Heist (2001)

A career jewel thief finds himself at tense odds with his longtime partner, a crime boss who sends his nephew to keep watch.

Director:

David Mamet

Writer:

David Mamet

Stars:

Gene Hackman, Rebecca Pidgeon, Danny DeVito

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Gene Hackman	...	Joe Moore
Danny DeVito	...	Mickey Bergman (as Danny Devito)
Delroy Lindo	...	Bobby 'Bob' Blane
Sam Rockwell	...	Jimmy Silk
Rebecca Pidgeon	...	Fran Moore
Ricky Jay	...	Don 'Pinky' Pincus
Patti LuPone	...	Betty Croft (as Patti Lupone)
Alan Bilzerian	...	Fast Food Customer
Richard L. Friedman	...	Counterman
Robert Lussier	...	Fast Food Cook
Mark Camacho	...	Jewelry Store Guard
Michelle Sweeney	...	Waitress
Elyzabeth Walling	...	Jewelry Saleswoman
Mike Tsar	...	Coffee Cart Man (as Mike Tsarouchas)
Jim Frangione	...	D.A. Freccia

Storyline

David Mamet takes this story of thieves along many twists and turns, some of which work and some of which don't. Gene Hackman plays the brilliant leader of a gang (Delroy Lindo, Ricky Jay & Rebecca Pigeon as Hackman's youngish wife), which pulls off complex heists for a despicable fence (Danny DeVito). After stiffing the gang on a jewelry robbery, DeVito forces the gang to go after a Swiss gold shipment and to use his nephew (Sam Rockwell) in the crime. No one trusts anyone and every step is shaded with the unexpected.

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Plot Keywords:

time bomb | gang | heist | wife's sexual pretence | one word title | 

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Taglines:

It isn't love that makes the world go round.

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and some violence

Details

Official Sites:

Best Hollywood [Hungary] Warner Bros. [United States]

Country:

Canada USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 November 2001 (USA)

Also Known As:

Heist - Der letzte Coup

Filming Locations:

Mirabel, Québec, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$39,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$7,823,521, 11 November 2001, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$47,239, 22 November 2015

Company Credits

Production Co:

Morgan Creek Entertainment,Franchise Pictures,Indelible Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

109 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Gene Hackman takes a taxi about 14 minutes into the movie. The taxi is marked "Cape Ann Taxi" with the phone number 617-187-0156. Area code 617 is for metro Boston.

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Goofs

The airport ground controller directs the Pan Genève aircraft to taxi to "runway alpha". Runways are always denoted by numbers - taxiways are denoted by letters.

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Quotes

Joe Moore: She could talk her way out of a sunburn.

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Crazy Credits

The opening Warner Bros., Morgan Creek, and Franchise Pictures logos are in black and white.

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Connections

Referenced in You Know What's Bullshit: Hotel TV's (2009)

User Reviews

Double-crosses and slang galore, but not a bad film

I didn't know anything about David Mamet before I saw this film... now I know that he's got a penchant for characters with ulterior motives and slang-heavy dialog. Going into this film, I didn't expect anything but a(surprise surprise) heist flick. I got just that. Not just a heist flick, but a well-acted, nicely directed and quite entertaining one, at that. The plot is pretty good, and keeps your interest throughout. There are a fair bit of double-crosses throughout, and near the end, it does get somewhat tiresome. The acting is all top-notch. Not one performance was even slightly off. It's no surprise to see such high-quality acting from Hackman, Lindo and Rockwell, but I had not expected such excellent performances from DeVito and Jay. The writing is very good, but Mamet uses too many clichés and there's just a tad too much going on in the shadows, people conspiring against each other. The dialog tries oh so hard to be clever, and occasionally succeeds, but more often than not, it just comes off as pretentiousness, with all the slang, the attempts at being clever and the ridiculously high pace it sometimes sports. The cinematography is great, not one shot was poor or out of place. The pacing is mostly good, though the film seems to go on just a bit too long. All in all, an entertaining heist film, but not one to watch much more than one time. I recommend this to all fans of heist flicks, any of the actors and David Mamet(who seems to be all about these films). 7/10