Heist

Knowing the quality of Mamet's previous works, maybe I expected too much out of this one, but as it stands I just wasn't impressed by this film. Am I the only one who got bored during this movie? The characters were good except Fran (Rebecca Pidgeon). She is just there to deliver one-liners the whole time and provide sex appeal. I know her demeanor is quiet and conniving, but she just struts around waiting to make overly witty replies. The rest of the cast were excellent, Delroy Lindo outshined Hackman as his right-hand thug, Ricky Jay pulls off the calm and collected badass, Sam Rockwell delivers a good presence that you just hate, DeVito was awesome as the break-your-balls "bad" criminal and Hackman played his part well as he always does.

The story bored me however. You knew what was going to happen before it happened and there were too many twists in the movie that they lost their affect. Twists are good when used sparingly and when used at the right time. I didn't like the timing of them in this movie or the overuse of them. It got boring because the characters always pull something out of their hat when you "least expect it."

For me dialogue has to be two things, witty and believable. Now the dialogue in this film is witty, Mamet probably took a while to compile all these quotes into one movie, but it is too much. It is simply to much. All Rebecca Pidgeon says is these crafty responses and she engages no real conversation. As for believable, people don't speak like this. No one, not even the coolest cat in the world and half the time I am trying to figure out what the hell they mean.

The plot is way too contrived, it is too much. Their is a backup plan, for a backup plan, for a backup plan, for a ... The scene on the runway was crap, impossible. Never would have happened. Too many "overly" perfect plans and too many twists make this plot boring to watch.

Wait for the rental.

I didn't know anything about David Mamet before I saw this film... now I know that he's got a penchant for characters with ulterior motives and slang-heavy dialog. Going into this film, I didn't expect anything but a(surprise surprise) heist flick. I got just that. Not just a heist flick, but a well-acted, nicely directed and quite entertaining one, at that. The plot is pretty good, and keeps your interest throughout. There are a fair bit of double-crosses throughout, and near the end, it does get somewhat tiresome. The acting is all top-notch. Not one performance was even slightly off. It's no surprise to see such high-quality acting from Hackman, Lindo and Rockwell, but I had not expected such excellent performances from DeVito and Jay. The writing is very good, but Mamet uses too many clichés and there's just a tad too much going on in the shadows, people conspiring against each other. The dialog tries oh so hard to be clever, and occasionally succeeds, but more often than not, it just comes off as pretentiousness, with all the slang, the attempts at being clever and the ridiculously high pace it sometimes sports. The cinematography is great, not one shot was poor or out of place. The pacing is mostly good, though the film seems to go on just a bit too long. All in all, an entertaining heist film, but not one to watch much more than one time. I recommend this to all fans of heist flicks, any of the actors and David Mamet(who seems to be all about these films). 7/10

In "Heist", Hackman plays and aging thief who, saddled with a beautiful young wife, no pension, and the disintegration of the old school thief ethic, decides to pull one last job so he can sail off into the sunset with his babe. The film, fraught with implausibilities, is all about who's the smarter thief (which, of course, would be the one with all the loot at the end) and deals with strategizing, conflict containment, greed, and other thief problems while forsaking action stuff (stunts, chases, sex, etc) as it labors through its somewhat convoluted plot. Good old Hollywood thief stuff with a solid cast worth a watch. Turn off brain and enjoy.

It's hard to go wrong with a story about clever criminals who must worry not only about the authorities but about the treachery of other clever criminals. Master thief Joe (Hackman) decides to call it quits after a profitable jewel store robbery in which his unmasked face is caught on camera. Trouble is, he's already committed to another, bigger job--stealing a gold shipment from a Swiss freight plane--for his fence & paymaster Mickey (Devito). Mickey won't pay off for the jewel job until Joe does the "Swiss thing." The film's first big flaw is that the animosity between Joe & Mickey, who are apparently longtime friends & associates, is never explained enough to justify why they are so willing to stick it to one another. This is a problem because Hackman's character is supposed to occupy the moral high ground (always important when everybody's a criminal) but, in the story, comes across at least as treacherous as Devito's. Fine portrayals by Hackman & Devito cover up rather than diminish this flaw. From then on it's all one twist after another, not all of which twist without leaving open holes behind. Will Joe do the job and, if so, end up doing it the way Mickey wants? Does Joe's supercool, Impossible-Mission crew (Lindo, Jay & Pigeon) trust him & stick with him all the way? Is Mickey's brash young nephew & protégé Jimmy (Rockwell), whom Mickey sends to watch Joe, really as cluelessly macho as he seems? Joe's heist plans ("cute as a pailful of kittens") are too complicated to work unless His Honor Judge Murphy is too sleepy to enforce his law. But they provide a marvellous venue for Mamet to work the lost magic of Welles & Hitchcock: developing characters through interaction & dialog. The supporting cast carries most of this task & does it very well, particularly thieves Lindo, Rockwell & Jay. Jimmy's pushy questions to the other thieves are met by cool, obfuscating questions in reply ("How long's he been with that girl?" "How long is a Chinaman's name?"). Pigeon is suitably hard-edged for this taut film, but a lone actress surrounded by so many tough actors has to bring something extra to stand out. Though he'll probably be best remember for "Hoosiers," and with respects to DeNiro in films such as "Heat" & "The Score," Hackman is the most accomplished actor in films such as this, whether as a cop ("The French Connection"), a private-eye ("Night Moves"), a technician ("The Conversation," "Enemy of the State"), a spy ("Target") or even an attorney ("Under Suspicion"). He's the top master because he rarely fails to score, even in films with plot holes, weak premises & contradictions, with his strong & convincing characterizations, the almost insane passion that lurks just beneath his plain Midwestern veneer. Fine production values, understated but effective actions scenes & an above-average music score help Hackman & Co. make "Heist" a watchable rather than forgettable thriller. Enjoy the portrayals & action but don't think too much.

The cast alone suggests that this will be an amazing movie...and it was. The amazement however, ended just before the movie did. The performances were all great - however the writing talents were not well suited for actors of this caliber. The writer's talents were more on par with ... well... fortune cookies. This is not to say that the whole thing is bad. It is just that the ending is just over done. The whole 'tricked-ya' thing is a little old, but still acceptable. The 'tricked-ya tricked-ya tricked-ya' type endings are about as creative as a dream-sequence ending. To the defense of the movie, it is better the second time, as you are no longer worried about the ending and just enjoying the acting.