Takers

I observed a number of things in this action-packed heist flick:

• Not all cops are crooked, but keep an eye on Matt Dillon ("Old Dogs") and Jay Hernandez ("Grindhouse").
• Thugs use very little profanity, which was a big shock until I noticed the PG-13 rating.
• It's bad to shoot kids or cops; Idris Elba ("The Losers") and Paul Walker ("Fast & Furious") show surprising restraint.
• Hand-held cameras are very disorienting. 'Nuff said...
• I resent actors showing secret gang hand signals in their publicity photos.
• Loyalty is good; disloyalty is fatal; so this gang of heist artists is extremely loyal.
• Thieves get gorgeous girlfriends; yup, Zoë Saldana ("Avatar") again!
• Parkour is the most exciting urban sport on film; I'll take it over vehicular mayhem any time.
• Russians make formidable enemies in the organized crime world.
• Crime seems to pay for most criminals over the short haul: witness the great cars, clothes and cribs.
• Crime does not pay for most criminals over the long haul: witness the corpses that litter the screen.

This wasn't as enjoyable as I expected, although I certainly did appreciate the eye candy for women: Idris Elba, Paul Walker, Hayden Christensen, Michael Ealy, Johnathon Schaech, Chris Brown, etc., etc., etc. In fact the women in the audience actually applauded when Mr. Elba was rousted from his bed in his whitey tighties.... and he richly deserved it!