‘Heist’

David Mamet directs his best psychological thriller in years.

By: Kam Williams

Danny DeVito and Gene Hackman in "The Heist"

      David Mamet made his first mark on the stage,
receiving accolades for his searing, super-realistic stories about small-time
con artists. Driven by streetwise dialogue spat out by actors in deliberate staccato,
his readily recognizable work has invariably been as lyrical as it is riveting.
   Because his plays rest on timing and delivery, the perfectionist
playwright has been known to employ a metronome in rehearsals to fine-tune a cast’s
delivery. Well-rewarded for this attention to minutiae, Mamet has collected his
fair share of Tony and Obie awards in an illustrious career. In 1984, he was even
awarded the Pulitzer Prize in drama for Glengarry Glen Ross.
   A prolific writer, he also was the author of such critically
acclaimed plays as American Buffalo, Speed the Plow, The Cryptogram
and Sexual Perversity in Chicago.
   This prodigious Renaissance Man also has succeeded as a television
scriptwriter (Hill Street Blues), actor (Black Widow), songwriter,
essayist, novelist and children’s book author. Beginning in 1981, he began making
considerable contributions to the quality of cinema content. By 1982, he had already
received his first Oscar nomination, for the screenplay of The Verdict,
the Sidney Lumet film starring Paul Newman.
   Mamet, whose scriptwriting skills have remained in demand by
top Hollywood directors, has penned such box-office hits as The Untouchables
for Brian De Palma, Hoffa for Danny DeVito, Malcolm X for Spike
Lee, Ronin for John Frankenheimer and, most recently, Hannibal for
Ridley Scott. He received a second Academy Award nomination after writing Wag
the Dog for Barry Levinson.
   As a director, Mamet made a most impressive debut in 1987 with
House of Games, a taut psychological thriller starring a host of regular
players from his theater repertory company, including Joe Mantegna, William H.
Macy and Ricky Jay.
   Heist, only the ninth film which he has written and directed,
is another multi-layered cat-and-mouse caper involving an elaborate scam. The
film features a stellar cast capable of handling the sophisticated Mamet interplay.
   Two-time Academy Award-winner Gene Hackman stars as Joe Moore,
that wily veteran crook one proverbial last big "heist" away from retirement.
Danny DeVito and Delroy Lindo co-star as Bergman and Bobby Blane, respectively,
two of Joe’s partners in crime. Rebecca Pidgeon (Mamet’s real-life wife) plays
Fran, Joe’s considerably younger spouse.
   Mamet also taps some former favorites such as Mr. Jay, who gives
an impressive send-up as Pinky, a lovable rogue, and Tony Award-winner Patti LuPone,
who appeared in five of his plays. Sam Rockwell rounds out the principal cast
as Jimmy Silk, one of Bergman’s boys and a smooth operator making a play for the
perky Fran.
   The intricate story, a tad too over-plotted for my taste, revolves
around a conspiracy to steal a cache of gold. Nonetheless, the movie is worth
its weight in words, all deliciously laced with trademark Mametspeak. From the
start, the insinuating exchanges indicate an absence of honor among this back-stabbing
set of thieves.
   Trouble brews as Joe and Bergman assemble the intimate team
of con artists for their intricate scheme. Tension waxing, you find yourself wondering,
at every turn, whether any of this broke, blackmailed and betrayed bunch can be
trusted to stay the course.
Rated R. Contains profanity, a few sequences of gory violence and sexual situations.