Heist

Starring: Danny DeVito, Gene Hackman Director: David Mamet Original UK Premiere: 2001 Dvd Release: 27th May, 2002 Number Of Discs: 1 Format: PAL, Widescreen, Region 2 Encoding Subtitled In: Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, Icelandic, Italian, Norwegian, Portuguese, Swedish Dubbed In: Italian

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Heist is an crime thriller written & directed by David Mamet & released in November 2001. The films cast includes Gene Hackman, Danny Devito, Delroy Lindo, Sam Rockwell, Ricky Jay & Rebecca Pidgeon. Joe Moore heads a group of professional thieves, which includes Bobby Blane, Don Pinky Pincus & Joes wife Fran. During a mid-morning robbery of a jewelry store, Joes picture is captured on a security camera, leading him to choose an early retirement. That doesnt sit well with Bergman, Joes fence, who, after accruing a number of expenses in setting up another robbery, denies Joe & his crew their payment & presses them into taking on the other job -- the hijacking of a Swiss airplane carrying a large shipment of gold. With Bergmans hotheaded nephew Jimmy Silk reluctantly brought into the fold, Joe & his crew agree to pull off the caper, but a series of shifting loyalties amongst thieves changes the whole complexion of their task. Essentially a re-examination of Mamets favorite device, the confidence game, the film is more of success with the critics than audiences.

DVD Extras: Heist on disc contains nothing here to get particularly excited about, aside from the interactive menu & theatrical trailer. Picture & sound quality are good, although there is no option to change the audio settings. Unimpressive extras are limited to a perfunctory list of main cast members.--

Like a famous DIY product, Heist does exactly what it says on the box, no less & certainly no more, but is an enjoyable crime drama nonetheless. The story is a familiar one with ageing criminal determined to pull off one last job before retiring. The usual sub-plots that accompany such a theme are all there and, to be honest, Heist offers us very little that hasnt been seen before. It is, however, still a hugely watchable movie. Hackman may be sleepwalking through the role but he is still capable of dominating a screen in a way few of his contemporaries have been able to emulate. Delroy Lindo is superb as main foil Bobby, certainly more convincing than Rebecca Pidgeons pouting wife Fran & Danny De Vitos overplayed crime boss. As with all such movies , the real joy comes in the planning & execution of the heist itself & the conflict between the prime movers. Heist certainly has more than its fair share of twists & turns & is full of bluff, deception & double-crossing, keeping the viewer more than a little hooked right to the end. No work of genius, then, but certainly worth a look.

Danny DeVito is an American actor, director & producer. Born Daniel Michael DeVito in Neptune, New Jersey, DeVito became famous in the USA for his portrayal of Louie De Palma on the popular NBC TV series, Taxi. This sitcom did not have major international appeal & in most other countries he is known primarily for his movie work. He married actress Rhea Perlman. The couple met while both were working on Taxi. They have three children, Lucy Chet DeVito, Grace Fan DeVito & Jake Daniel DeVito. Although he came to be thought of as a predictable light-comedy actor, DeVito fought against this, bringing highly respected performances in such movies as L,A. Confidential, The Big Kahuna & Heist. In 1999, Devito produced & co-starred in Man On The Moon, a movie about the unusual life of his former Taxi co-star, Andy Kaufman. One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest. Martini. Throw Momma from the Train. Owen Lift. Posters Of Danny DeVito

Editors Choice: Heist, The Big Kahuna, Drowning Mona, John Grishams The Rainmaker, Living Out Loud, Junior, Renaissance Man, Jack The Bear, View DVDology

Gene Hackman is an American actor. He was born in San Bernardino, California. His parents divorced while he was a child & he therefore moved from one place to another until he settled finally in Illinois, where he lived with his grandmother. At 16 he left home to join the Marines, where he served 3 years as a radio operator. Having finished his service, he moved to New York, where he worked in several minor jobs. He then studied television production & journalism at the University of Illinois, taking advantage of the G,I. Bill. Already over 30 years old, Hackman decided to become an actor & joined the Pasadena Playhouse in California. Some times later, he moved back to New York, where he started to perform in several off-Broadway plays. Finally, in 1964, he had the offer to play on Broadway, which opened the doors to the movies. His first role was in Lilith, with Warren Beatty in the leading role. Another secondary role in a 1967 Warren Beatty movie, Bonnie & Clyde, earned him an Academy Award nomination as Best Supporting Actor. Posters Of Runaway Jury

Editors Choice: Runaway Jury, Welcome To Mooseport, Behind Enemy Lines, The Royal Tenenbaums, Heist, Under Suspicion, Enemy Of The State, The Replacements, View DVDology

David Alan Mamet is an American playwright, screenwriter, director & poet born in Flossmoor, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. Educated at Goddard College & a founding member of the Atlantic Theater Company, Mamet first gained acclaim for a trio of off-Broadway plays in 1976, The Duck Variations, Sexual Perversity in Chicago & American Buffalo. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1984 for Glengarry Glen Ross. His work is characterized by playful plots overturning conventions & typically features strong male characters & their tough posturings, rhythmically profane dialogue & charged verbal confrontations. His first screenplay was the 1981 production of The Postman Always Rings Twice based upon James M Cain s novel. He was given an Academy Award nomination for his next script, The Verdict. In 1987 Mamet made his film directing debut with House of Games, starring his then-wife, Lindsay Crouse & a host of longtime stage associates.

Editors Choice: Heist, State And Main, The Winslow Boy, The Spanish Prisoner, House Of Games, Homicide, View DVDology

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