Tracers

Plot synopsis:
Cam (Taylor Lautner) is a bike messenger in New York City struggling to make ends meet. He rents from a woman, Angie, and her young son. He is accosted by thugs who warn that he has missed two payments on a $15,000 loan. After he crashes his bike when a stranger named Nikki (Marie Avgeropoulos) lands on him, he becomes intent on finding her. Intrigued by the leaps, bounds and physical prowess of parkour (or "tracing") demonstrated by her and her friends, Cam begins practicing and training. After a particularly daring stunt proves his abilities, Cam is introduced to her crew, a team that uses parkour to pull off heists.
Gang enforcers take Cam's only remaining family possession. They threaten Angie and her son, and she tells him he can no longer live there. Broke, homeless and desperate to clear his deepening debt to the violent Chinese Mafia, Cam joins the parkour group.
Acting on his attraction to Nikki, he kisses her but she quickly runs off. Later, she comes to him. They have sex on the wall and later move to the roof where he's staying. Cam learns that Nikki is involved with Miller, the cruel mastermind behind the group's activities, and to whom she owes a debt for him rescuing her brother. Cam reveals that he took the $15,000 loan in attempt to help his mother, who has since died. Vowing to pay off his debt once and for all and get Nikki away from an impossible situation, Cam joins the group for one last dangerous job. During a robbery gone wrong, one of their own is shot and killed. Cam is arrested but saved by Miller because he is a DEA agent. He tries to convince Cam to remain in the group. To save Nikki, Cam, Dylan and Miller do one last heist at a safe house to steal diamonds. Cam eventually flees and Miller chases after him until they end up in Chinese gang territory where Miller is not allowed. After Miller is forced to leave, Cam gives the Chinese gang the diamonds, gets his car back and takes off with Nikki.

Tags: revenge, neo noir, murder, violence

Review:
The parkour isn't nearly as well choreographed as the opening scene in "Casino Royale" or most of the scenes in "Banlieue B13," and is often not credible because the characters make seemingly blind leaps on unfamiliar cityscapes, but the scenes are shown in a realistic manner and Taylor Lautner the other actors seem to do much of their own stunt work.
The film often feels like some insipid urban hip hop dance movie with predominantly lily white protagonists and parkour substituted for dance.
The parkour and BMX action scenes are fun to watch but not great.
It's your usual boy- meets-girl flick, but this time, there's a lot of running around and jumping, all in the name of parkour.The only thing that kept me awake was the action, which, after awhile, got a bit blasé.
The two young stars, Canadian beauty Marie Avgeropoulos and Taylor Lautner, are both considerably better than the material.Which is a back-handed compliment since the material is pretty terrible.What you have here is a targeted-to-young-audience "street drama" with pretensions of being an action thriller because of the backdrop of Free-Jumping.
What that means is that while the film tries to maintain a "street cred" sort of realism, the action scenes are so well choreographed you might think you were watching a music video.
Lautner is more than just another good looking actor, as he can speak several languages, is a martial arts expert, and an avid parkourer, all skills he uses in his latest film, Tracers.
Lautner plays Cam, a down on his luck bike messenger, who comes to befriend a group of parkour enthusiasts.
Quickie Review:Burdened by the debt he owes the Chinese mafia, Cam (Taylor Lautner) must find a quick way to earn money.
It's not to the skill level of parkour master David Belle in the French film District B13, but the chase scenes were certainly the best parts of movie.
All that was needed was a simple story to give reason for these chase scenes, but they try to add drama with poorly written characters and the laughable performances didn't help either.
It looked like he did a fair amount of the parkour moves himself, so he has my respect for his dedication to training for this film.If you are a fan of District B13 movies, the video game Mirror's Edge, or just a parkour enthusiast in general, I really think you'll enjoy this flic overall..
If you want action and a bit of tension this is a pretty good choice of movies.
Caught up in a dicey loan deal, Cam (Taylor Lautner), a New York bike messenger stumbles into the exhilarating world of parkour when he crashes into Nikki (Marie Avgeropoulos), a beautiful stranger.
