Takedown (2000)

This film is based on the story of the capture of computer hacker "Kevin Mitnick".

Director:

Joe Chappelle

Writers:

Tsutomu Shimomura (book), John Markoff (book)

Stars:

Skeet Ulrich, Russell Wong, Angela Featherstone

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Skeet Ulrich	...	Kevin Mitnick
Russell Wong	...	Tsutomu Shimomura
Angela Featherstone	...	Julia
Donal Logue	...	Alex Lowe
Christopher McDonald	...	Mitch Gibson (as Chris McDonald)
Master P	...	Brad
Tom Berenger	...	McCoy Rollins
Jeremy Sisto	...	Lance 'Icebreaker' Petersen
Amanda Peet	...	Karen
Ethan Suplee	...	Dan Bradley
Dorit Sauer	...	Shelley
Mark Joy	...	Committee Chairman
Scott Cooper	...	Jake Cronin
Ned Bellamy	...	Tom Fiori
Sara Melson	...	Rachel

Storyline

Kevin Mitnick is quite possibly the best hacker in the world. Hunting for more and more information, seeking more and more cybertrophies every day, he constantly looks for bigger challenges. When he breaks into the computer of a security expert and an ex-hacker, he finds one - and much more than that...

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Plot Keywords:

computer | hacker | computer hacker | computer virus | based on book | 

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Taglines:

The world has a right to know.

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Genres:

Biography | Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and some sexual content

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 March 2000 (France)

Also Known As:

Track Down

Filming Locations:

Wilmington, North Carolina, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Dimension Films, Millennium Films, Hacker Productions

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The real Tsutomu Shimomura has a small cameo in the movie as an anonymous hacker. In the scene when Wong (Shimomura) holds the conference to announce that his software has been stolen, Logue (Lowe) heckles him about it. Sitting to Logue's right (to the left if you are viewing it), is the real Tsutomu Shimomura.

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Goofs

Alex Lowe states that 56 bit encryption allows for roughly 72 trillion combinations. He is off by 3 orders of magnitude. 56 bit encryption allows for roughly 72 quadrillion combinations.

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Quotes

Tsutomu Shimomura: I mean, how lame are you?

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Connections

References Sneakers (1992)

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Soundtracks

Lieing In Bed
Performed by Aryana
Written by Aryana & Tod McKitterick
Published by Pollution Free Music (BMI)
Courtesy of Aryana & Other Music

User Reviews

Hmmmm

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.