I always approach movies with an ensemble cast with caution. Of course there are exceptions, but most major star ensemble casts seem to produce mediocre movies that celebrate stars getting together over story line. Tower Heist is no exception. I will confess that I had fun, but it is an easily forgettable movie despite its’ good moments. If you are looking for just a pleasant diversion then the movie is good enough.
The movie’s story line fits right into the current ‘Occupy Wall Street’ and Bernie Madhoff news cycles. It’s about the underpaid working guys getting taken advantage by the rich Wall Street guy. Pure revenge escapism for the tough economic times we are in. Ben Stiller plays Josh Kovaks, the affable manager of an exclusive apartment building in downtown Manhattan. The building runs with the high tech security and precision of a military base, but Josh has an affection for all his quirky employees and richly eccentric tenants. He even plays online chess with the wealthiest tenant, Arthur Shaw (played with left wing contempt of the character by Alan Alda). The trouble starts when Arthur Shaw is arrested by the FBI for shady financial dealings and the staff comes to realize that Josh trustingly invested all their pensions in one of Shaw’s portfolios. Their money is nowhere to be found. Josh loses his job after aggressively confronting the unrepentant Shaw.
Josh is positive that Shaw has a stash of hidden money in his apartment that the FBI hasn’t found. Josh feels that his knowledge of the building makes him the ideal person to break in and find the money and thus return all the money that was lost to his friends. He recruits others who were fired and even the evicted tenant Mr. Fitzhugh (played with wide eyed timidity by Mathew Broderick) to help him in his plan. The one thing that is missing is a real criminal, so he finds the only one he knows, who also happens to be a childhood acquaintance, by the name of Slide (Eddie Murphy). Even after all these years, Eddie Murphy can make me laugh doing the exact same things he has been doing for the last 30 years. His character provides most of the energy and big laughs throughout the movie. I wonder how many of his rants were ad-libbed because they seemed so effortless and spontaneous.
Arthur Shaw is straight out of the Wall Street Villain cliché handbook and the other characters, while enjoyably quirky, did not provide any surprises to the movie. Even Tea Leoni, as the FBI agent leading the case against Shaw, is played generically and she is only in the movie to provide an unlikely love interest for Josh. I want to spot light supporting actor Michael Pena who is quickly coming on my radar as a comedic actor to watch. I first became aware of him in the film ‘Observe and Report’ (hilarious if not weird), but I enjoy everything he is in. His character, Enrique Dev’Reaux, is understated but a perfect sidekick compliment to Josh. Gabourey Sidibe as the Jamaican maid proves that she is not a one shot wonder in terms of acting ability.
I laughed often and sometimes even hard, but the movie is incredibly predictable and there really is no doubt how everything will be resolved. This is straight Hollywood cookie cutter movie making, but I enjoy my Chips Ahoy like everyone else on occasion.
I give this movie ** ½ Stars
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