To be honest I watched this film purely for the fact that I am very interested in Hacker Culture/History.. and to my dismay, this film is far from the truth. However it does have its good sides.. it's portrayal of hacking itself and of people with an over-enthusiastic interest in computing for one. Where other hacker-orientated Hollywood movies show flashy tron-like graphics to depict gaining root on a system, Takedown shows you how it is. And the other good thing about this movie is just that... its a movie. If you ignore the fact that the majority of its plot is based on biased views from people who either disliked Kevin, or never even knew him, it's watchable. It contains all the aspects of a Hollywood movie that grab the viewer.. an original topic, a fast moving storyline, a so-called criminal that you really feel sorry for, an unjust American legal system, and a so-called victim who is just as bad as the depicted criminal. If you can easily switch off, this film is for you, but if you care about freedom of information, moral values and the fact that everyone has the right to a fair trial... go watch Freedom Downtime.
36 Reviews
Entertaining to say the least.
Proz5128 May 2001
I know all about the Mitnick story, the "Free Kevin", the story from both sides. I'm well aware how the hacking scene thinks this paints an unfair portrait of hackers. Compared to what is usually painted, this doesn't really paint them too bad. Compared to the really atrocious movie "Hackers", this does a lot better at showing what hacking is really like. You don't hack with a Mac, you hack from a PC in different ways. You get to also see the other try & true techiques of Social Engineering & Dumpster Diving. While any true hacker could point out the blatant lies in the movie (Mitnick & Shimomura never met in person until after the arrest), it was cool that the film made some clear distinctions in terminology. If this movie showed actual hacking, it would of been a snoozer. This was able to keep it a bit more interesting without making it look cheesy to the semiliterate computer user. It's funny how this won't appear in the United States, maybe the US Government is afraid of the truth about how afterwards Mitnick was stripped of his constitutional rights. Watch this film, and be entertained, but don't believe it, as most of it is really fiction.
The Moral Dilemma
trgusa10 May 2005
Not arguing technical details or realism, I feel what is presented in this movie is an all-too black and white picture of hackers, or "Crackers", as the hero refers to them. Great pains are taken to portray Kevin Mitnick as a temper-prone, reactionary, asocial neurotic, with nuances of sexual dysfunctionality thrown in as well. Whereas, the hero (Tsutomu Shimomura)comes off as being the shiniest star in the sky.
I would say this general portrayal is unfair, and nearly propagandistic in its intent. The movie really becomes a base for expounding the moral issues of hacking and 'freedom of information' in a society that survives on security. It is a clear warning, and it does NOT favor hacking or hackers.
I am appalled by that, because a more open picture of both sides might have been painted. "Hackers" brought the world to the standards of today, and daily test the security and limits of it... likewise, "programmers" continue to strive for safety, but also encrypt for greed, control, power, and politics. It is not all back and white.
Either a hacker OR a programmer are capable of accidentally, or intentionally creating havoc in a real world of banking, traffic lights, airports, and defense systems, although the chances seem less with programmers (unless you know about "The Singularity").
All I am saying is that this movie is VERY biased against hackers, it allows them NO redeemable social attributes, and it radically stereotypes them. It is intended to PERSUADE you. THAT, I regard as a THREAT to my own individual freedom of thought, and when you cross that line... alarms go off.
BEWARE of this if you haven't seen this movie yet.
Did "Big Brother" produce this film? ("Big Brother" is a reference to George Orwell's novel "1984") Regardless, the movie has good detail within a fast-moving and captivating plot.
Lastly, NO, I am NOT pro-hacker oriented. Mitnick is clearly a criminal with a long record of convictions dating all the way back to 1981... but, I don't like being told what, or how, to think about a whole class of people.
I would say this general portrayal is unfair, and nearly propagandistic in its intent. The movie really becomes a base for expounding the moral issues of hacking and 'freedom of information' in a society that survives on security. It is a clear warning, and it does NOT favor hacking or hackers.
I am appalled by that, because a more open picture of both sides might have been painted. "Hackers" brought the world to the standards of today, and daily test the security and limits of it... likewise, "programmers" continue to strive for safety, but also encrypt for greed, control, power, and politics. It is not all back and white.
Either a hacker OR a programmer are capable of accidentally, or intentionally creating havoc in a real world of banking, traffic lights, airports, and defense systems, although the chances seem less with programmers (unless you know about "The Singularity").
All I am saying is that this movie is VERY biased against hackers, it allows them NO redeemable social attributes, and it radically stereotypes them. It is intended to PERSUADE you. THAT, I regard as a THREAT to my own individual freedom of thought, and when you cross that line... alarms go off.
BEWARE of this if you haven't seen this movie yet.
Did "Big Brother" produce this film? ("Big Brother" is a reference to George Orwell's novel "1984") Regardless, the movie has good detail within a fast-moving and captivating plot.
