The Heist of All Heists

Rating: 8/10 (31 July 2002)

This is a very fun movie that could have been excellent without Julia Roberts dragging it down. Now, normally I am a fan of Ms. Roberts, but here she is miscast and her part is poorly written. Unfortunately, said poorly written part is meant to be the linchpin that holds the entire motivation and structure together. Her character is treated as a stunning beauty, but we all know that Roberts's appeal is not beauty but prettiness -- she is a nice girl, not a knockout, and that's why her beauty -- when it does shine forth -- is so startling. Roberts looks like a pretty girl who, when she smiles at you, shocks you with her sudden radiance. But her character is the kind of woman who Makes an Entrance, and it just doesn't work. Without either the looks or the dialogue, she creates a mushy center to a movie that needs to be sharp straight through.
Still, the rest of the movie is diamond-edge sharp, the heist is entertaining, and the cast mainly sparkles. 8/10