Review of Heist (2015) by Kostas T — 23 Apr 2016

Robert DeNiro has got to be the busiest actor in his age group, because this is the third film I've seen him in this week. So, "Heist" starts off as a strong cops and robbers film, with some heavy hitting actors, Jeffrey Dean Morgan (The Watchmen), Dave Bautista (Guardians of the Galaxy), and the man himself Robert Deniro (umm.... Dick Tracy! there we go, 3 comic book movie references) star in this action go-getter about a casino robbery gone wrong.

Not much in terms of plot and story development, a group of lowlifes get it into their heads to rob a riverboat casino (seriously in 2015?) run by a big time gangster who launders money for the Chinese mob. Anyways, the film starts off with a little back story, and gets into the heist right away. Things do not go as planned, and the rest of the film is focused on the getaway. I won't tell you what happens, but the major downfall is how predictable this film is.

Character wise, everybody plays a pretty one-dimensional personality, without much gray matter in between their heads. The thief with a heart of gold, the unwavering cop, the psychopathic robber, the crooked cop. It's all pretty bland, but it's well acted blandness.

Overall it's not a bad movie at it's most superficial. Short, but not too sweet.

Don't expect a fantastic narrative like the film 'Heist' (2001) with Gene Hackman, which is a much better story, with less inane violence.

3/5.