Lastly, NO, I am NOT pro-hacker oriented. Mitnick is clearly a criminal with a long record of convictions dating all the way back to 1981... but, I don't like being told what, or how, to think about a whole class of people.
horrible, innacurate, defamatory
Deviant4220 July 2002
This was a movie that deserved to tank. Kevin Mitnick, a genius with computers who was a little too inquisitive for the authorities liking, has been the victim of so many abuses that it can make one's stomach turn. "Takedown" was adapted from a book written by John Markoff and Tsutomu Shimomura who exploited Kevin, a man about whom neither of the authors had any direct knowledge, and pretended to be Mitnick experts when in fact they couldn't have been more clueless.
Markoff, a hack journalist who did everything that he could to portray Kevin a danger to society in order to keep writing articles about him, has claimed wild rumors about Mitnick to be fact (rumors such as Kevin hacking into NORAD computers, harassing Christie McNickle, and converting home phones into pay phones) with no regard for the fact that he was demonizing Kevin in the eyes of society and in the eyes of a justice system - a system that would eventually lock Kevin in solitary confinement for 8 months because they were afraid he would use prison phones to launch nuclear missiles if placed in general population. Tsutomu Shimomura is nothing but a smart-ass hacker wanna-be whose main contribution to the book "Takedown" was a list of his skateboarding and eating habits.
If anyone out there really wants to learn the true Kevin Mitnick story, please view "Freedom Downtime" by Emmanuel Goldstein. [http://us.imdb.com/Title?0309614]
Markoff, a hack journalist who did everything that he could to portray Kevin a danger to society in order to keep writing articles about him, has claimed wild rumors about Mitnick to be fact (rumors such as Kevin hacking into NORAD computers, harassing Christie McNickle, and converting home phones into pay phones) with no regard for the fact that he was demonizing Kevin in the eyes of society and in the eyes of a justice system - a system that would eventually lock Kevin in solitary confinement for 8 months because they were afraid he would use prison phones to launch nuclear missiles if placed in general population. Tsutomu Shimomura is nothing but a smart-ass hacker wanna-be whose main contribution to the book "Takedown" was a list of his skateboarding and eating habits.
If anyone out there really wants to learn the true Kevin Mitnick story, please view "Freedom Downtime" by Emmanuel Goldstein. [http://us.imdb.com/Title?0309614]
Barely acceptable as a movie
JurijFedorov29 August 2023
Historical accuracy: 3
Acting: 6
Camera work: 4
Editing: 5
Budget: 4
Story: 6
Theme: 5
Pure entertainment factor: 6
Video quality: 5
Special effects: NA
Pacing: 6
Suspension of disbelief: 3
Non-cringe factor: 5
Lack of flashbacks: 10
It's not a good movie as such. It's engaging enough with decent acting and a plot that always advances, but it's messy and cheap movie making. Firstly, I have read Mitnick's book and watched the doc. The doc had some weird scenes and was dirt cheap, but overall a good watch and the audiobook was very fun.
This is not really what happened. This is a story from a point of view of a guy who claims he caught him. He didn't of course. And while watching the movie it will be quite clear that it's nearly fully fictional. The super hacker, who is here better than Mitnick, can do no wrong. He has a hot horny blonde girlfriend, mocks political figures openly, works with FBI, has his own company it seems. He's like a superhero of sorts and Mitnick is this weird criminal hacker. A loner who was forced to leave his girlfriend as FBI was after him. His girlfriend starts dating his best friend instead. In a dating scene he mocks the woman he asked out. He acts weird and creepily and overall the great danger he presents is because he steals this super powerful program from the guy who is now chasing him. Apparently it can hack into ANY system whatsoever. FBI, airports, hospitals. Anything. Obviously this movie is nearly pure fiction and a narcissistic product.
Actually, the best scenes are the ones where we experience realistic events like Mitnick tricking his way into companies, hacking a phone to make free calls, talking about the morals of hacking, hacking the people chasing him, being easily offended. But largely the movie tries to be over the top. The camera work is shoddy and rushed, the hacking scenes cringe. Overall the plot is confusing. The guy chasing him somehow always tracks him down yet we never clearly understand how. And many scenes are plastered in. There is clearly a script and plot here yet the movie is recut by someone besides the director because much of it makes no sense with scenes just appearing and explaining very little.
It's actually watchable and semi-enjoyable. It's not boring as such and I guess one could watch it. But it looks very cheap, the plot is nonsense, and the editing makes it a giant mess. I feel like there is a great story here that could be made. Just focus on the small hacking stuff and social engineering. Keep it realistic. This is why I think some people enjoyed it enough as you could imagine how it could have been good. It's not, but at least it's not dull. There are not many hacker movies out there and most are quite horrible. This at least is perplexingly not awful. Which is something I guess.
It's not a good movie as such. It's engaging enough with decent acting and a plot that always advances, but it's messy and cheap movie making. Firstly, I have read Mitnick's book and watched the doc. The doc had some weird scenes and was dirt cheap, but overall a good watch and the audiobook was very fun.
