Rating: 
Summary: I Love Mamet but This is Lesser Mamet
Review: David Mamet is at the top of the writing heap in the film world. He's also almost as good as a director. However, this film lacks the originality and depth which I'm used to seeing in his work. Maybe if I weren't comparing it to "House of Games," "Things Change," "The Winslow Boy," "Glengarry Glenn Ross" and the screenplay for "The Verdict," I would have liked this better. As it is, the film is about Gene Hackman's character, an older big scale thief who is going to score one huge, last heist. There are plenty of pitfalls along the way for him, not the least of which is the woman in his life, played by Rebecca Pidgeon, and a cohort in crime, played by Danny DeVito. There are plenty of twists and turns but they are standard for a caper film. "House of Games" by contrast, while also set in the criminal world, went a lot deeper into the thematic material it was handling, especially a character's obsession and fascination with certain kinds of taboo conduct. I'm sorry I bought the DVD of this film because it is not a keeper whereas Mamet's other work, mentioned above, does fall into the keeper category.
Rating: 
Summary: A study in mediocrity
Review: Granted, David Mamet usually has a fairly interesting story to tell and his scripting is usually just quirky enough to keep your attention. Heist will have you expecting twist after twist... and it delivers.The downfall of the film, however, is the dialogue. Rather than giving his characters depth and unexpected edges, Mamet resorts to stereotypes and struggling one-liners. "[He's] so cool, when he goes to sleep, sheep count him." A fairly interesting plot was distracted by Mamet's awkward riff on Tarantino-esque smartmouth. Rather than hearing smooth speeches and restrained wit coming from the principal players, I couldn't help but imagine the screenwriter/director sitting behind a typewriter, trying to imagine what would appeal to the Pulp Fiction crowd. At one point, DeVito's character roars, "I hate to do anything as cliche as counting to 3, but... 1...2...3!" We hate cliches too, David. So why leave it in the script? In the end, Heist makes for a mediocre movie at best. Some very nice plot manuevers, but these are overshadowed by the ham-handedness of the repartee. A lukewarm way to spend 2 hours and not quite worth the price of admission.
Rating: 
Summary: Don't listen to the poor reviews on this one!
Review: Folks, don't believe the 'bad' reviews for top notch films like this one from the [people] that call themselves reviewers here on Amazon (you know who you are!), and think they know anything about what makes a good film. They are the same ones that will give a film like "Glitter" five stars! Read the reviews from some of the people here on Amazon that know what really makes a quality film. This is a must see and own for any true film buff. ...
Rating:
Summary: Smart & Gritty Comedy of Errors.
Review: I enjoyed this film immensely. Not your standard let's plan a job, get some fast money, who has the money flick that's so overdone these days. Hackman and Lindo put in great performances in the fashion that made them famous. You have to watch this film, it's not all about action, how the characters interact is more of what the movie is about. Great Movie!
Rating:
Summary: <2.5> Somewhat Boring with Stellar Acting
Review: In the real world, things are often not what they seem; in the cinematic world of David Mamet, things are never what they appear to be at first glance, and rarely what they seem to be when looked at twice. And "Heist," the latest offering written and directed by Mamet is no exception. This one involves a crew of criminals led by Joe Moore (Gene Hackman), doing a thing, yes a thing, don't you see, yes, don't you see, they have to do this thing for this other criminal named Bergman (Danny DeVito) before they'll get their cut of the last thing they did for him. And so it goes for Joe and his crew, Bobby Blane (Delroy Lindo), Pinky (Ricky Jay) and his wife, Fran (Rebecca Pidgeon), as well as Jimmy Silk (Sam Rockwell), Bergman's man, whom he insists must be included with Joe's crew for the latest "thing," or robbery. The heist of the title. It's the reason they're all here, and it's the reason, yes, don't you see, it's the reason the audience is here, too. Anyone familiar with Mamet will appreciate-- or at least understand-- the opening paragraph of this review; and by the same token, those same people will probably be somewhat disappointed with this film, because though it is pure Mamet, it is sub-par Mamet. The problems begin with the casting, or more precisely, the miscasting of the project. I never thought I'd feel that Gene Hackman didn't belong in a film, but in this case I do. Not that he did a bad job here-- I don't think Hackman has ever done a "bad" job in anything-- but he didn't do a "Mamet" job. And neither did Danny DeVito. Both outstanding actors and craftsman, without question, but neither did justice to the material in this one, which certainly has nothing to do with their respective abilities and talents. Mamet has perfected a certain style which has everything to do with the way his actors deliver their lines, something of a Mamet trademark "clipped" delivery that Hackman and DeVito simply did not seem to grasp. It's a way of presenting Mamet's material that in his previous films has been perfected by the likes of Joe Mantegna, William H. Macy, Campbell Scott and Lindsay Crouse. Here, only Rebecca Pidgeon and Ricky Jay managed to deliver it effectively; otherwise it was missing. And it made a tremendous difference to the overall success of this film. On the surface, it may seem like a small thing, but without that particular style of speaking-- of presenting the dialogue-- the usual tension and suspense that Mamet manages to build and sustain throughout a film was sorely lacking. Another factor may