User reviews

Tower Heist is Ben Stiller's latest comedy where he plays the building manager of a New York high rise tower block. He regrettably invests him and his staff's pension money with a smooth-talking crook who lives in the top floor penthouse. Naturally, the crook wastes their money and they're left without a cent.

Therefore, Ben and a few other disgruntled employees, enlist the help of small time crook Eddie Murphy to break into the penthouse and steal back their money.

It's a decent enough premise and, again, all the cast to a decent enough job. There you have it - it's a decent film. Not quite funny enough to be a comedy through and through. Not quite dramatic enough to be a straight drama. It even throws in a bit of a high speed car chase into the mix to add an element of 'action' into the genre.

It's a bit of a mixed bag. If you go into it without any expectations, you should find it an okay watch.

Not great, but not bad either. Fans of Stiller and Murphy should find extra things to enjoy about it.

I didn't expect too much from this movie after watching the trailer. Judging from the cast and the trailer I thought that it would be at the very least a little entertaining or just an okay movie. It is actually very entertaining and the performances from the entire cast are solid. I laughed a lot and more than I expected. It also has quite a few twists and turns which I wasn't expecting and which should keep you interested. The chemistry between Ben Stiller and Eddie Murphy is very good too and they both provide a couple of very memorable scenes. If you are looking for something to pass the time this movie would be a very good choice.

"Tower Heist" is a fun comedy, action and crime thriller. It's a chess game of life. The opponents are a band of employees who run a high-class apartment building in the heart of Manhattan, and the pent-house tenant who takes their pensions and savings to the cleaners. But, one caper deserves another, and the employees are on the rebound after the FBI get into the picture.

It's all about decorum, money, position, working for a living, trusting others, greed, fraud, getting even and justice. That may not sound like the elements of comedy, but they all add up to a very good and entertaining movie. Ben Stiller is the lead character. Eddie Murphy, Alan Alda, Judd Hirsch, Tea Leoni and a host of other actors add to the fast action, bedlam and smiles in this film.

Most adults should enjoy this film. Just be prepared for city street language and some vulgarity. The end is an especially nice surprise.

"Tower Heist" is a movie that's never going to win awards. But if it's playing on your television during a rainy day, you will find it is an acceptable way to pass the time. And you'll find the movie has some positive features. Alan Alda makes for a good slimy villain, and Ben Stiller, Eddie Murphy, and Matthew Broderick (as well as their co-stars) make a likable bunch of people with a goal that you hope they will be able to reach. The actual heist has some unexpected twists as well as some genuine suspense. Certainly, the movie is not perfect. There are some parts of the movie when the movie seems to be missing footage, especially at the end where not all the plot points are resolved (though the two alternate endings on the DVD have this missing material that was for some reason removed from the theatrical print.) While I wouldn't say this is a movie to seek out, if you stumble upon the opportunity to see it, it will probably give you an acceptable amount of entertainment.

Josh Kovaks (Ben Stiller) is the perfect employee. Managing a high end apartment skyscraper in New York, his team look after and cater for all the foibles of their rich charges.

Living in the penthouse suite with a rooftop swimming pool emblazoned with a Dollar Bill mosaic is Arthur Shaw (Alan Alda), a wealthy financier with Steve McQueen's Ferrari in his living room.

How did it get up there, they took it apart and moved it piece by piece, subtle this is not.

Josh plays online chess with Arthur, likes him and entrusts the employees pension fund to him to "double their money", unbeknown to his work colleagues.

With a story ripped from recent headlines, Shaw is soon in trouble with the FBI, notably pretty detective (Tea Leoni). Subsequently, the employees are left searching for their lost pension funds turning the movie into a "let's get even" escapade.

Josh is largely loyal but when rattled he can and does takes matters into his own hands, vintage car aficionados should look away.

Following subsequent events, we are left with a larcenous but incompetent gang of six. Likable and nominally in charge Josh, Charlie (Casey Affleck) who is not much good at anything but has a pregnant wife and extreme motivation. New boy Enrique (Michael Pena) who is not the brightest bulb, Slick (Eddie Murphy) supposed criminal mastermind but none of the above. Odessa, a chambermaid with a bizarre Jamaican accent and a handy sideline in safe-cracking (Gabourey Siibe) and lastly, Mr Fitzhugh (Matthew Broderick), depressed, straitlaced, crumpled ex-banker and ex-apartment owner.