This is not really what happened. This is a story from a point of view of a guy who claims he caught him. He didn't of course. And while watching the movie it will be quite clear that it's nearly fully fictional. The super hacker, who is here better than Mitnick, can do no wrong. He has a hot horny blonde girlfriend, mocks political figures openly, works with FBI, has his own company it seems. He's like a superhero of sorts and Mitnick is this weird criminal hacker. A loner who was forced to leave his girlfriend as FBI was after him. His girlfriend starts dating his best friend instead. In a dating scene he mocks the woman he asked out. He acts weird and creepily and overall the great danger he presents is because he steals this super powerful program from the guy who is now chasing him. Apparently it can hack into ANY system whatsoever. FBI, airports, hospitals. Anything. Obviously this movie is nearly pure fiction and a narcissistic product.
Actually, the best scenes are the ones where we experience realistic events like Mitnick tricking his way into companies, hacking a phone to make free calls, talking about the morals of hacking, hacking the people chasing him, being easily offended. But largely the movie tries to be over the top. The camera work is shoddy and rushed, the hacking scenes cringe. Overall the plot is confusing. The guy chasing him somehow always tracks him down yet we never clearly understand how. And many scenes are plastered in. There is clearly a script and plot here yet the movie is recut by someone besides the director because much of it makes no sense with scenes just appearing and explaining very little.
It's actually watchable and semi-enjoyable. It's not boring as such and I guess one could watch it. But it looks very cheap, the plot is nonsense, and the editing makes it a giant mess. I feel like there is a great story here that could be made. Just focus on the small hacking stuff and social engineering. Keep it realistic. This is why I think some people enjoyed it enough as you could imagine how it could have been good. It's not, but at least it's not dull. There are not many hacker movies out there and most are quite horrible. This at least is perplexingly not awful. Which is something I guess.
Better that I was expecting
jean_luc_picard_30002 March 2006
From everything that I heard about the original script (which was "obtained" under mysterious circumstances and leaked to the world before shooting started), I was expecting this movie to be really, really awful. I was pleasantly surprised to see that either Miramax, the writers, and/or the producers took some of the hacker community's complaints seriously, and adjusted the script accordingly. The final script that was filmed is certainly more even-handed and fair to Kevin Mitnick than Shimomura and Markoff's horrible book "Takedown" was (for a much better treatment of the Kevin Mitnick story, read Jonathan Littman's 1996 book "The Fugitive Game"), and we should be grateful that this film didn't end up being the hatchet-job on Kevin that we all thought it was going to be.
I was glad to see that the "trashcan cover scene", for example, didn't make the final cut, but a little disappointed that we weren't shown how large of a role that John Markoff played during Shimo's "manhunt" for Kevin, and then afterward; according to their own book, Markoff was present for many of the events that took place in North Carolina, and should have at least been shown in the scenes at the cell site alongside Shimo, Julia and the FBI agents.
They also could have done more with the "Lance" character, who represented a real hacker calling himself "Agent Steal" that was working for the FBI, and who figured prominently in the arrest and conviction of another hacker named Kevin Poulsen. (Poulsen's story, done properly, would make for a great movie too, but I digress..) Another no-brainer, slam-dunk scene that should have been in the movie, but wasn't for some reason, was Kevin and Shimo's one and only face to face meeting, in a North Carolina courtroom shortly after his arrest, where Kevin uttered his now famous line "I respect your skills" to Shimo.
I mean, it's no "Saving Private Ryan" or "Godfather Part II", but it isn't bad, either; in fact, it is a much more realistic and enjoyable movie than "Hackers" or "Sneakers" (to its credit, "Hackers" did have the lovely Angelina Jolie going for it), though not as much fun as "War Games", which is truly the "Citizen Kane" of hacker movies, or "Pump Up The Volume", which was more of a hacker movie than people realize, even though the "hacking" is done with a pirate radio station instead of a computer.
As others have already recommended here, go find a copy of "Freedom Downtime", the excellent documentary about Kevin that was produced by Emmanuel Goldstein and the staff of 2600 Magazine, you won't be disappointed.
I was glad to see that the "trashcan cover scene", for example, didn't make the final cut, but a little disappointed that we weren't shown how large of a role that John Markoff played during Shimo's "manhunt" for Kevin, and then afterward; according to their own book, Markoff was present for many of the events that took place in North Carolina, and should have at least been shown in the scenes at the cell site alongside Shimo, Julia and the FBI agents.
They also could have done more with the "Lance" character, who represented a real hacker calling himself "Agent Steal" that was working for the FBI, and who figured prominently in the arrest and conviction of another hacker named Kevin Poulsen. (Poulsen's story, done properly, would make for a great movie too, but I digress..) Another no-brainer, slam-dunk scene that should have been in the movie, but wasn't for some reason, was Kevin and Shimo's one and only face to face meeting, in a North Carolina courtroom shortly after his arrest, where Kevin uttered his now famous line "I respect your skills" to Shimo.