be that the plot of this one was not as intricate or involved as that of "House of Games" or "The Spanish Prisoner," both of which kept you on the edge of your seat until the very end. This story is a bit more straightforward, and as such was perhaps simply not conducive to that magic Mamet touch that accounted for the success of his previous films. Not that this is a bad film-- it's not-- it's just that it could've been so much more, which is what fans of Mamet, especially, have come to expect. As previously stated, Hackman gives a solid performance here, but it's simply not the kind of presentation that was needed to bring this story to life. And the same goes for DeVito; a good job, but just not right for this material. Delroy Lindo seemed to fall into that same No Man's Land, as well. Just as certain actors-- even great actors-- cannot do a Woody Allen film justice (Kenneth Branagh in "Celebrity," for instance), not all actors are cut out to do Mamet. Performance-wise, the only saving grace of this film is Rebecca Pidgeon (Mamet's wife in real life), whose presence alone is mesmerizing. The bottom line is, she knows how to do "Mamet;" she knows, yes, she certainly knows, don't you see, how to put his material across. And watching her do it is a study in perfection. As she demonstrated in "The Spanish Prisoner" and again in "State and Main," she can single-handedly take a Mamet project to a higher notch on the scale. Unfortunately, as good as she is here, it's not enough to raise the bar to a more satisfying level. Her performance alone, however, makes this film worth seeing. The supporting cast includes Patti LuPone (as Betty Croft-- a thankless role for an actor of her stature, and one that leads you to believe that most of her work here must have ended up on the cutting room floor), Karen Cliche (Alex), Christopher Kaldor (Laszlo), Andreas Apergis (Trooper) and Tony Calabretta (Coffeeman). Not every film can be a gem, especially when the director has guts enough to take a chance and go outside the box in an attempt to keep his material fresh and new, which is exactly what Mamet tried with "Heist," beginning with his cast. And you can't fault Mamet; there's not a director around who wouldn't take a chance on Hackman for any project, and with good reason. And, again, this IS a decent film-- it's just not that "classic" Mamet, and looking at it from another perspective, if every director's "misfire" was as good as this, there wouldn't be any "bad" films at all. In the final analysis, Mamet fans are going to want to see this one, and everyone else should give it a look, as well, because it is entertaining, and for most will undoubtedly be a satisfying cinematic experience. Because, in the end, it's still all a part of the magic of the movies
Rating:
Summary: EXCELLENT DIALOGUE AND CAST steals the show!
Review: Though David Mamet's latest is never on par with his cunning and climactic THE SPANISH PRISONER, HEIST is nevertheless a robbery caper that will enthrall with its seasoned performance from Gene Hackman and the talented ensemble including Danny DeVito, Delroy Lindo and Rebecca Pidgeon. As usual Mamet's dialogue should be the feature that sets the spunky cheekiness and momentum of the film. His words are imaginative and vivid - for example hailing Joe's (Gene Hackman) plans as "cute as a chinese baby" or "a pailful of kittens". Without revealing much plot twists, the story centralizes on Joe Moore who is blackmailed into finishing a "last" job for his mob boss (Danny Devito). His identity is exposed on a jewellery robbery heist and he is bent on getting his loot off and escaped. The job however isn't easy with everybody double-crossing each other.... HEIST offers some wicked fun and irony and very entertaining twists right up to the epilogue, but it is Hackman's turn as a crafty mastermind that steals the limelight. It could have been tighter in its suspense had it not been for some predictibility towards the end but nonetheless it is reassuring old-fashioned robbery stuff cloaked in wits.
Rating:
Summary: Like a good wine, Gene Hackman gets better with age
Review: This story was terrific! I won't say it was the best I've ever seen - how many times do you see that in a review? Gene Hackman and Danny DeVito were great as were the other supporting actors. A very realistic crime story with Hackman as the cagey old master of the art of big time robberies, and DeVito, in his best role to date, as the middle man or "fence". The movie went by way too fast - I wanted more. If you enjoy Gene Hackman's typical style, you're going to love this movie. I bought the DVD and I ain't selling this one!
Rating:
Summary: Solid dialogue, great acting, but entirely too predictable
Review: I was set to enjoy this one, I really was- I'm a huge fan of "The Spanish Prisoner," I love Gene Hackman, and I have a bit of a crush on Rebecca Pidgeon. "Heist" was a let-down, though, mainly due to a far too predictable script. I had one minor surprise during the film, and everything else seemed fairly cliche. Is it really necessary to have six or seven plot twists, most of which have been used to greater effect in other, better movies? If you want a good double-cross movie, try "Spanish Prisoner," or the grandaddy of them all, "The Sting." And there are better Gene Hackman films out there. This one's only for Mamet completists.
Rating:
Summary: top notch behind the scenes
Review: when you look at this movie some of the best work is off camera with great camera shots writing and premises. i wish to have seen more a de vito in teh movies but all around great diaglouge and acting hackman gave a great performance with his old school style all around great flick
Rating: 
Summary: David Mamet's worst film
Review: I'm a huge David Mamet fan, but this film is unwatchable. Mostly because of Gene Hackman's god awful performance.
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