Desperate to be free of his debt, Cam gets caught up in a criminal world that begins to crumble around him as he struggles to protect that which is most important to him.The slick parkour adds dynamic flair and physicality to the fight and chase scenes, while the seamlessly captured rhythm of the choreography makes the thrilling action easy to follow.
The tactile sport serves the gritty aesthetic well and Lautner's ease of ability in the parkour scenes is mesmerising.Apart from the action, Tracers offers an authentic look at the difficulties faced by people desperate to find their place in the world.
The initial scenes are fun and full of youthful exuberance as Cam hones his new skills, but as the stakes become higher, he must use these skills to stay alive.Tracers is an action packed adrenaline rush with some gripping twists.
Cam (Taylor Lautner) is a bike messenger who owes big money to Chen in China Town, but becomes interested in Parkour when he crashes into Nikki (Marie Avgeropoulos) and he sees an opportunity to make even more money to pay off his debt.
I have been parkour'ing/freerunning in the past, and that is the main reason I wanted to watch this movie.
The werewolf from Twilight plays a down on his luck bike messenger who gets involved with a group of Parkour trainers that get him evolved in a criminal delivery service for extra money.The action in the movie is pretty excellent.
That's sad, cause it works so good for chase scenes, which this movie had a lot of good ones.It was cool seeing Taylor Lautner do Parkour, and he really does do it, at least the basic stuff.
Or is it that you are just a great looking one dimensional person?Taylor Lautner has literally played the same role since his twilight days and I feel myself saying F it and not watch any of his movies anymore.Twilight was fun, Abducted was sexy, Valentines day was cute, then he layed low for a while moving to the UK to star in the BBC show which isn't a bad show and now this.
Taylor has been an actor for DECADES, and yet you will think every movie he stars in is his first, with his subpar acting and cute yet serious persona, mixed in with decent martial arts tricks, making you want to forgive him for his not so good acting until you remember HEY YOU HAVE BEEN IN THIS GAME FOR YEARS, YOU SHOULD BE DOING BETTER THAN THIS.I do not think all hope is lost for him though, I do think if he starts taking his acting a bit more seriously, he can surely be staring in huge blockbusters, eventually taking the place of all these action heroes we enjoy watching e.g. Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Tom Cruise, Dwayne Johnson etc.
Full of action, pleasant to watch, not unpredictable but captivating nonetheless.Marie Avgeropoulos is really pretty and athletic, Taylor Lautner plays her opposite and I guess that he results equally attractive for female audience.Daniel Benmayor's direction is not ordinary at all: the camera relentlessly follows characters' evolutions adding movement to movement.
-Tracers (2015) movie review: -Tracers is about a bike messenger who tries to escape his debt with the Chinese mob by joining a parkour group.
No, I did not like it.-The story doesn't really line up and it only 'jumps' from plot-point to plot-point through convenience and nonsensical events.-The film takes a while to get anything done, and then rushes a lot, and then takes forever, etc.-None of the acting is any good really.
Doesn't fit the movie's quality in any way, but they get points for trying.-The film does have its moments and the people in it do know parkour pretty well.
Mix that with rather cheesy dialogue and the movie is just not good.-Another example of the writing: Guy ruins his bike, two scenes pass, goes to a meeting with the Chinese mob in different area with his bike, and throws out bike.
In an age of slick polished mega-budget CGI Marvel movies, Tracers provides a refreshing antidote, with actors doing the majority of their own CGI free stunts captured by a hand held camera that injects a sense of energy into the film.
Allowing Taylor (who trained in martial arts when he was a child) to showcase his natural athletic agility, as his character Cam attempts to escape a debt he owes to loan sharks by joining a Parkour gang who use their skills for dishonest ends.The film zips along at a fair pace jumping straight into the action as Cam literally falls for Nikki, the love interest of the film played by Marie Avgeropoulos, who unwittingly draws Cam into the Parkour gang.
Lautner has taken some criticism in the past for his acting, particularly in Abduction, his last action movie.