I mean, it's no "Saving Private Ryan" or "Godfather Part II", but it isn't bad, either; in fact, it is a much more realistic and enjoyable movie than "Hackers" or "Sneakers" (to its credit, "Hackers" did have the lovely Angelina Jolie going for it), though not as much fun as "War Games", which is truly the "Citizen Kane" of hacker movies, or "Pump Up The Volume", which was more of a hacker movie than people realize, even though the "hacking" is done with a pirate radio station instead of a computer.
As others have already recommended here, go find a copy of "Freedom Downtime", the excellent documentary about Kevin that was produced by Emmanuel Goldstein and the staff of 2600 Magazine, you won't be disappointed.
Much better than it was planned to be.
Vassago11 June 2000
I believe many people started watching this movie expecting it to be very bad - and I hope many will be as pleasantly surprised as I was. It isn't bad. In fact, it's quite good. Yes, it oversimplifies a lot (though compared with "Hackers", it seems ultrarealistic...) and, as far as Kevin's real story goes, it makes up some things that never happened (for instance, Kevin and Shimomura did not meet in life) - but overall, it's definitely worth watching. Those who followed the way its script had been changing over the years, certainly remember how bad and unfair it was in the beginning - it portrayed Kevin as a criminal of no feelings, and was extremely one-sided, based only on Shimomura's and Markoff's book and relations, and shown from their point of view. Hiring a new writer and looking for sources in a book other than that by M&S helped, however, and the result is a pretty fair, objective movie that shows Kevin as a human, not as a monster. The only thing that should be severely criticized is throwing in the scene with Kevin attempting to distribute Shimomura's nonexistent S.A.T.A.N.-like utility, but other than that, the script treats things fair. See this movie... and while watching it, remember that although at this moment Kevin is already free, he is not allowed to access any kind of computer - which means that he cannot even use a cell phone or a cash register... Perhaps a new movie, "Kevin Free", might portrait his life nowadays.
Great, low budget film
Alex-37214 November 2002
Takedown is the story of Kevin Mitnick and Tsutomu Shimamura's effort to bring him down.
Whatever the accuracies of the story (and considering the egos involved, I guess we'll never know), this is a pretty riveting tale of an underground hacker playing and defeating the system. Which is all you could ever ask for in a movie. :-)
Johnny Depp lookalike Skeet Ulrich, Russell Wong, Donal Logue, Cara Buono, Amanda Peet and Angela Featherstone make this low budget movie worth while.
Whether or not the real Kevin Mitnick is a nice fellow or what he did was totally legal doesn't detract much from this ripping yarn. The production values are ok (but what would you expect from a guy who spends most of his time sitting behind a monitor in a small room?), however, the concept makes it more than worth while. Especially the "social engineering" segments are cool. Not to be missed if you're at all interested in movies about sub-cultures and the guerilla mentality.
Whatever the accuracies of the story (and considering the egos involved, I guess we'll never know), this is a pretty riveting tale of an underground hacker playing and defeating the system. Which is all you could ever ask for in a movie. :-)
Johnny Depp lookalike Skeet Ulrich, Russell Wong, Donal Logue, Cara Buono, Amanda Peet and Angela Featherstone make this low budget movie worth while.
Whether or not the real Kevin Mitnick is a nice fellow or what he did was totally legal doesn't detract much from this ripping yarn. The production values are ok (but what would you expect from a guy who spends most of his time sitting behind a monitor in a small room?), however, the concept makes it more than worth while. Especially the "social engineering" segments are cool. Not to be missed if you're at all interested in movies about sub-cultures and the guerilla mentality.
Reminds us what cinema is all about
dima-1215 November 2003
Joe Chapelle`s TAKEDOWN is avery important film. sadly it was shelved and molested prior to unfair and unlimited release. The importance of this film lies within its` simplicity. Chapelle made a conservative Hollywood film that is just a story about people doing this and that. And there`s nothing nmore about it. There are no power struggles within it, no demographic scanning, no product placement. Just a true story about the demise of America`s notorious hacker Kevin Mitnick. It`s as simple as that. And TAKEDOWN takes us confidently down that route. Chapelle`s film isn`t perfect but it feels like a well-done solid and compelling story that tries to serve the plot and characters first aned never looks for any other kind of gratification. Simply put, TAKEDOWN is just a movie with no other non cinematic ambitions. And that`s a whole lotta quality in age when movies are supposed to be more than a theatrical event, when tie-ins and power shifts swallowed the very essence of filmmaking. Well, TAKEDOWN hits back big time, reminding us how movies are supposed to feel.
mediocre
not_superiority27 July 2003
i think i prefer the original "hackers" to this, at least it had some humor value. "takedown", when you take into perspective the articles/books john markoff has written about his dealings with kevin mitnick [and the subsequent bling-bling-cash-money], is just a lot of lipservice for him and shimomura.