We are all set for a decent farce with elements of drama, however the movie is set for fun and mostly delivers.

This a rare Hollywood comedy that is actually funny. Whether the group are planning their heist using Lego, getting distracted with Female Sexuality issues or breaking off mid heist to walk a residents pet dog.

Overall of course it's all very silly and preposterous but it is good to see Eddie Murphy funny again, his sequence with Odessa, as she teaches him the in's and out's of safe-cracking is well done. Stiller largely plays the straight-man, allowing the others to bounce their comedic lines off him. Matthew Broderick is perhaps the standout, managing to make Mr Fitzhugh both sad and funny at the same time, Broderick's comedic timing used to great effect.

It is good to see Judd Hirsch on the big screen, getting a few good scenes as the overall building boss. Alan Alda also lifts the film with his considerable talents bought to bear on the smarmy Mr Shaw.

Like any comedy caper, the tone needs to be right and the project is very much a light soufflé but Director Brett Ratner manages to pull off the various elements, to make this a fun night in.

Summary

That rare event, a Hollywood comedy that manages to both entertain and provide a light sprinkling of social commentary.

The film is largely designed to be a crowd pleaser and largely fulfils that role admirably http://julesmoviereviews.blogspot.co.nz/

Ben Stiller, Eddie Murphy, Casey Affleck, Alan Alda, Matthew Broderick, Judd Hirsch, Tea Leoni, Stephen Henderson, and Gabourey Sidibe star in "Tower Heist" from 2011.

It's a caper movie, and it's a light and fun one. Stiller as Josh Kovaks manages an exclusive apartment building, The Tower (like Trump Towers). He finds out that he and the other employees have fallen victim to a Ponzi scheme orchestrated by a tenant, Arthur Shaw (Alan Alda). After Josh nearly destroys the incredibly expensive car that Shaw has on display in his apartment, he and everyone else are fired.

Determined to take Shaw down, they learn that he kept about $20 million mad money and decide it's in his safe. They decide to rob him. Kovaks recruits a thief he knows, Slide (Eddie Murphy) to help. Meanwhile, the FBI, in the person of Tea Leoni, has arrested Shaw but it looks as if they might have to drop the charges.

Caper movies seem to be a dime a dozen these days, but there's always room for one more good one. The cast here is super talented and while it's not the most original script, there are some fun things in it.

Matthew Broderick, Gabourey Sidibe, and Eddie Murphy are especially funny. It's a shame Eddie Murphy's career took a nose dive; he's no less talented than he used to be.

With the Macy's Day Parade, particularly Snoopy in the background, Matthew Broderick hanging by a rope, Gabourey Sidibe running her trolley into a guard and knocking him out, you'll have a good time. Just don't expect Citizen Kane.

Not as dull as its title suggests, but still somewhat flat caper flick. It has a consistent string of laughs, but never quite hits the heights. Brockerick's down-and-out businessman is a good start but lands few jokes, and the plotting seems to meander. Stiller is a highlight, and Affleck and Murphy are good solid, but Aldo is a standout.

With that much star power, you'd think the comedy would make itself, but the actors feel confined. Weirdly, I think the movie could have been better if it had foregone the heist and explored the Stiller character and his buttoned-down-but-flexible managerial style. More tower. Less heist.

Great Cast , and direction. Eddie Murphy shined in this movie even though his frame-time was less when compared to Ben Stiller. Still I would've thought you could've made the plot even more

interesting by adding a car chase/action sequence which could've put the cherry on the top. Since the movie was shot in New York , one could've added cameos by the icons of New York like Donald Trump , Diddy , Jay z etc .One other thing that is lacking is the spontaneity in the Movie , This movie could learn somethings from movies like Ocean's Eleven Franchise where the pace is never dropped . I would say the lack of pace was easily masked by the dialog delivery of Stiller and Murphy. On the whole , your money is well spent nevertheless.

Heist movies have hit the screens with regularity in every language and generation. You know how it all ends: the smart thieves get their booty despite all odds and twists. But, very few are actually smart and slick enough like an 'Italian Job' or an 'Oceans Eleven'. On a comparative rating, 'Tower Heist' doesn't even get close.

