Whogottherole.com was invited to an advanced screening of Tower Heist and this is all we have to say: If you pre-judged the film by its previews, you would be under the impression that it is an uncreative re-do of other superior heist films. But alas, we were actually entertained once we saw the movie in its entirety on the big screen. The same jokes that seem to fall flat in the previews, when given the proper time to develop, result in a theater full of laughter. And that was our takeaway of the Tower Heist. You will find yourself, and the people sitting next to you, laughing hysterically at the same jokes that left you scratching your head while watching the preview.
And that same preview may have left you wondering what all of these talented people were doing in this frivolous, misguided movie. But this movie actually plays as a reminder of why you loved them in the first place. It’s a return to form for Eddie Murphy, returning to the genre that made him famous: one in which he can curse. And Tea Leoni, the female, comedic equivalent of Daniel Day Lewis, making her once-every-5-year screen appearance, as a scene-stealing FBI agent.
No matter how many heist movies there are, we always want more. But we’ve come to a time when the heists we’ve seen have been so elaborate, to the point that a heist itself no longer impresses us. That is ultimately why the Tower Heist is so surprisingly refreshing. Just as cities worldwide are filled with the “Occupy Wall Street” protesters, here comes a heist movie, that doesn’t take itself too seriously, but in order to truly invest us in what would otherwise be just another heist movie, Tower Heist casts its villain as the root of the Wall Street problem itself, a Bernie Madoff type who has successfully swindled the “99%”.
This premise gives the film a relatable and poignant context that elevates the film beyond the usual confines of an otherwise tired storyline. Plus, anyone that loved watching Ferris Bueller race around in that red sports car so many years ago will certainly love witnessing him hanging from one, suspended above the Thanksgiving Day Parade.