but if you ignore the flawed story, "takedown" is still mediocre. the editor should have laid off the speed, we could have done without the mutiple "rotating shimomura" shots. imo, rotating phonebooths are much more 1337, if that's the effect the producers were hoping for.
logue and ulrich did a decent job however. wong came off too mellow for what i took to be a rather intense corporate hacker.
if you want a decent hacker movie, go find "freedom downtime," or "wargames" which is infinitely more fun.
but if you ignore the flawed story, "takedown" is still mediocre. the editor should have laid off the speed, we could have done without the mutiple "rotating shimomura" shots. imo, rotating phonebooths are much more 1337, if that's the effect the producers were hoping for.
logue and ulrich did a decent job however. wong came off too mellow for what i took to be a rather intense corporate hacker.
if you want a decent hacker movie, go find "freedom downtime," or "wargames" which is infinitely more fun.
l33tifi3d.
r0bin3 May 2003
First of all, let's clear up some common misconceptions.
This film isn't "Hackers 2". You will find no CGI or parachute pants here. This film is about the capture of the notorious computer criminal Kevin Mitnick who used his technical skills and ability to influence people to gain access to things he really shouldn't have been able to access.
The thing that bothers me most about this film is the computer virus that Shimo wrote. I doubt that he did, and this makes Mmitnick seem worse by stealing it. The AI doesn't exist to put that virus around now, and it didn't 3 years ago.
The film in itself is a work of genius. This is the only realistic hacker film i have ever seen. Maybe because it was based on a true story and to put spinning DNA molecules on the computer screen instead of C++ would be a load of bollocks.
The acting is great; the pace of the movie is quick, especially in the part when the FBI almost captures Mitnick for the second time. The portrayal of the FBI in this film isn't very good, when they apprehended Mitnick, they didn't go in with 20 SWAT teams!
Kudos to Ulrich for his part as Kevin Mitnick, but as for Wong, I'm very surprised, where's the glasses and the geekyness? I know where, it got lost in the writing process, to make hackers look geeky and security experts look 'ard and sexy. In actual fact, security experts are just crackers in business suits. Kevin Mitnick did no damage, but they chase after him like he mass murdered a few police departments. I suppose they can't be totally realistic, and then the film would be an hour and a half of typing, with 30 minutes of chases and arrest.
I'm just glad there were no parachute pants ^_^
This film isn't "Hackers 2". You will find no CGI or parachute pants here. This film is about the capture of the notorious computer criminal Kevin Mitnick who used his technical skills and ability to influence people to gain access to things he really shouldn't have been able to access.
The thing that bothers me most about this film is the computer virus that Shimo wrote. I doubt that he did, and this makes Mmitnick seem worse by stealing it. The AI doesn't exist to put that virus around now, and it didn't 3 years ago.
The film in itself is a work of genius. This is the only realistic hacker film i have ever seen. Maybe because it was based on a true story and to put spinning DNA molecules on the computer screen instead of C++ would be a load of bollocks.
The acting is great; the pace of the movie is quick, especially in the part when the FBI almost captures Mitnick for the second time. The portrayal of the FBI in this film isn't very good, when they apprehended Mitnick, they didn't go in with 20 SWAT teams!
Kudos to Ulrich for his part as Kevin Mitnick, but as for Wong, I'm very surprised, where's the glasses and the geekyness? I know where, it got lost in the writing process, to make hackers look geeky and security experts look 'ard and sexy. In actual fact, security experts are just crackers in business suits. Kevin Mitnick did no damage, but they chase after him like he mass murdered a few police departments. I suppose they can't be totally realistic, and then the film would be an hour and a half of typing, with 30 minutes of chases and arrest.
I'm just glad there were no parachute pants ^_^
"Track Down": Seedy Story of a Misguided Mind
jtncsmistad31 January 2016
From thequickflickcritic.blogspot.com/
"Adapted from a true story" flashes upon the screen as we are ushered into "Track Down" and our introduction to super cyber security system hacker and convicted felon Kevin Mitnick (Skeet Ulrich in a fine and frenzied performance). And what a messed up megalomaniacal miscreant we will come to know. "Truly".
"Track Down" takes us along on a swiftly paced cat and mouse game Mitnick launches versus the feds and fellow hackers during the 1990's. And by all evidence furnished by Director Joe Chappelle (TV's "The Wire", "CSI: Miami"), entirely and simply because he could.
The extreme lengths that Mitnick goes to perch himself atop a kind of self-fashioned "hierarchy of hackers" absolutely astounds. It is practically unfathomable to imagine what this "gangstuh geek" may have accomplished had he been of clear mind and even HALF a heart.
Mitnick is vividly depicted here as unconditionally brilliant. And while certainly proving to be explosively bright, this is a miserably sad fellow who is emotionally busted to bits. Mitnick reveals to us in pieces a wretched upbringing which has continued to torture him into an angry and malicious adulthood.