'The Tower' is a luxury high rise apartment (actually filmed at Trump International Hotel and Tower in Manhattan) where the hard working staff led by Josh Kovacs (Ben Stiller) make sure that its high profile tenants are pampered.

In the backdrop of difficult markets and people losing jobs including one of the Tower's tenants and Wall Street trader Mr. Fitzhugh (Matthew Broderick), FBI arrests the wealthiest tenant Arthur Shaw (Alan Alda).

Just then, Josh realizes that his pension along with that of his staff have been wiped out in Shaw's Ponzi scheme. To make matters worse, Josh and two others are fired for their outburst at Shaw. When the drunken FBI agent (Tea Leoni) reveals that Shaw could be having cash hoard in his penthouse, Josh resolves to steal it.

For all practical purposes, a film starring Ben Stiller cannot be an action flick. Thus, comedy is written into it. And Josh's conspirators aren't professional thieves, but a concierge, Charlie (Casey Affleck), an elevator operator, Enrique (Michael Pena), Fitzhugh and Odessa a cleaner (Gabourey Sidibe). So, they hire Slide, a small-time thief (Eddie Murphy) to teach them to do the job and Murphy adds a few laughs.

How the bunch of simple folk handle the heist forms the rest of the story. Contrary to other Heist flicks playing on the difficulty of the job or employ 'Mission Impossible' style technology or stylish actors, 'Tower Heist' tries to differentiate itself as a comedy where amateur thieves bungling up on something or the other. But, comedy is forced and feels as if someone is holding an 'Applause' or 'Laugh' board for the audience.

Going by the star power that 'Tower Heist' had, one would at least expect a decent comedy. But alas, such is not the case and you don't see concrete stuff till it gets to the end, which, in contrast to the rest of the movie is smartly written. Well, you won't mind watching it on Cable TV; but coughing up bucks for a movie ticket is a no-no.

It's a magnificent comedy movie that picks up right after 25 minutes of the start. Both actors including Ben Stiller were excellent and the movie was amazing through out. Crime + Comedy + 2 great actors is definitely gonna be the thing you're looking for.

This film is about a group of employees in a luxury apartment building who tries to take back what a rich financial guru in their building took from them.

"Tower Heist" tells a bunch of dedicate and hardworking people who lost their pensions because the financial guru lost all their money in a fraud. The subsequent heist may be funny and implausible, but the film is certainly watchable. Describing the greedy and unscrupulous behaviour of some people in the finance sector surely brings back memories of the financial collapse a few years ago. Getting revenge from them is likely to strike some heartstrings among the public. The action scenes include a rather cool elevator shaft scene, and a very scary scene involving aerial action which made me on edge throughout. "Tower Heist" is like a modern day Robin Hood story, with a heartwarming ending. I enjoyed it a lot.

Last Friday, we had Tower Heist for dinner. We went there without much expectations, as is so often the rule when it comes to sitcoms. One shouldn't expect a movie-making masterpiece, but that is not a problem anyway. Sitcoms do what they should: Give you a good and easy laugh! And it did. The old recipe of comedians (Ben Stiller, Eddie Murphy) can still put off some good laughs, I must admit!

But not always so, for the first half hour was very boring and regular. It is the standard introduction of the environment, in this case "The Tower", a gigantic skyscraper where the high and rich can spend their days embalmed in luxury and high quality service. We see Ben Stiller as its manager, the one to make sure everything is alright. I will not really use elements from the story, because you can also read a short introduction. These first touches are boring but necessary: They contradict what is about to follow when the sh*t hits the fan, the ricochet. Only, the problem was that this part of the film lasted just a little too long. But what followed made everything right, nonetheless.

The casting isn't special, but it works, an older formula with a new touch. Who doesn't know the comedy about businessmen whose life is about to get into serious sh*t? Trading Places, Liar Liar, anyone? Who doesn't know Eddie Murphy, always there to turn even the most serious and formal places into a mess. And don't forget Ben Stiller, who happens to take up a role much more serious than we're used to.

