Tower Heist- P.P.M.R (Positively Positive Movie Review)

What do you get when you combine Ben Stiller, Eddie Murphy, Matthew Broderick, Michael Pena and Casey Affleck? A laugh riot! What do you get when you throw in Alan Alda (M*A*S*H) and Judd Hirsch (Taxi)? An all-star cast that's almost worth the price of admission! Now, in order to really make it worth the money because, let's face it movie tickets are running around twelve bucks a person these days, you need a good story to support the cast. Luckily, Tower Heist doesn't disappoint. 

Stiller leads the cast in a Bernie Maddof-esque story where the employees take revenge on the man who stole their pensions. Alan Alda plays this movie's Bernie, Arthur Shaw, who is charged with embezzlement. Stiller plays the manager of the hotel the man lives in, Josh Kovacs. After Kovacs finds out that Shaw not only stole their pensions, which he asked him to invest, but money from a worker he decides it is time for payback. They obviously can't pull this off alone so they enlist the help of a hardened thief named Slide played by Eddie Murphy. The rest of the movie follows the workers who team up against Shaw and their efforts to bring Shaw down. 

If you want a movie where you can sit back, turn off your brain and just laugh, this is the movie for you. If you want a movie that is highly plausible and completely believable...well, you might want to stay home. Some on the antics might have you saying, "Really? Come on!" However, these same antics will have you rolling in the aisles. I think my favorite parts were Affleck's shared fears of his wife's childbirth (it's hilarious!) and Matthew Broderick's slightly paranoid way of avoiding eviction from the hotel. You will also enjoy watching Stiller, Broderick, Pena and Affleck trying to prove their thieving skills to Murphy in order to gain his help. You won't expect a scented candle to appear where it does...and that's all I'll say about that. Don't be fooled by the movie poster, Stiller and Murphy are awesome but the supporting cast truly takes this movie to the next level. I was a bit worried when I saw so many talented actors in one comedy because usually one of two things happens: 1.) Actors are underused OR 2.) There is too much going on to be funny. This movie combined all the talent together to make a great comedy.

So, should you watch this movie if you want tips on how to pull off an ingenious robbery? Of course not! I can almost guarantee you would fail miserably. However, if you want to watch a hilarious movie about bringing down a rich man with no heart, you are in for a treat. I was even surprised by a few things in this movie and I can usually predict comedic plots down to the last second.

Movie Rating: 1 Spoonful, We Needed a Little Sugar-Coating.