Here is just one striking example of how SERIOUSLY screwy this dude is. Mitnick has a character played by the paralyzingly gorgeous Amanda Peet all to himself on a couch in her apartment following an evening date. And SHE is even making the FIRST MOVE. It is at this pivotal point in the proceedings that Mitnick actually asks this vision in voluptuousness, even as she is wholesale submitting her most ample charms to him, if she knows how to SCAN? It's enough to make a guy wanna reach into the scene and whack the weirdo over the head with an iPad!
Looking at computer screens crawling with programming code and dry eraser boards scrawling with indecipherable mathematical equations is not inherently entertaining. However, human beings desperately wrestling with such daunting data and the havoc it can wreak CAN prove to be compelling. And so is the case with "Track Down".
Still, in the end, the reality is that what we are left with is the sordid story of a brazen and bitter man who proved to be nothing more than a viciously vindictive terrorist thug.
For more of my Movie Reviews categorized by Genre please visit: thequickflickcritic.blogspot.com/
"Adapted from a true story" flashes upon the screen as we are ushered into "Track Down" and our introduction to super cyber security system hacker and convicted felon Kevin Mitnick (Skeet Ulrich in a fine and frenzied performance). And what a messed up megalomaniacal miscreant we will come to know. "Truly".
"Track Down" takes us along on a swiftly paced cat and mouse game Mitnick launches versus the feds and fellow hackers during the 1990's. And by all evidence furnished by Director Joe Chappelle (TV's "The Wire", "CSI: Miami"), entirely and simply because he could.
The extreme lengths that Mitnick goes to perch himself atop a kind of self-fashioned "hierarchy of hackers" absolutely astounds. It is practically unfathomable to imagine what this "gangstuh geek" may have accomplished had he been of clear mind and even HALF a heart.
Mitnick is vividly depicted here as unconditionally brilliant. And while certainly proving to be explosively bright, this is a miserably sad fellow who is emotionally busted to bits. Mitnick reveals to us in pieces a wretched upbringing which has continued to torture him into an angry and malicious adulthood.
Here is just one striking example of how SERIOUSLY screwy this dude is. Mitnick has a character played by the paralyzingly gorgeous Amanda Peet all to himself on a couch in her apartment following an evening date. And SHE is even making the FIRST MOVE. It is at this pivotal point in the proceedings that Mitnick actually asks this vision in voluptuousness, even as she is wholesale submitting her most ample charms to him, if she knows how to SCAN? It's enough to make a guy wanna reach into the scene and whack the weirdo over the head with an iPad!
Looking at computer screens crawling with programming code and dry eraser boards scrawling with indecipherable mathematical equations is not inherently entertaining. However, human beings desperately wrestling with such daunting data and the havoc it can wreak CAN prove to be compelling. And so is the case with "Track Down".
Still, in the end, the reality is that what we are left with is the sordid story of a brazen and bitter man who proved to be nothing more than a viciously vindictive terrorist thug.
For more of my Movie Reviews categorized by Genre please visit: thequickflickcritic.blogspot.com/
Truly pathetic
RipTic14 January 2003
"Takedown" is a dire film. Poor direction, poor acting and an embarrassingly bad script make this a film to avoid at all costs. The story of Kevin Mitnik is a fascinating one but "Takedown" misses the mark by miles. If you want to watch a well-made and fun film about hacking, then watch "Wargames". If you want to know the truth about what happened to Kevin Mitnuk then watch "Freedom Downtime". There's simply no reason to watch "Takedown".
Great movie about Internet-crime (it is a crime, or isn't it....?)
Oyster-64 February 2001
Even though the movie deals with computers, the Internet and so on, it still is an exciting thriller for those people that don't like or are familiar with high-tech stuff (you don't have to be a mass-murdered to like "Se7en" either).
I heard about this story a few years ago, when Kevin Mitnick was arrested, but I had no idea that a movie had been made about it. When someone suggested to rent it in the video-store, I didn't quite know what to expect, but I was pleasantly surprised!
It is more serious than "The Net" which is somewhat unreal because I still can't see Sandra Bullock as a hard-core computer-nerd, and better than "Hackers" which is too much focussed on teenagers.
So, if you'd like to see a good thriller without bloodshed: see "Takedown".
I heard about this story a few years ago, when Kevin Mitnick was arrested, but I had no idea that a movie had been made about it. When someone suggested to rent it in the video-store, I didn't quite know what to expect, but I was pleasantly surprised!
It is more serious than "The Net" which is somewhat unreal because I still can't see Sandra Bullock as a hard-core computer-nerd, and better than "Hackers" which is too much focussed on teenagers.
So, if you'd like to see a good thriller without bloodshed: see "Takedown".
