O Assalto

Does exactly what it says on the tin, with perhaps a slight overload on the double-crosses and some surprisingly cringeworthy dialogue from such a practised ear:

"Everybody needs money - that's why they call it money" spouts Danny DeVito. Uh? Am I missing something or is this utter nonsense? Maybe it looked good on the page, but it stinks when it's out in the open.

Nowhere near as tight and entertaining as 'House Of Games' or 'The Spanish Prisoner', but then even an average Mamet thriller is worth a look.

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.

Based on R1 DVD

David Mamet is famed for complicated plots and the Heist is no exception. Unfortunately for the viewer - Mamet neglects to have the characters explain what they intend to do before they do it so it difficult to know when they switch from Plan A to Backup Plan B to Alternate Plan C .. this happens a lot in the movie. It's also impossible to figure out what the individual characters believe to be the current working plan. All of these leads to a loss of tension as you sit back and wait and see how it plays out.

A good robbery movie which could have been better.

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.

This movie has one twist too many. The actual heist is so complicated that the desired tension sags earlier than it should. Heist has nothing of the suspense of a Hitchcock thriller, and trying to outwit your opponent gets boring after a while when you start forgetting what it is all about. There are some nice scenes around the airport though, some memorable dialogue ("everybody needs money, that's why it's called money"), and it's always fun to watch great professionals like Hackman, Rockwell and DeVito. Mamet's stock actor Ricky Jay adds flavour to the movie as usual, Rebecca Pigeon's part was ungrateful to play and somehow superfluous.

Hackman and his boys are doing The Swiss Job. Some old and newer clichés of my country pop up, viewers here were amused. And, believe me, the Swiss are always pleased when someone across the Atlantic acknowledges their mere existence, in whatever way this is done. Well, I have to go now: It's time to wind up my cuckoo-clock and to put a second lock on my own private stash of gold bullions.