Unfortunately the film doesn't allow enough time for their relationship to develop and nor do we truly get to understand the peril that Nikki's character is in, which makes it difficult for the audience to truly root for them.In fact the script is where this film takes most of its tumbles, along with the underwritten character development there is a sprinkling of plot holes and a lack of variety in the action sequences.
As Miller, a Fagin-esque character played by Adam Rayner who controls the Parkour gang explains how the gang operates to Cam, the film segues beautifully into the next action set-piece.
I didn't get inspired to move, I didn't feel anything for any of the characters and the only thing that was as expected is that the story was a mess.There is an old French movie called Yamakasi which is way better than this film in every way.
The film starts off as Premium Rush as Cam (Taylor Lautner) is a Bike Messenger in New York who owes money to the Chinese mafia.
So the movie quickly evolves into a knock off Fast and Furious type with acrobatics replacing cars.Cam joins the gang, falls in love with Nikki, but there is mutual distrust between Cam and the leader of the gang.Cam quickly develops his Parkour skills but his debt to the gangsters is spiralling out of control and the heists are getting riskier.The film starts off brightly, gets dull very quickly, the plot is mundane and even the Parkour can get repetitive.
It's really bad story-wise and pretty bad acting-wise, but the parkour actions scenes are entertaining.
Yet I enjoyed the action in the film , I liked the story line and good job on casting .
Taylor Lautner (Cam) stars in this action film that features some kinetic chase scenes that highlight great photography.
I was entertained enough to stay up late to finish it and have watched the parkour parts of the movie a few times more.
Overall I strongly disliked the movie but that could also be attributed to my repulsion to Taylor Lautner's acting and looks, the guy's face is nauseating.
I would probably have liked this movie more when I was much younger because then I was still fit and sportive and I would associate myself more with the parkour scenes.
This sometimes-nifty action movie offers a fairly happy medium for a style of action choreography that deserves more exposure, especially given the potential proved here by competent film making.Delivering a typical plot about a New York story about Cam (Lautner), a city boy who turns to crime to pay off massive debts he has with a local parkour gang from trying to save his house before his widowed mother died, and in the process he finds a little friendship, and even some love (in Nikki, played by Marie Avgeropoulos).
The film is predictable but there are several great stunts and decent action for a B-movie such as this to entertain..
Later he joins them that changes his fate, but whether he gets the girl or not, that tells with the thrilling story development and some amazing stunts.Ever since the 'Twilight' series, I wanted Taylor Lautner to make his foot steady in his acting career.
After a couple of years off the big screen Taylor Lautner has come back in an action film showing off the art and skill of parkeur.
Why didn't you just walk around them?Apparently everyone in New York City does parkour too, which apparently you can learn in about two days to join the gang.There's nothing new to the story, if you can call it that, and it's entirely predictable.The only highlight of this terrible film was a slight appearance by Wai Ching Ho, who played Madame Gao in Daredevil, who in under 10 minutes of air time, out acted everyone in this film!Don't waste any time even considering watching this film..
The lead actor Taylor Lautner plays Cam, a bike messenger under heavy debt to a Chinese gang.
He plays the bike messenger that has a debt to pay to this gang in Chinatown, so he gets into a shady group called Tracers to earn money.This movie was done very well, with most of the actors being in their early 20s.
Overall, the characters were developed well for Cam and Nikki, but as not much for the others.There is a lot of parker action throughout the movie, some criminal activity that keeps it exciting, with some love triangle drama on the side.
Can't hang on to anything nice."I have difficulties to classify "Tracers" in the right category.Was this a horrible movie?One that merely serves as a filler of unspecified leisure time?Or was it still a movie that was relaxing enough to demand my full attention?Eventually I need to say "Yes" to both questions (although the second one will be a mild "yes").On the one hand,I could label it as useless pastime.Now,the fact that Taylor Lautner,widely known of the "Twilight" saga,plays a role in it,should make an alarm bell go off.He's not being asked because of his acting performances.It's more likely he's being asked for his attractive looks and athletic body.A kind of human magnet to ensure that hordes of teenage girls sprint to the cinema halls.It was within expectations that the result wouldn't be very original.Again you're presented the well-known story with two fresh-looking teenagers accidentally bumping into each other (literally),getting together and going through some perilous situations.Initially there will be one acting dismissive and in the end everything is hunky-dory and they save themselves out of their predicament.Happy End,smacking kisses and with lots of butterflies in the stomach,they are off to a bright future together.At that level,it's a first-class film.First-class boring.On the other hand it's an energetic action movie full of smooth and action-packed moments.It wasn't that boring (if you forget about the childish and stupid storyline for a minute though) to my surprise.
