If you’re telling a story involving buddy cops, Las Vegas and a heist, you’d better have something new to bring to the party, but this potentially offbeat thriller relies too heavily on its lead actors: Nicolas Cage and Elijah Wood. They’re set on breaking into a criminal strongroom they’ve located – with no clear idea what’s inside. It’s a tough job involving kidnap, German power tools and several hours of drilling from the apartment above. In time-honoured fashion, the well-laid plan goes awry, but the story never settles into a comfortable groove. Once in a while Nicolas Cage remembers he’s Nicolas Cage and throws in an offbeat line delivery or an incongruous burst of goofiness, but there’s little in the way of tension, surprise or consistency, and the disappointing ending leaves questions about the point of the whole exercise.
