Harry's Movie Review

Lift is a heist film about an international crew racing to steal $500 million in gold from a passenger plane mid-flight. The premise is silly, and the film knows it. That works in its favor more often than not, even if the execution feels like it is running on fumes by the final act.

Kevin Hart does what Kevin Hart does well: he is watchable. He moves through scenes with actual ease rather than trying too hard to be funny. Gugu Mbatha-Raw brings a sharpness to her role that keeps things grounded when the plot gets too absurd. The ensemble around them functions fine, though most are given little to do except deliver lines and look concerned during tense moments. They are game, and that counts for something.

F. Gary Gray keeps things moving at a reasonable clip. The film does not drag, which is more than some heist comedies can claim. What it lacks is any real sense of style or visual invention. The plane sequences feel workmanlike rather than exciting, and the stakes never quite land because the film itself does not seem to care that much. Two hours would have felt long; at 107 minutes, you notice when the energy dips.

Walking out, I felt I had spent my time pleasantly enough. There is no scene that bothers me, no moment that felt cheap. But there is also nothing I found myself thinking about afterward. Lift is content to be exactly what a heist comedy for streaming might be, and it commits to that without apology.