Stand-up comedians have pivoted to playing it straight in movies countless times. For a few, it makes for some of their best work. Yet just because stand-up comedians can make the pivot to the straight guy doesn’t mean that they should. Case in point: Kevin Hart, whose career has evolved from touring performer to a lucrative and likeable movie star.
Hart’s proven track-record in balancing comic relief with, well, heart, has been his strongest hand. And whereas a change of pace is understandable, as the Danny Ocean-type kingpin that an ensemble of less comedically skilled co-stars bounce off, Hart is notably less memorable.
Lift’s glossy finish and pacy editing work against the film, giving it an over-polished look.
Lift, which is helmed by F. Gary Gray (director of slick, atmospheric ’90s thrillers Set It Off and The Negotiator plus the slightly less slick and atmospheric remake of The Italian Job), is a by-the-numbers scallywag heist. Hart’s Cyrus orchestrates intricate, audacious robberies with a ragtag bunch of specialists, from a disguise expert (sometime actual Kingpin Vincent D'Onofrio) to an IT whizz (Yun Jee Kim) to a “bit of a lad” (Billy Magnussen, working with some of the film’s better lines). Their collective skillset is reluctantly called upon by Gugu Mbatha-Raw’s Abby after the FBI learns that $500 million is being flown via a commercial plane to a terrorist organisation. The gang face a choice: intercept the plane mid-flight and commandeer the booty, or face prison.
The premise (and a visibly ample budget) allows for plenty of flashy effects, largely when the airborne heist is underway. Yet Lift’s glossy finish and pacy editing work against the film, giving it an over-polished look that feels jarring more than thrilling. So, it comes down to the cast’s charisma to ground the film — and its secret weapon here is Mbatha-Raw, whose ability to make big combat sequences look impressive and fun turns out to be the film’s highlight.
Ultimately, this would have benefitted from mining Hart’s comedy background to bring more life to the script, higher emotional stakes and a brighter spark between Cyrus and Abby. As it stands, Lift just doesn’t get off the ground.