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David McK (3188 KP) rated Lift (2024) in Movies
Mar 21, 2024
Heist movie mainly starring Kevin Hart (in a mostly light hearted role) and Gugu Mbatha-Raw as the two leads (with room for the likes of Sam Worthington, Jean Reno and Vincent d'Onofrio most noticeably), with the former a master thief and the latter an intelligence agent - each of whom previously fell for the other, when both undercover - who have to put aside their past differences and lead a heist on board an aircraft in flight (hence the double meaning behind the name 'lift'), transporting gold to a terrorist.
I watched this mainly so I could play spot-the-location (some of it being filmed in my home country of Northern Ireland), but have to say it was also better than I was expecting!
I watched this mainly so I could play spot-the-location (some of it being filmed in my home country of Northern Ireland), but have to say it was also better than I was expecting!
Dean (6921 KP) rated Welcome to the Punch (2013) in Movies
Feb 1, 2018
Missed opportunity
From the Trailer this looked like a English version of The Heat. Starring a decent cast and looking very slick. It starts well with a good heist and chase scene. After that the film takes a right turn and becomes more about the 2 lead characters. It could have been a lot better.
Erika (17788 KP) rated Ocean’s 8 (2018) in Movies
Jul 1, 2018
Ok is the perfect word to describe this film. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't necessarily good. I liked Sandra Bullock and Cate Blanchett's characters, but all of the rest were just a little blah. There was never a time where you thought the heist was blown, because everything was solved 2-3 minutes after a problem came up.
David McK (3188 KP) rated Ocean's Eleven (2001) in Movies
Jan 27, 2023
2001 star-studded remake of the Rat Pack original, with Clooney and Bard Pitt (eating or chewing something in every. single. scene. he is in) as two crooks - the former just out of jail - who plan and lead an elaborate heist on a Las Vegas casino.
Can definitely see the influence of the original in the cinematography!
Can definitely see the influence of the original in the cinematography!
Gareth von Kallenbach (965 KP) rated Triple 9 (2016) in Movies
Aug 6, 2019
A crew of bank robbers is strong-armed by the Russian mob to pull off a near impossible heist due the response time of the police. In order to create a larger window, the dirty cops of this crew suggest creating a 999 (police code for “officer down.”) on the other side of town. That is the basic plot of Triple 9. Yet, the tagline for this film is, “The Code on the street is never black and white.” Seems like a different movie which is part of the letdown of Triple 9. It doesn’t know what it wants to be. Is it a heist movie like Heat or The Town? Or is it trying to be a movie about the cops and the rules of the streets like Training Day?
In the beginning, the film sets its self-up to be a smart and stylistic heist film. However shortly after it begins to feel disjointed as it attempts to develop everyone in its ensemble cast to the point where it hurts the story and some excellent performances become forgettable. It’s a shame because somewhere in this film is potentially two excellent separate films. One film about a crew having to complete a heist for the mob to save their lives and loved ones, and another about dirty cops, their partners and the moral ambiguity of the code on the streets. In Triple 9, these two premises never really get developed on one side or the other and thus everything is just left there.
On the heist side, Chiwetel Ejiofor plays ex-mercenary Michael Atwood. Michael is the careful and calculating leader of the crew, but is tied to the Russian mafia through the mother of his son. Michael is constantly being coerced by the Russian Mob Boss, played by Kate Winslet. The two give stellar performances, most notably Winslet who is cold and ruthless in wielding her power, speaking her mind and not caring how the job gets done as long as it gets done.
On the cop side, Anthony Mackie plays dirty police detective Marcus Belmont who becomes partnered with the ex-marine turned rookie detective Chris Allen (Casey Affleck). Belmont feels that the rookie doesn’t respect the streets and his “Do-gooder” “make a difference” attitude is going to get him killed. When Belmont’s heist crewmate Jorge Rodriguez (Clifton Collins Jr.) learns Chris is also the nephew of the Sergeant Detective (Woody Harrelson) investigating the heist crew, Chris becomes the clear candidate to be set up for the Triple 9. (Convenient huh)
Ultimately, as the story plays out it feels we are always arriving at the end of the meeting to plan the coming events. From the planning of the heist, to the set up murder, and to the exit plan, we are just carried through the motions without much motivation of how or why things have to play out the way they do. As a result, I didn’t really care for any of the characters good or bad, unlike other films of this nature. Even Ejiofor’s character Michael, who has his child involved, doesn’t get the opportunity to really show why the rest of the crew respects him and follows him, or why he needs to stay alive for his son, who basically seems better off being taken care of by the Russian mob.