"Parkour",a discipline which originated in France,plays a central role in this film.Large parts of this film show how practitioners of this sport jump,roll and balance through the streets.And this of course in the smoothest way.All this is neatly portrayed without the viewer getting seasick because of the swirling camera.The philosophy of pushing your own limits,is also emphasized enough.Although it sometimes looks like a well prepared circus act where they used cleverly camouflaged trampolines.But besides the admiration for the daredevil stunts these young people performed,there wasn't really much to admire anymore.Cam,an enthusiastic bike messenger,risks his life on a daily base while cycling through the streets of New York to deliver packages.Until he bumps into the lovely Nikki.Immediately this bouncing chick makes an immense impression on Cam and at the same time leaves him behind with a double folded front wheel.But no worries.The next day a brand new racing bike is delivered at Cam's work.A gift from Nikki who obviously couldn't sleep because of all-consuming regret.However,there's one annoying problem Cam's saddled with.The huge sum of money Cam has borrowed from the Chinese mafia.An obvious fact that he borrowed it from them.At that time all financial institutions were probably on vacation and he needed the money urgently.In time he becomes a member of the group of young people led by Miller who also runs a sort of courier service.The big difference is that they know the contents of the packages and make a lot more money with it.You don't need to be very clever to guess which decision Cam makes since he feels that Chinese hot breath on the back of his neck.At first glance it looks like an episode of "The Little Rascals" but with slightly older rascals who have lots of fun horsing around.The movie needs a very fast pace apparently,looking at the used names.You can read the full list in TGV speed:Cam,Nikki,Miller,Dylan,Tate, Jax,Jerry,Hu,Angie,Joey,Chen,...Monosyllabic names so there isn't any time wasted when shouting at each other in a critical situation.Taylor Lautner has the charisma of a freshly baked pancake.
While it boasts well-choreographed freerun sequences and authentic cinematography of the city, its narrative is too convoluted that the movie just feels inorganic despite the best effort from visual department.Cam (Taylor Lautner) has a troublesome life, he owes some nasty people a lot of cash.
You get hurt if you don't know what your doing." Cam (Lautner) is a bike messenger in New York and owes money to some very dangerous people.
I wasn't satisfied with what happened at the end, but the one thing that kept bothering me from the beginning of the movie , in fact this thing is the trigger of everything that happened next , what didn't get into my mind was how did Nikki (Marie Avgeropoulos) knew the workplace of Cam ( Taylor Lautner) when the accident happened, or even his name !!!.
Taylor Lautner acts in a low-budget action  movie that seems to take the Direct-To-DVD route.
The story: Taylor Lautner acts as Cam, a bicycle messenger, who is in  debt.
The movie shows really nice parkour action.
Taylor Lautner doing a good chunk of the parkour moves is really something nice for this movie.
Even if the acting is believable,you don't feel the characters or their story, there is no connection, it is like the cast director chose random actors throw them in a room and said "you are on your own, bad or good, whatever.Bye!
and you can guess how it ends.Psychologically idiot like main character would be dead, never get the girl, nor do I see anybody ever hiring him for anything important.Parkour scenes were badly filmed and lame.
The reviews are coming up from different minds and that means we don't have to like the same things but come on guys, watch the entire movie first then write your reviews.Actually, Taylor Lautner did a good job and I believe that he didn't use stunts on most parts of the film.The action scenes really excited me and I want those parts to be passed and see the next part, which is good I think, by that way director made me wondered.
It feels like the guys who made it watched PREMIUM RUSH and decided to make their own version of that film, replacing the bike action with parkour.