Viewed – 08 July 2014  Netflix

Hmm, a pleasant surprise this.  As the highest voted entry on my recent poll, I was almost expecting this to be bad … sort of an ‘I dare you to watch this clunker!’ result, but then as the final credits rolled I realised – I hadn’t laughed or chuckled quite as much in a long time as I had watching this highly entertaining comedy.

Christopher Walken, Morgan Freeman and William H. Macey are security guards working at a museum, who discover they all have one thing in common -.their love of particular works of art.  For Walken, the haunting portrait of a lonely maiden, for Freeman a classic painting of a girl pouring milk for some cats, and for Macy a priceless bronze statue.  However on learning that their beloved pieces are due to be moved to a museum in Denmark, they hatch the unlikely plan of stealing the art for themselves.

I found this really enjoyable.  Three great actors, all of which I am a fan of, turning in excellent performances with many little quirks and old-age bumbling.  Walken’s over bearing wife, Freeman’s wealth of cats and Macy insistence on getting naked to pose with his statue at every opportunity.  It was a joy to just watch these complete working-class Joe’s try and pull off a painstakingly planned heist … with all the things that could go wrong etc.  Walken carries the movie well, even if like the other two, he comes across as a bit ‘odd’.  Also as a caper, it doesn’t add much to a well worn genre but for the over-the-hill casting.  Yet the comedy although gentle and innocent is right on the nail and I still had a great time.

Verdict:  4 /5