemliness and evilness seems assured.

Martinez's role is rather minor, but effective as a cocky, chauvinistic detective insulted by the presence of this American woman. Again, there was nothing original about this element of the plot — as in other movies, the man is upset by the presence of a powerful female.

What the movie did not lack was unpredictable plot twists. The trailer guarantees that the audience still will not figure out the ending until it happens — and it was right. The ending leaves audiences baffled and shocked — a good finish to a movie that needed something to make it unforgettable.