Good movie, it's FICTION however!
jorgen_veisdal132 March 2006
The movie is fine, but what makes me flush it down the drain is that the people creating it portray it as a true story, when it is in fact BS! Kevin Mitnick never caused money loss or economical losses for the companies claimed. He sat locked down without contact to the world. 3 years without trial, probation or bail. FREE KEVIN. He did hack into companies to get code for the reason of doing it. This is a crime usually punished with a fine or a month in jail. Kevin sat inside until 2000, and got to use the internet not until 2003. This man is a hacker yes, not a cracker. The justice system is about who wins a case, the federal government or you. John Markoff at the NY Times made Kevin so famous with his ignorant articles that the government couldn't afford to loose this one. Kevin is a true product of the American ways, stupid morons that have no idea how to use a computer sit and try to educate the people who do, hackers, by using there money, influence and power to shut them down. Imagine the argument the government gave for Kevin being in solitary today, "if he so much as has access to a payphone, he can call a certain number and whistle a certain frequency to create a nuclear war". This is one of the reasons Kevin sat in jail for! What bullshit, big brother sees you and then some more. Free Kevin Mitnick.
www.2600.com
FREE KEVIN
Watch Freedom Downtime instead.
www.2600.com
FREE KEVIN
Watch Freedom Downtime instead.
Terrible waste of time
marvinPA5 September 2003
This is a terrible waste of time. Its supposed to be a real story, but is
obviously pure fabrication and anybody who has the slightest understanding of technology will see right trough it. But this is only the part anyone can easily see as false, but not the major blunder of this abomination. I'm trying to find something good about this movie, but as it isn't very entertaining, informative or well made it certainly isn't an easy task.
As a counterweight to this fiction I would recommend watching "Freedom downtime" a documentary about Mitnick and other hackers, Tsutomu Shimomura and John Markoff (the writers of this movie).
The one thing that is obvious after watching this movie is that the egos of Tsutomu Shimomura and John Markoff are off the scale. As for Mitnick, who knows what the reality is, one things for sure its not what this movie is representing.
obviously pure fabrication and anybody who has the slightest understanding of technology will see right trough it. But this is only the part anyone can easily see as false, but not the major blunder of this abomination. I'm trying to find something good about this movie, but as it isn't very entertaining, informative or well made it certainly isn't an easy task.
As a counterweight to this fiction I would recommend watching "Freedom downtime" a documentary about Mitnick and other hackers, Tsutomu Shimomura and John Markoff (the writers of this movie).
The one thing that is obvious after watching this movie is that the egos of Tsutomu Shimomura and John Markoff are off the scale. As for Mitnick, who knows what the reality is, one things for sure its not what this movie is representing.
surprisingly good
brendonm3 March 2003
Stumbled upon TAKEDOWN's listing here on IMDB.com and had to check it out: I'd read Markoff and Shimomura's book back in grad school and thought it was okay (digression: there's a lot of debate in the hacker community about which book covers the Mitnick case best, and many say Markoff and Shimomura's book is extremely one-sided; Mitnick is guilty of nothing more than breaking into several large corporation's servers and poking around, trying out their code, they say. Whether this is a real crime, I leave that up to you dear reader).
As for TAKEDOWN, the movie: most flicks about computers teeter on one end or the other of the Reality Scale: they are either boring -- afterall, it's just a person typing at a computer -- or way too fantastical for anyone who's used any flavor of Unix to take seriously (e.g., THE MATRIX or the last HACKERS movie). TAKEDOWN straddles the line somewhere in the middle -- and admirably so.
What TAKEDOWN does very well is show the process of social engineering, e.g., talking someone into thinking you're someone you're not to get information. Mitnick mastered this skill. The real crux of TAKEDOWN, though, is the showdown between the two egos of Mitnick and Shimomura (bravo to Russell Wong -- wow, if Shimo really is that much of an arrogant jerk, I can see why he got under Mitnick's skin so much).
Skeet Ulrich is often called the Poor Man's Johnny Depp, but here's a role that was made for him. Joe Chappelle's direction is crisp and keeps the action tense. Minor complaint: The editor should have chilled out a bit though -- man, do we really need all those quick, jarring cuts? I supposed they were trying to make using a computer look interesting, cool and non-boring.
Overall, if you're into hacking, subcultures, law enforcement and computer crime, you should check this one out. It's too bad no one's seen this -- it must have been released direct-to-video; I don't even remember seeing ads in the paper for it.
P.S. keep an eye out for a brief appearance by Amanda Peet in a telling scene that hints at the REAL source of Mitnick's problems: LACK OF SOCIAL SKILLS!
As for TAKEDOWN, the movie: most flicks about computers teeter on one end or the other of the Reality Scale: they are either boring -- afterall, it's just a person typing at a computer -- or way too fantastical for anyone who's used any flavor of Unix to take seriously (e.g., THE MATRIX or the last HACKERS movie). TAKEDOWN straddles the line somewhere in the middle -- and admirably so.
What TAKEDOWN does very well is show the process of social engineering, e.g., talking someone into thinking you're someone you're not to get information. Mitnick mastered this skill. The real crux of TAKEDOWN, though, is the showdown between the two egos of Mitnick and Shimomura (bravo to Russell Wong -- wow, if Shimo really is that much of an arrogant jerk, I can see why he got under Mitnick's skin so much).