In the end Triple 9 is not a bad movie, it just isn’t really a great one either. It has strong performances by the entire cast and has the makings of something great, but fails to deliver on that opportunity with a disjointed story trying to focus on too many characters. This makes it ultimately forgettable compared to other heist films of similar nature.
In the beginning, the film sets its self-up to be a smart and stylistic heist film. However shortly after it begins to feel disjointed as it attempts to develop everyone in its ensemble cast to the point where it hurts the story and some excellent performances become forgettable. It’s a shame because somewhere in this film is potentially two excellent separate films. One film about a crew having to complete a heist for the mob to save their lives and loved ones, and another about dirty cops, their partners and the moral ambiguity of the code on the streets. In Triple 9, these two premises never really get developed on one side or the other and thus everything is just left there.
On the heist side, Chiwetel Ejiofor plays ex-mercenary Michael Atwood. Michael is the careful and calculating leader of the crew, but is tied to the Russian mafia through the mother of his son. Michael is constantly being coerced by the Russian Mob Boss, played by Kate Winslet. The two give stellar performances, most notably Winslet who is cold and ruthless in wielding her power, speaking her mind and not caring how the job gets done as long as it gets done.
On the cop side, Anthony Mackie plays dirty police detective Marcus Belmont who becomes partnered with the ex-marine turned rookie detective Chris Allen (Casey Affleck). Belmont feels that the rookie doesn’t respect the streets and his “Do-gooder” “make a difference” attitude is going to get him killed. When Belmont’s heist crewmate Jorge Rodriguez (Clifton Collins Jr.) learns Chris is also the nephew of the Sergeant Detective (Woody Harrelson) investigating the heist crew, Chris becomes the clear candidate to be set up for the Triple 9. (Convenient huh)
Ultimately, as the story plays out it feels we are always arriving at the end of the meeting to plan the coming events. From the planning of the heist, to the set up murder, and to the exit plan, we are just carried through the motions without much motivation of how or why things have to play out the way they do. As a result, I didn’t really care for any of the characters good or bad, unlike other films of this nature. Even Ejiofor’s character Michael, who has his child involved, doesn’t get the opportunity to really show why the rest of the crew respects him and follows him, or why he needs to stay alive for his son, who basically seems better off being taken care of by the Russian mob.
In the end Triple 9 is not a bad movie, it just isn’t really a great one either. It has strong performances by the entire cast and has the makings of something great, but fails to deliver on that opportunity with a disjointed story trying to focus on too many characters. This makes it ultimately forgettable compared to other heist films of similar nature.
David McK (3188 KP) rated The Italian Job (2003) in Movies
May 2, 2021
All i can really remember about the 1969 original is that it is a crime caper, starring Michael Caine, and that it involves Mini Coopers.
As such, I'm not sure whether to class this as a remake, a reimagining or something else entirely!
This version stars Mark Wahoberg, Cherlize Theron, Donald Sutherland, Jason Staham and Oz-from-Buffy (Seth Green) and starts with a heist in Venice: a successful heist, with the perpetrators then betrayed by Ed Norton's 'Steve', who leaves them all for dead.
The rest of the film - mainly set in the States - then follows the remainder of the crew and their quest to get even against Steve, in a plot that yes, once again, involves the use of Mini Coopers!
It would hardly be The Italian Job without said cars, after all ....
As such, I'm not sure whether to class this as a remake, a reimagining or something else entirely!
This version stars Mark Wahoberg, Cherlize Theron, Donald Sutherland, Jason Staham and Oz-from-Buffy (Seth Green) and starts with a heist in Venice: a successful heist, with the perpetrators then betrayed by Ed Norton's 'Steve', who leaves them all for dead.
The rest of the film - mainly set in the States - then follows the remainder of the crew and their quest to get even against Steve, in a plot that yes, once again, involves the use of Mini Coopers!
It would hardly be The Italian Job without said cars, after all ....
Sarah (7798 KP) rated Logan Lucky (2017) in Movies
Jul 22, 2018 (Updated Jul 23, 2018)
Promising but doesn't quite deliver
You expect a lot from Steven Soderbergh, and I think sadly it doesn't quite deliver.
