The Heist (1989)

Best movie of this year hands down!

Save your money for something good and enjoyable

People are voting emotionally.

There are better movies of two hours length. I loved the actress'performance.

A man gets out of prison and gets back at his old partner by robbing his racetrack. He even tells him he;'s going to do it and the owner is ready for him. Yes, that's an improbable story but an intriguing one. It wound up with so many twists and turns in the final minutes that I couldn't follow all of them. Many of the twists centered around ex-con character, which was impossible to figure out.Pierce Brosnan played "Neil Skinner," a man who served four years in prison he shouldn't have had to serve. Tom Skerritt plays "Ebbet Berens," the racetrack owner whom Brosnan is after. Wendy Hughes plays "Sheila," the love interest in the film.Interesting overall as Brosnan seems to be tuning up for his suave, James Bond roles, which he would begin in about five years. This film was interesting, but unsatisfying by the time it was all over. A simpler ending would have made this a much better film.

This is a movie that is NOT A FAMILY MOVIE because of the love scene--a winner if you like them--and a woman-swapping subplot. If you can eliminate those scenes, it's OK for teens, but will bore the little ones.Five or so years ago, Brosnan's partner stole money from their racetrack and purchased emeralds, and, with the help of a crooked cop, sent innocent sucker Brosnan to prison for the deed. Brosnan's woman stayed with the partner and hooked up, being upwardly mobile, I guess. Now he returns to steal money from the track, but return it, get the partner arrested, and get back the girl. How will he do it? If 007, Remington Steele and Pierce Brosnan can't do it, who can? The plot is full of turns and twists, with lots of characters that cannot chew gum and walk, just like you and I know in real life. So, every step is hard on your nerves.The movie is fun, and because it's complicated, you may want to watch it more than once, so you can "get" the details. But if you're a fan of any of the watchable actors in this film, and yes, there are plenty of women who like Skerritt better than Brosnan, that's noo00oo problemo.The best part, besides the unowat part, is the final song, which is "Mi Manero," or "My Way" in Spanish. If you are not fluent in Spanish, you can actually hear the infectious joy of this great song without being put off by the embarrassing arrogance of the English words.

If you liked THE THOMAS CROWN AFFAIR you'll probably like THE HEIST. In fact the last act of TTCA seems to be lifted directly from this. As it was released on HBO domestically and only made theaters oversees, it's an overlooked gem of a movie. A project worth studying if you're a writer attempting a heist picture, along with RIFFIFI(French), THE HOT ROCK, THIEF, THE GETAWAY and a few others. It's tone is fun and smart. This is not heavy fair and had a limited budget. This is the opposite end of the spectrum from Mann's HEAT, but that doesn't make it any less enjoyable. It clearly falls under the cat & mouse category of heist projects as the hero attempts to simultaneously take down one last big score, win back the girl, and get revenge against his crooked ex-partner (Skerritt) who years earlier double crossed him, stole the girl and sent him to prison. The beauty of the film is everybody knows when and where our Hero is going to attempt his impossible score. They just don'

Average yarn with Brosnan playing a man who has only one week to pull off a scam to get revenge on former partner Skerritt who had him framed and put behind bars. Wendy Hughes is striking, along with the always dashing Brosnan, who here is as formidable a con man as his 007.