Critics: ‘The Hurricane Heist’ is Foolhardy Fun, ‘A ‘Sharknado’ Movie Minus the Fish’
Rob Cohen directed the first “Fast and the Furious” and “xXx” films, and hopes his perilous-weather thriller “The Hurricane Heist” leaves action fans clamoring for sequels. Distributed by Entertainment Studios and set in Alabama, the story follows a meteorologist (Toby Kebbell) intent on rescuing his brother (Ryan Kwanten) from a incoming superstorm, similar to the one that killed their father when they were kids. Yet a band of thieves eagerly awaits the squall, a diversion so they can lift $600 million from a U.S. mint and a treasury agent (Maggie Grace).
Critics genuinely complimented the “gleefully stupid” premise and building “idiocy,” along with the self-awareness screenwriters Jeff Dixon and Scott Windhauser supplied their characters. Also cited were editing gaffes, the actors’ wretched accents, and the too-low camp factor.
Read on for their best dispatches.
Bilge Ebiri, The Village Voice
“The Hurricane Heist” delivers what it promises on some basic level; it’s got plenty of hurricane, and it’s got plenty of heist. But those looking for ‘Sharknado’-style idiocy will probably be disappointed, as will those looking for anything that makes sense.”
Cohen cares only for adrenalized aggro nonsense, and here he delivers it in great gusting doses, typified by a soundtrack that’s all barking-mad pronouncements, deafening airstream whooshing and environmental-ruin cacophony … It’s like having a syringe full of testosterone injected directly into your eyes, except far less painful and far more hilarious.
Peter Sobczynski, RogerEbert.com
“The whole conceit of the film is so absolutely absurd that even those with a taste for action nonsense will find it to be far too silly to get behind … The storytelling is just as clumsy in the few moments when the characters come in out of the rain — one transition is handled so badly that I was convinced for a few minutes that an entire chunk of the film had been accidentally dumped along the way.
Fred Topel, Monsters & Critics
This is what action movies should be. Heroes go through awful tragedies, but with enough of a wink that we all know they’re just messing around.
What we get is gleefully stupid, but it’s more uneven than it oughta be. That said, it’s more or less the kind of cheeseball fun that people wanted ‘Geostorm’ to be.
The script rarely gives you a moment to think beyond what you’re watching on screen. Director Rob Cohen does a good job of keeping the pace swift while most characters do justice to their roles…The action, though not outstanding, does its job while the special effects competently show the destruction the mighty hurricane is capable of.”
Will and Casey come with the kind of backstories that come pre-installed with Final Draft software; he’s obsessed with understanding twisters after one killed his daddy, and she’s a demoted Fed looking for redemption after a mistake cost a colleague his life…Do not shelter yourself from the silliness of ‘The Hurricane Heist.’ Put down your umbrella, throw your arms open wide and get soaked with its idiocy.
Watch the trailer for “The Hurricane Heist,” in theaters now.