Skeet Ulrich is often called the Poor Man's Johnny Depp, but here's a role that was made for him. Joe Chappelle's direction is crisp and keeps the action tense. Minor complaint: The editor should have chilled out a bit though -- man, do we really need all those quick, jarring cuts? I supposed they were trying to make using a computer look interesting, cool and non-boring.
Overall, if you're into hacking, subcultures, law enforcement and computer crime, you should check this one out. It's too bad no one's seen this -- it must have been released direct-to-video; I don't even remember seeing ads in the paper for it.
P.S. keep an eye out for a brief appearance by Amanda Peet in a telling scene that hints at the REAL source of Mitnick's problems: LACK OF SOCIAL SKILLS!
Great movie but as a movie not a Kevin Mitnick story
Fallon200010 October 2005
This was a great hacker film. But as Kevin said in a Coast to Coast AM radio show "Because the movie depicted me in such a false light and because it wasn't accurate I ended up settling a lawsuit with the production company because of it and it was never released in the USA". Like i said it is a good film about hackers but there will never be a real hacker movie. See the life of a hacker is extremely dull. Would you like to see some guy or gal in front of a computer screen typing for hours on end. If you really want to see something good watch "Freedom Downtime". This movie was made by 2600 the hacker quarterly found at www.2600.com. This film depicts the Free Kevin movement. and the fact that he was held without trial for 4 years. When given a trial Kevin decided to plea out.
TakeDown, great movie one to watch.
mpdob28 January 2003
This is a movie for all of you computer fanatics. I watched this one several times. The story about Kevin Mitnick is a bit different then the book that Tsutomu Shimomura en John Markoff wrote, but i think it gives the viewer a pretty good image of what hacking is all about and where you can end up if things goes wrong. I'd liked the camera work, the programming code shots and the soundtracks in the movie. Skeet Ulrich was the perfect actor to play the character of Kevin Mitnick.
Cool Movie
toby-539 November 2002
I think this movie has two aspects; One, showing how hacking really is. And two, one of those movies ANYBODY can understand. They simplify things, and I can tell you; this movie is not made for real hackers. But all together, I love the movie.
Disaster
mik-1913 August 2002
So bad it frankly defies description. Nothing seems to ignite in this hacker flick which is not quite trashy enough to be good old-fashioned vulgar fun. The plot is unsexy, to say the least, direction seems lacking in all crucial places and performances are woody and devoid of chemistry. A true disaster.
i agree with the other guy from Northampton
yoda_the_jedi28 April 2005
Although when i first watched the film i liked it. although i then found out the truth about the Kevin Mitchnick story. And this film is bull Pooh and doesn't portray the truth. if your interested watch freedom downtime i have seen it and they interview Kevin in it to get the truth don't go by the plot of this film. Also if anyone has any more information about Kevin and general stuff along these lines you can send to me greatly appreciated i thought id clear the rumour about it being a follow up of hacker its not can people please not make that assumption its not its an independent film
thanks Yoda_the_jedi
Northamptonshire u.k
thanks Yoda_the_jedi
Northamptonshire u.k
Stupid
seanpbizner29 January 2001
The way a man's life is played around with on screen is just stupid, this poorly made fabrication of what Kevin did and did not do was not approved by Kevin, and anyone with a familarity with hacking knows that this is a movie that you should avoid. DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME, GO RENT WARGAMES. It's fiction but it's still more factual than this waste of film.
wisdom movie and still actual
GooliNoc4430 October 2007
Without going deep into the the story I can say that if you want to know about the real world under your computer and the privacy that never been out there you're In the right place. The movie Takedown will show you a small piece of hacking in the past and maybe the name "history of hacking" can be correct too.
you can find some of the items from the movie in the spy-shops around so in my opinion just for the knowledge the movie must be seen. In the movie there are some point who are too stuck ,and some time there is no point for long focus in one position. I can see by the movie the vision of the creator ,and he did understand the story and the "How" not like many times in movies without any contact to the reality ,however he failed in focusing too much on the technology and mess the option to show how really hacker feel against and from the authorities.
Enjoy
you can find some of the items from the movie in the spy-shops around so in my opinion just for the knowledge the movie must be seen. In the movie there are some point who are too stuck ,and some time there is no point for long focus in one position. I can see by the movie the vision of the creator ,and he did understand the story and the "How" not like many times in movies without any contact to the reality ,however he failed in focusing too much on the technology and mess the option to show how really hacker feel against and from the authorities.
Enjoy
Technically awful
Ajaya7 December 2002
This film isn't too bad - although not a masterpiece. What really annoyed me was the cinematography. It's like watching a homemovie ... made without one of these fancy camcorders with blur-compensation. The and held camera sometimes throtters so much that you think "one minute longer of this and I'll get sea sick".
Don't waste your time and watch "Enemy of the State" instead.
Don't waste your time and watch "Enemy of the State" instead.
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