LIFT
Starring: Kevin Hart, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Vincent D’Onofrio, Billy Magnussen, Jacob Batalon, and Jean Reno
Director: F. Gary Gray
QUENTIN
You know, it doesn’t take a lot for a heist movie to get a passing grade from me, but goodness gracious, it’s not like Lift even tried. Between the terrible CGI, uninspired characters, flat humor, and poorly done trope after poorly done trope, not even my unashamed bias for all things heisty could get me to engage with this thing. If this movie is good for anything, it’s as something to be shown at Kevin Hart’s Netflix intervention: “Look, Kev, we respect your hustle and work ethic, but stop making these terrible Netflix movies. You’re hurting yourself and those around you. Have some respect for yourself.”
AMARÚ
You have Vincent D’Onofrio, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Billy Magnussen, Jacob Batalon, Jean Reno, and Kevin Hart in a heist film directed by F. Gary Gray. That is the biggest layup ever for a fun-ass time; all you gotta do is write some semblance of coherence. But noooooo, Lift was apparently written for TikTok. It throws every single heist trope (both comedic and dramatic) at the wall with no logical progression, and tries to cover it up with cool music, flashy action, “lovable” characters, and fast-paced direction. Lift is just a poorly constructed shell enclosing the cast and crew’s obvious paychecks.
PRESTON
Lift is director F. Gary Gray’s latest release, and Kevin Hart’s most recent Netflix offering. How else can I describe Lift? Well… imagine watching The Italian Job, but instead of being good…it isn’t. Don’t get me wrong, the cinematography and style are decent, and reminiscent of many good heist movies. The problem seems to lie in writing that produces utterly flat dialogue that the actors don’t even know how to deal with. Any attempt at injected charm falls short, the jokes don’t land, and the “tense” moments are the only times you want to laugh. To quote Liar, Liar, “I’ve had better.”
