The Score

Yep, it's another clichéd script: Career cat burglar Nick (Robert De Niro, Meet the Parents) is about to take on a nearly impossible heist that requires his joining forces with a talented but brash young accomplice, Jackie (Edward Norton, American History X), whom he doesn't particularly like. The dubious alliance, arranged by Nick's longtime friend and fence, Max (Marlon Brando, Don Juan deMarco), throws a wrench into Nick's plan to retire from crime and settle down with his lady love, Diane (Angela Bassett, Supernova).

Uh-huh. The old, "One more job, then I'll retire," routine. But that's where the routine ends. The trio of brilliant lead actors transcend the plot, and overcome the sometimes sluggish direction (courtesy of Frank Oz, who did Bowfinger and many other comedies -- and children's flicks, such as The Indian in the Cupboard). It's an absolute pleasure from start to finish, just to watch and study these men -- but then, they could probably be taking turns reading the phone book and make it seem fascinating. (Angela Bassett is excellent too, but she is unfortunately relegated to the one-dimensional, obligatory "girlfriend role" here.)

The score is a big one: a 16th century royal scepter worth $30 million dollars. It's locked away in the basement of The Customs House in Montreal, Canada, and security is getting tighter by the day. Jackie infiltrates the House, posing as "Brian," a janitor afflicted with cerebral palsy. Norton is flawless in his dual roles (remember his schizo debut in Primal Fear?), and better still, he plays Brian as funny and endearing without ever creeping into caricature-ville. Meanwhile, Nick is figuring out how to bypass the ironclad security system and crack the uncrackable safe. DeNiro doesn't have a lot to do with his character, but what he was given, he runs with. He not only makes you believe the clichés, you like them, dammit. Brando is clearly having fun with his role -- one tailor-made just for him. "I wrote the part specifically for Brando," said co-writer Kario Salem. "I imagined him as a cross between Truman Capote and Tennessee Williams -- someone of great flamboyance and humor and wit and someone of great size, both literally and figuratively." Brando nails it all the way. (Interesting aside: the roles of Nick and Jackie were originally slated for Michael Douglas and Ben Affleck.)

The twist ending is given away a bit too early (but then there's another twist), and there isn't anything here we haven't seen before. However, with three generations of the world's best actors on the screen, The Score scores big.

The Score seems to start off slow for some, but the film's speed is important for the movie. It shows how DeNiro's character lives his life and his life is essential to the plot. "One more" is what he has been saying for years, but this time he means it and will do whatever it takes to make sure nothing goes wrong. Edward Norton's character gives Bob the most grief because he isn't sure if Norton will fly straight. Norton's performance is doubly magnificent and anyone who hasn't seen this actor in action is missing out big time. Brando delivers about 5 scenes that are right on key and provides some comic relief that fits nicely. Overall a really good film that will leave audiences with their jaws on the floor.

A robber, Nick (Robert De Niro) wants to retire and marry his girlfriend (Angela Bassett). But a friend of his Max (Marlon Brando) convinces him to do one last job with young brash Jackie (Edward Norton). Naturally something goes wrong. Nothing new or inventive here but very well-done and engrossing. Also it's a pleasure to see three exceptional actors doing good work and enjoying themselves (especially Brando). Only complaint--Bassett (another great actor) is completely wasted. Worth catching. Also, it needs to be seen on a wide screen--director Frank Oz uses the whole screen inventively more than once.

Excellent acting is the attraction in this low-key heist movie, which only gets into high gear in the last 30 minutes of the two hours, and features some nice twists. Otherwise, it's a bit talky with a few lulls.

However, I still found it interesting thanks to Edward Norton's superb acting. His character, "Jack Teller" was very intriguing. Robert De Niro, as "Nick Wells" also was good to watch. De Niro rarely is boring. The third major player here is the even-more famous Marlon Brando, who only is referred to as "Max." This certainly isn't one of his more appealing roles but then, how many did he play since the '60s anyway? He - like Norton and De Niro - always grabs your attention regardless of the role, too.

Set in Canada, there were great shots of Montreal in this film, and a sharp DVD picture to show off the city. For those looking for a lot of action, skip this, but for those who are more interested in great acting, check this movie out.

First of all, I didn't hate this movie. The acting was good, the locations were colorful and interesting, and I wasn't bored. (Even though the plot of the movie moved slowly, each scene was interesting for one thing or another.) But we've all seen this basic plot many times. Sometimes seeing a formula once again can be fun, if it's filled with energy or a different perspective. But this movie just seemed content to present what we've seen before, and add nothing new to them. If you're bored this movie will do, but I don't think it's one to go out of your way for.

(P.S. - Fans of Brando and Bassett will be disappointed; not only are their roles very small, but their parts could easily have been written out with no real consequence to the story.)