Forget about justifying the subgenre of filmmaking Heist, the 2015-film with the name Heist with two respectable actors has little entertainment to offer. This Robert De Niro and Jeffrey Dean Morgan starrer Heist has nothing new but with the same old story of a casino robbery but in a laid-back style. As far as crime is concerned, it never gives you the thrill but somehow holds you long enough to ask yourself some genuinely valid questions.
First of all, you must ask ‘what is an Oscar-winning actor De Niro doing in such a dull movie with only 15 minutes of screen space?’ Probably, he is doing a favor to others in the cast who can later add in their resume that they have done a movie with De Niro.
In the storyline, director Scott Mann could have cast any actor but at least he gets the charisma of an ace actor. I mean the plot has no character development to extract anything out from the presence of such a great actor.
Secondly, some of us may even ask about the viability of such a film in today’s time when there are a dozen movies already made on the same plot. Moreover, without a compelling story, this makes no sense at all to try that hard. It seems the story was written in the 90s and only the director tried to put a thin layer with an over-complicated plot and unnecessary twists.
Catch the movie trailer here for ‘Heist’
For a moment, if we forgot about De Niro and check the lead Jeffrey Dean Morgan, we can also see that there is not much content for him as well. Morgan as usual stars in a low-budget movie with not much scope to show his acting skill. If there is anything good about him in the film, it is his calm and composed look.
Morgan plays Vaughn, a 21 dealer at a casino owned by ruthless Pope (Robert De Niro). The story, in the beginning, looks good with the personal life angle of both the characters. De Niro has an estranged adult daughter who hates his business and corrupt money. Vaughn, on the other side, is trying hard to arrange a huge amount of money for the surgery of his terminally ill little daughter.
So, when Vaughn goes to Pope to ask for financial help, Pope in his usual self throws him away. Then comes the story of a heist to rob the casino. As a last resort, Vaughn partners with a greedy co-worker Cox (played by WWE wrestler Dave Bautista) to rob a casino.
When their attempt to rob Pope’s casino goes awry and a shootout ensues, Vaughn and Cox are forced to flee on foot and then hijack a city Bus 657 and take the passengers hostage. Now, in a high-speed chase, Vaughn will not only have to outwit the police, led by Officer Bajos (Gina Carano) who are in hot pursuit, but he will also have to contend with Pope’s maniacal right-hand man, Dog (Morris Chestnut), in order to make it through the day alive. But we quickly learn that things are not what they seem, and Vaughn has more than one card up his sleeve.
In the end what you see is more a mixture of several other films such as Speed, John Q, The Usual Suspects, and a few more if you may recollect. If there is anything good in this movie, then I must say the space of De Niro, he has been as convincing in the role of a feared gangster. Nonetheless, Heist is full of ridiculous dialogue, unnecessary plot twists, and mindless detailing.
Starring: Jeffery Dean Morgan (Vaughn), Robert De Niro (Pope), Kate Bosworth (Sydney), Gina Carano (Kris), Mark-Paul Gosselaar (Marconi), D.B. Sweeney (Bernie), Lydia Hull (Pauline), Tyler J. Olson (Steve), with Morris Chestnut (Dog), and Dave Bautista (Cox)
Genre: Action Thriller
Directed by Scott Mann
Written by Stephen Cyrus Sepher and Max Adams
Cinematography: Brandon Cox
Released Date/Year: November 13, 2015
Where to watch Heist (2015)
