TOWER HEIST - Blu-ray review

Don't you wish the Occupy movement could have struck at the one percent in a better way than camping out in the park and hoping they'd be driven off by their rank body odor? "Tower Heist" might satiate your thirst as a lightweight revenge fantasy as a group of working class stiffs strike back against the malevolent corporate elite.

Ben Stiller heads up an all-star cast as Josh Kovacs, the building manager for a Manhattan highrise played by the Trump International Hotel and the Trump Tower. The tower is the home to a hodgepodge of wealthy citizens and Kovacs caters to their every whim. The most famous and richest is Arthur Shaw (Alan Alda), an investment banker, who lives in the penthouse complete with a rooftop pool decorated by a giant hundred dollar bill and Steve McQueen's Ferrari in his living room. Shaw has more money than everyone else in the building combined, but he'll happily remind you he grew up in Queens and used to shovel horse manure at the racetracks. Shaw's nice guy demeanor rapidly fades when he is arrested for fraud of Bernie Madoff proportions. This includes the pension for the entire staff as well as the retirement fund for Lester (Stephen Henderson), the elderly doorman. Kovacs is pushed to the breaking point when poor Lester attempts to commit suicide. He vows to get back the money by any means necessary.

Kovacs believes Shaw has a hidden nest egg inside his apartment and gathers together a crew of misfits to plan the heist. He recruits brother-in-law/concierge Charlie (Casey Affleck), dopey elevator operator Enrique (Michael Pena), and bankrupt stock broker Mr. Fitzhugh (Matthew Broderick). None of them know anything about stealing, but Kovacs knows someone who does...a black guy. The final member of the team is Slide (Eddie Murphy), a larcenous neighbor who used to go to daycare with Kovacs as children. The climactic crime sees the crew sneak into Shaw's penthouse amidst the hustle and bustle of Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Even if it sounds like a backhanded compliment, "Tower Heist" is by far the best work of director Brett Ratner. He'll never direct anything substantial, but he is a master of slick and hollow blockbusters. "Tower Heist" is a well made comedy that follows in the footsteps of the "Ocean's" franchise. In fact, the project was originally pitched by Eddie Murphy as an urban version of "Ocean's Eleven," with Murphy hoping to star alongside talents like Chris Rock, Eddie Griffin, and Dave Chappelle. The screenplay was hammered down to a blue collar alternative to the ritzy Soderbergh pictures. The credited writers are "Ocean's Eleven" scribe Ted Griffin and Jeff Nathanson, who previously worked with Ratner on "Rush Hour 2 and 3." There were also numerous uncredited rewrites by Rawson Marshall Thurber ("Dodgeball"), Leslie Dixon ("Limitless"), and Noah Baumbach ("Greenberg"). Despite all these writers, the jokes aren't particularly witty and most of the humor skates by thanks to the easy chemistry of the cast. One of the funnier scenes features Slide initiating his cohorts by forcing them to steal merchandise at a trendy shopping mall. Ratner compliments the comedy with some dynamic action sequences with shout-outs to "Die Hard" and the iconic car chase from "The French Connection."

Stiller makes a fine accounting of himself as the everyman taking charge of a situation and knowing how in over his head he is. Michael Pena has displayed strong comedic chops in "Observe & Report" and "30 Minutes or Less" and he does so here as the team's resident dummy. Matthew Broderick is also funny as a pathetic sad sack, despite his character not being particularly useful. His math skills could have easily been replaced by the calculator app on an iPhone. What really brings the movie together is Alan Alda's performance as the villain. Alda plays up his nice guy image at the beginning of the film turning Shaw into the grandfather you wish you could have. Hey, he's Hawkeye Pierce, after all. Then, there's a slight shift in the tone of his voice that turns geniality into odious condescension.

Much has been made that Eddie Murphy's role in "Tower Heist" is a return to form. While it's certainly the most liveliest he's been in years, he's not quite the same Murphy from "Beverly Hills Cop" or "48 Hours." The few female members of the cast should also be praised. Gabourey Sidibe of "Precious" fame plays a Jamaican maid with a surprising talent for safecracking. Then, there's a smoky voiced Téa Leoni as a tough FBI agent and possible romantic interest for Kovacs.

Video:
The video is presented in 1080p with an aspect ratio of 2.40:1. The transfer is exceptionally well done allowing you to see fine details, such as the wrinkles on the actor's faces and the sheen on the skyscraper windows. Colors are bold and black levels are strong.

Audio:
The audio is presented in DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1. The sound is equally strong with the action and score coming out powerfully. Dialogue is crisp and clear.

Extras:
Included on the Blu-ray is an audio commentary track with Brett Ratner, Editor Mark Helfrich, and co-writers Ted Griffin and Jeff Nathanson. This is a breezy, fast-paced track with the participants discussing how they hammered out the script, the large ensemble cast, and shooting on location in New York City.

Brett Ratner's Video Diary (22:42) features fly-on-the-wall footage of Ratner at work.

Plotting Tower Heist (44:42) is a comprehensive look at the making of the film beginning with how Ratner first met producer Brian Grazer as an NYU student. It also goes into gathering the cast, shooting at the Trump Hotel, and recreating Steve McQueen's Ferrari.

Switch on Universal's U-Control and you'll get a picture-in-picture option with storyboards and pre-viz as well as a Music of Tower Heist, which features pop-up info on the score and soundtrack. You can access these extras on an iPad or compatible mobile device through the Second Screen option.

Rounding out the bonus material are two alternate endings, a collection of deleted/alternate scenes, and a gag reel.

The combo pack comes with a DVD version of the film as well as download codes for Digital and Ultraviolet copies.

Film value:
There have been many unforgettable heist sequences in movie history from the Mini Cooper parade of the original "The Italian Job" to the silent jewelry store robbery from Jules Dassin's "Rififi." "Tower Heist" won't ever be mentioned in the same breath as those films. Ratner's latest production is a generic comedy that matches its unimaginative title. Yet, it is a slickly shot picture and the imminently likeable cast generates enough goodwill to make it a fun hour and forty five minutes.