Kevin Hart stars as Cyrus, a master thief, in the underdeveloped heist film, “Lift,” directed by F. Gary Gray. Penned by Daniel Kunka, the movie showcases lavish locations such as Tuscany and Venice, as well as intricate set pieces like a speedboat chase in the opening scene. However, these elements lack any sense of suspense or danger.
The plot revolves around a cartoonish villain, the eco-terrorist Lars Jorgensen (Jean Reno), who plans to manipulate the stock market by paying shadowy hackers half a billion dollars in gold bars to disrupt the world’s water supply. It remains unclear what he stands to gain from this elaborate scheme beyond the windfall from shorting water utility stocks.
Interpol agent Abby (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) recruits Cyrus to steal the passenger plane carrying the gold bars before any damage can be done. Despite their history as old flames, the film fails to generate any romantic chemistry between them, with lackluster banter. “I was looking at the questions that weren’t being asked,” Cyrus tells Abby. “Too cool for school, huh?” she responds.
In trying to channel Tom Cruise in “Mission: Impossible” or Robert Redford in “Sneakers” (two similarly themed heist films), Hart’s portrayal of Cyrus falls flat. It is never clear why Abby would be drawn to him, or why his team, comprised of one-dimensional characters who exist primarily for corny quips, remains loyal. Hart lacks the charisma of Cruise or the charm of Redford required to carry the action movie storyline, demonstrating the pitfalls of character actors being labeled as leading men.
Lift
Rated PG-13 for mild violence and tame romance. Running time: 1 hour 44 minutes. Available on Netflix.