In short, it's basically a country/hillbilly version of Ocean's Eleven, but not nearly as fun or stylish. There are some hilarious moments in this film (the scene referencing Game of Thrones had me cracking up) but these moments aren't as often as I'd like. The plot itself is interesting and although the denouement is quite clever, how the heist itself plays out is a little bit dull and not up to the standard you'd expect. Daniel Craig is a hoot as Joe Bang and Tatum and Driver are good as well, although I'm not entirely sure what was going on with Hilary Swank, her acting seemed completely ott. I should also add that I was surprised to see Sebastian Stan in this, but disappointed that he wasn't in it for long! Have a little crush on him so he really needed to be in this film a little more.
This is a vaguely entertaining heist movie made more bearable by some hilarious lines and scenes. However there's much better heist films out there (Ocean's Eleven being one of them).
In short, it's basically a country/hillbilly version of Ocean's Eleven, but not nearly as fun or stylish. There are some hilarious moments in this film (the scene referencing Game of Thrones had me cracking up) but these moments aren't as often as I'd like. The plot itself is interesting and although the denouement is quite clever, how the heist itself plays out is a little bit dull and not up to the standard you'd expect. Daniel Craig is a hoot as Joe Bang and Tatum and Driver are good as well, although I'm not entirely sure what was going on with Hilary Swank, her acting seemed completely ott. I should also add that I was surprised to see Sebastian Stan in this, but disappointed that he wasn't in it for long! Have a little crush on him so he really needed to be in this film a little more.
This is a vaguely entertaining heist movie made more bearable by some hilarious lines and scenes. However there's much better heist films out there (Ocean's Eleven being one of them).
Neon's Nerd Nexus (360 KP) rated Ocean’s 8 (2018) in Movies
May 14, 2019
Who run the world
#Oceans8 is a safe #heist #movie that takes very little risks but offers plently of enjoyment all the same. I won't lie I enjoyed this #film way more than I expected I would, is it the perfect heist film? no, is it a well made film? also no but its enjoyable for what it is that's for sure. Here's what I liked - the performances are great & the characters are all very likable (each one has a distinct personality & the chemistry they have with each other is genuine & entertaining). All the #ladies look absolutely #stunning & the garments they all wear constantly amaze & add more to their character. Infact I'd goe as far as to say its mostly these things alone that carry the entire film & make it such a #fun watch. My attention was also held the entire time & I never felt bored either & there were even points where the film managed to be quite tense too. Things I really didnt like - its not filmed very well or very intrestingly at all & infact it borders on being quite basic/lazy at times with quick cuts abruptly rushing/killing some scenes, boring camera work & generic screen wipes are also thrown in a lot randomly too. There's also a distinct lack of #style, class, omph & glamour with most locations especially feeling forgettable & dull. #jamescorden its also incredibly miss cast & his performance doesnt seem to fit well with the rest of the films tone. Story wise its not that interesting either & after the heist the film does fall a bit flat. Luckily however these few good points do in this case make the film really worth a watch eg - getting to know the characters & watching them prepare & pull off the heist was entertaining/fun & at times tense. Costumes, probs & a couple of sets were a joy to look at. #Music was ok & worked well with what was happening on screen. Acting is brilliant & its really nice to see #sandrabullock back in a lead roll again & looking so #beautiful while she does it too. Overall a good time heist movie that offers nothing new but keeps you interested with its lead performances. #odeon #odeonlimitless #oceans11 #hellenbonhamcarter #rihanna #annehathaway #cateblanchett #mindykaling #cinifile #filmbuff #review
Liz (3 KP) rated The Lies of Locke Lamora in Books
Jan 31, 2019
I would say this reminded me of Game of Thrones with a heist element and less sex, but about the same amount of violence and death. I enjoyed the world building, mystery, characters, pretty much everything! Looking forward to the sequel, but I know I'll be re-reading this one sometime this year before then.
Dean (6921 KP) rated Blue Iguana (2018) in Movies
May 14, 2019
More odd than funny crime caper
Well after hearing about this film I hoped for something along the lines of Snatch mixed with Ocean's 11 about a jewel heist from the Natural history museum. It's no where near either of those films and only has one scene at the museum. Funny in some places but just odd more of the time.