Cheap Heist (DVD) (Gene Hackman, Rebecca Pidgeon) (David Mamet) Price

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Customer Reviews of Heist

Heist one of the years best, hands down!
David Mamet's (State and Main, The Spanish Prisoner) Heist is that rarest of films, a caper flick where the character's motivations and movements are devoted as much to fooling the audience as they are to misdirecting each other.
It is a film where the script explodes with intelligence, wit and timing. Characters sling verbal daggers at one another while the performers relish each perfectly crafted line. A Mamet screenplay is not just words, it is an all encompassing experience. The dialogue in Heist isn't just beautiful or original, it ranks among the coolest, slickest, hippest and best crafted dialogue of all time. It is some of Mamet's best work, which means a lot if you consider his repertoire. Every utterance is a treat delicately wrapped for the audience in a packaging of perfect plotting and sharp storytelling. The actors know this, and it shows, you'll never see a Mamet film where the cast doesn't look happy to be there. The performances in this film are a shared triumph; actors deliver their lines with a self-assured pride, like they're honored to be speaking such thoughtfully crafted language.
Gene Hackman is his usual consummate self, delivering a powerhouse performance that rivals Steve Bucemi's in Ghost World for the years best, both actors show an intrinsic understanding of who their characters are, both are transcendent in their delivery, and both give performances that are more than the sum of their dialogue (which is a REAL compliment for Hackman). Delroy Lindo does a fine job with his role, his delivery is crisp, clean, and strikes just the right notes. Danny DeVito is absolutely mesmerizing, a perfect example menace and villainy, he is strong, he is brilliant, and this is his best work. Ricky Jay puts himself in the running for a best supporting Oscar with a performance that showcases just why he is a Mamet regular. Other critics have called Rebecca Pidgeon distant before, but I tend to disagree, her work here is professional and strikes the right pitch, but she just doesn't stand out amongst such a superb cast. As good as these people are individually, they are all the more impressive collectively; these people have great chemistry, and their work here is a cooperative effort of unparalleled skill and grace.
After seven films, Mamet is finally coming into his own visually, his last few films all share the same stylistic calling cards, he is well on his way to creating his own definitive look. His direction is yet another thing to add to the list of perfection that is this movie. Camerawork enhances the story without overwhelming it. His attention to detail both in scripting and direction are vital to his being able to take so many story strands and weave a web of them without destroying his narrative.
Heist is an endlessly clever film; it takes smart people and puts them in smartly crafted situations. It is a film that has a brain and is unafraid to use it, that trusts us to use our own noggins to effectively figure it out.

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The Con Is On!
"My guy is so cool, when he goes to sleep, sheep count him." So says "Pinky" (Ricky Jay)as he describes his "boss", Joe Moore (Gene Hackman). The same thing can be said for "Heist". Here's a movie that has a razor-sharp script full if wit, style, and excitement. I think it's fair to say that David Mamet writes some of the best dialogue I've ever heard. It's a known fact that he uses a metronome in order to keep his dialogue to have a certain rhythm to it. There are so many great lines in this movie it's impossible to recite them all here. I would love it, if this movie got an Osacr nomination for it's screenplay. I honestly can't understand why so many people have been as harsh as they have been with this film. I think it's one of the best films of 2001! Everything seems so perfect in this movie. Who could ask for more from a heist movie. I mean, the directing is great. Mamet knows the genre very well. And has proven this with films like "House of Games", and "The Spanish Prisoner". His script as I said before is amazing. The acting by Gene Hackman is the tops. Here's a guy that is such an old pro he can take any role you give him and turn it into something great. This is not to say that the part of Joe Moore is uninteresting. It most certainly isn't! Danny De Vito is suprisingly good in this film. At first I thought, this guy is all wrong for this movie. The part he's playing is an old-fashion tough-guy villian. For the obvious reasons, this doesn't seem to fit De Vito, or so I thought. I have to admit, he is very entertaining to watch as well. Everyone it seems, has a problem with Rebecca Pidgeon. People tend to think that she's out of place in a Mamet film. Some think she delivers the lines wrong. Though I've never thought this of her, this is her best role! She reminds me of a modern, hip Veronica Lake, Barbara Stanywick type of femme fatale. She is just as good has Hackman in this movie. And would be a great film to prove to those who dislike her, that she is a very good actress, who does work well in Mamet's style of filmmaking. Delroy Lindo has some great lines as well, but, I can't reveal them here. He has some good moments on screen and works well with Hackman and the rest fo the cast. "Heist" has a very old-fashion feel to it. It reminds me of Kubrick's "The Killing" in several ways. This is what I like about the movie. I love that old-fashion feel. I love the acting and the directing and the script. I love all the plot-twist that happen, but, must admit, I took one star off because I felt near the end of the film, I'd say, the last 15-20 minutes of the film, it just tries too hard. It's one suprise after another only Mamet has too much of a good thing going here.
"Heist" is probably one of the best heist movies I've seen this year. And we had a lot of them come out, like "The Score" and "Sexy Beast". This is a movie I wish the American public would have paid more attention to when it was in wider release. If you still haven't seen it, please try to find a theatre that's playing it. I think the American public really missed the mark with this one. It's an enjoyable film by one of the best and hardest working playwright\screenwriters we have around today. David Mamet's "Heist" is a modern classic that all other heist films must now be measured against!

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just not good
this movie sucks. ending is predictable. the line about being as quiet as an ant pissing on cotton was ALMOST good. Reservoir Dogs--now there's a heist film!