If I have made you think that this is just a comedy, well, not entirely. It has action in it, and some parts actually gave me the thrills (I have fear of heights). Comedy and action has also proved a very good combination, for example "The Hangover".

So far so good. It might seem like a cliché, which it actually is, but it's good. It's nigh impossible to think of an original comedy story, because there's an ungodly amount of them made every year. Elements of older comedies are used by the new ones, creating slightly different ideas every time. Think about it for a longer time and you'll see the simplicity in them, which you could... but... maybe you shouldn't. Why not? Because these movies aren't made for thinking, but laughing, enjoying.

Conclusion: I can recommend this movie to anyone looking for some nice and easy sitcom fun. That's what you want, that's what you'll get. I promise, you will not be disappointed. This movie is nothing special compared to its other comedy counterparts, but neither are they. This is everything a comedy SHOULD be: Fun. [8/10]

Brett Rather directs this hilarious story of Josh Kovaks (Ben Stiller) an uptown high rise apartment, manager who's principal tenant is Arthur Shaw, an unscrupulous multi-millionaire (Alan Alda). Greedy, callous and artificially sympathetic the rich guy attempts to flee the country, but is thwarted by the U.S. government which arrests him for securities fraud and tax-evasion. Although the F.B.I. is holding him, they are unable to recover his hidden fortune, which is closer than anyone imagines. When Kovac's discovers his hotel employees are also victims of Shaw's schemes, he assembles an amateur group of would-be thieves with the task of stealing from the rich and giving back to the poor, not realizing the difficulty of designing an elaborate robbery. With top actors like Eddie Murphy, Casey Affleck and Matthew Broderick the film becomes a comedic romp through uptown New York during the annual Macy's Day Parade. A good film, but one wonders if this movie isn't just another version of 'Ocean's Eleven.' All in all, it's still a fun time at the theater. ****

Just to let you know where I'm coming from: As usual I avoided reading anything about the movie before seeing it. A film is ALWAYS better if it's like a book by an unknown author that you picked up off a bookstall as you were heading to the airport. Seriously, why do film companies essentially blurt out a film story's secrets that will take any surprises out of the first hour of a film? Maybe this is why I enjoyed the first half so much compared to other reviewers. It's a good yarn that is not as obvious as some would have you believe. Ben Stiller doesn't go too far from his safety zone playing Josh Kovacs, a reliable, serious, not-exactly-happy-but-putting-up-with-it manager of a ritzy apartment block. You like him. He's decent, loyal and almost a slave to the wealthy, privileged tenants who hold a great sense of entitlement to the things the majority of us don't have. Here's the subtext. He's like most of us today who live in a society that is convinced those less well off should get the "trickles" that come down from government payouts to our betters (BTW, didn't anybody in power look up the word "trickle" before okaying this?). And Stiller does it very well. He's getting older and greyer. He's fit and precise but a shade weary, repressed by a life of looking after the wishes and feelings of others and foregoing his own. (Probably coincidence but an almost interesting one: Kovacs backwards is Scavok. Sciavo in Italian is 'slave'). Alan Alda is the initially affable Arthur Shaw, a big guy on Wall Street. You like him too. He's friendly, avuncular and a man of the people. Director Brett Ratner gives us a sharp and snappy whirl through the characters and milieu with Dante Spinotti's strong and glossy cinematography hitting all the right notes. There's a great support cast of workers of an ethnic rainbow who we already like from their film histories that include Michael Peňa and Gabourey Sidibe, rising sufficiently above their paper stereotypes to just about forgive the cynical choices in creating them. Matthew Broderick is overly convincing as a crushed and ruined investment banker, a personality that exhausts your patience but must have seemed a good idea at the time. Casey Afflek shows a great talent for comedy timing as Josh's unreliable brother in law and Eddie Murphy steals scenes by his observations on "Lesbian titties" or by simply smiling. The romantic interest is FBI agent Tea Leoni, who is invariably wonderful in anything and doesn't fail here, giving depth to words that are sometimes as thin as the ink they were written in. She's not a twenty-something anymore and the camera irritatingly avoids real close ups. Ah well. That voice. I'd be happy just to listen to her but would have preferred if they didn't worry so about showing the forty-ish female lead as anything less than airbrushed. Like Eddy Murphy she ultimately seems grossly underused. I'm not giving much away in an IMDb review to say that Alda's Shaw turns out to be a Bernie Maddoff character callously looking to get away with ripping off thousands of investors and cheating justice as well. The pensions and savings of tower staff look to be lost and when Josh sees first hand Shaw's indifference to the plight of his fellow workers he gathers a team of unlikely robbers to regain the usual 'hidden stash' in the penthouse apartment. So we come to the big flaw of a film that needed one last rewrite: the director and the script writers get us to the top of the building, but they don't know how to get us down safely. They are altogether deft and efficient up to this point but run scared when presented with the job of bringing all the threads of action and personality to their just ends. We get resolution without closure. I understand there are other versions of the ending. As is now becoming familiar perhaps the DVD will be the finished product, where we are allowed to have several alternatives mingle into a whole and satisfy us beyond the clean-cut simplicity of the screen version. (nb. There is yet another reference to a chess game between villain and hero that like dozens of others in recent times sounds like the writers' knowledge comes from a single Wikipedia article. Enough with the chess motif!)

Hmmm, yes well, "Tower Heist" is a comedy, with some action and crime thrown I for good measure. It is a story that has been played many times in the cinema world, the underdogs get even with the evil rich man. This movie has some good actors involved, such as the legendary Alan Alda {playing the rich bad guy}, Ben Stiller and Eddie Murphy {two of the great comedians} Judd Hirsch and the lovely Téa Leoni. The storyline is good, standard but not excellent, and it works well; until towards the end of the movie. For me the ending was weak, but as a movie, it is a good Sunday afternoon "something to watch" type of movie. Cheerful but not brilliant.

I had very low expectations for this movie and maybe that is the reason why. But this wasn't as terrible as I thought it would be, I mean it ain't a good heist movie either but it's watchable. The humor isn't very well written though and I didn't find myself chuckling except maybe once. But the direction is very unoriginal and most of the stuff that happens isn't surprising at all. This movie seems like a mess at times and all the cast that seems to be bringing something to the table end up as nothing much. Some of the characters sort of maybe seem like they are going to be build up to something cool and just goes flat. The build up including the training montage isn't all that good and the main heist isn't very well crafted or believable. But the movie just wasn't as terrible as I thought it would be and it's probably worth seeing it at a dollar theater.

5.8/10

I hadn't seen a good Eddie Murphy movie in some time and when I saw the trailer I thought it was going to be a very predictable story line. But on the contrary...it was fresh and very entertaining! The beginning kept me guessing how the plot was going to set up. Then, when it all came together, their plan started to unravel...It was nice to see Matthew Broderick acting again and in full quirk mode...He played a great nerd! Alan Alda was a joy to hate as the bad guy and Ben Stiller was his usual perfect lead man! The casting was perfect and the music kept the excitement going until the end! If you are looking for a fun, "feel good" movie with good acting, then this is a must see! Long live Robin Hood!!!

This sloppy and heavy handed comedy caper quickie with a couple of comedy heavyweights and a decent supporting cast hired to stand around make faces and spew stale dialog gets jammed between floors fast. Other than it's Bernie Madoff villain played by Alan Alda walking around in cuffs most of the film it has an antiquated implausibility that gives it a 70s look and feel.

Ben Stiller is Ben Stiller, the caring look out for the underdog guy he's played in his last twelve pictures over the past three years. These days he's working at a lavish Manhattan hotel caring for guests and managing an underdog group of employees that constitute a small UN. When the unctuous Madoff like Ponzi schemer loses the money of the hotel staff Josh Kovacs (Stiller) and his employees respond harshly getting themselves fired in the process. Determined to even the score they devise a plan that looks like it was masterminded by a twelve year old.

From it's disheveled and fragmented construction you get a visceral feeling of contempt for the audience by the makers of Tower Heist. The plan lacks detail, the comedy punch and the suspense a degree of tautness to release it from it's torpor. Director Jeff Ratner known for his noisy Batman films is working with a smaller pan to bang on here but still manages to annoy in different way by getting Eddie Murphy to revise his 80s SNL Mr. Rogers neighborhood character, Stiller's one note and a pathetic Matthew Broderick to stand around looking wide eyed and medicated. Tower Heist belongs in the basement.