There are plenty of laughs in this crime thriller about a small-time thief who's given a clue to the location of a huge amount of stolen gold. The information he holds leads to him (unknowingly) being followed by both the Feds and the criminal who masterminded the gold robbery. The problem is, he's in no position to profit from the knowledge he has because he doesn't know what the clue means.
Two robberies from different ends of the criminal spectrum are carried out at the same time and Alvin Sanders (Jamie Foxx) who'd been arrested for his part in the theft of a consignment of prawns, finds himself sharing a prison cell with John Jaster (Robert Pastorelli) who'd been involved in the theft of $42 million worth of gold from the Federal Reserve. Jaster, a man with a serious heart condition, fears that he may not live long enough to get out of prison and so gives Alvin a cryptic message to pass on to his wife. The message which refers to "The Bronx Zoo" and "There's no place like home", means nothing to Alvin and so he gives it no further thought.
The gold robbery had been meticulously planned by Bristol (Doug Hutchison) but during the heist, when he needlessly killed two security guards in execution-style shootings, Jaster was so appalled that he deserted his partner and drove off in the getaway vehicle and hid the gold. After being incarcerated, Jaster is questioned by tough U.S. Treasury Agent Edgar Clenteen (David Morse) but suffers a heart attack during the interrogation and dies. This leaves the ruthless Clenteen with nothing to go on and so he decides to manipulate Alvin's early release from prison so that he can put him out on the street and make it generally known that Alvin knows where the gold is. In order to do this, Clenteen illegally arranges for a tracking device to be implanted in Alvin's jaw.
The tracking device enables the agents at a control centre to monitor Alvin's precise location at all times and also to listen in to his conversations. This, Clenteen believes, will bring Bristol out into the open and eventually lead to the recovery of the stolen gold.
"Bait" is an entertaining mixture of action and comedy that includes some well choreographed car chases and stunts. The two dominant colours used are dark-blue and black and they complement the prevailing atmosphere perfectly. Jamie Foxx is brilliant as the hyperactive and apparently not-very-bright Alvin whose personal life and talent for getting into trouble cause problems for both him and the Feds and David Morse makes a big impression as the totally humourless Clenteen. Doug Hutchison is suitably creepy as the soft-spoken psychopathic computer genius whose ability to hack government networks, makes him an on-going threat to the authorities.
There's nothing particularly original in "Bait" but what makes it so enjoyable is Jamie Foxx, some crazy over-the-top moments (like the stunt at the end of the movie) and the skillful way in which the violence and the humour are balanced so effectively.
Two robberies from different ends of the criminal spectrum are carried out at the same time and Alvin Sanders (Jamie Foxx) who'd been arrested for his part in the theft of a consignment of prawns, finds himself sharing a prison cell with John Jaster (Robert Pastorelli) who'd been involved in the theft of $42 million worth of gold from the Federal Reserve. Jaster, a man with a serious heart condition, fears that he may not live long enough to get out of prison and so gives Alvin a cryptic message to pass on to his wife. The message which refers to "The Bronx Zoo" and "There's no place like home", means nothing to Alvin and so he gives it no further thought.
The gold robbery had been meticulously planned by Bristol (Doug Hutchison) but during the heist, when he needlessly killed two security guards in execution-style shootings, Jaster was so appalled that he deserted his partner and drove off in the getaway vehicle and hid the gold. After being incarcerated, Jaster is questioned by tough U.S. Treasury Agent Edgar Clenteen (David Morse) but suffers a heart attack during the interrogation and dies. This leaves the ruthless Clenteen with nothing to go on and so he decides to manipulate Alvin's early release from prison so that he can put him out on the street and make it generally known that Alvin knows where the gold is. In order to do this, Clenteen illegally arranges for a tracking device to be implanted in Alvin's jaw.
The tracking device enables the agents at a control centre to monitor Alvin's precise location at all times and also to listen in to his conversations. This, Clenteen believes, will bring Bristol out into the open and eventually lead to the recovery of the stolen gold.
"Bait" is an entertaining mixture of action and comedy that includes some well choreographed car chases and stunts. The two dominant colours used are dark-blue and black and they complement the prevailing atmosphere perfectly. Jamie Foxx is brilliant as the hyperactive and apparently not-very-bright Alvin whose personal life and talent for getting into trouble cause problems for both him and the Feds and David Morse makes a big impression as the totally humourless Clenteen. Doug Hutchison is suitably creepy as the soft-spoken psychopathic computer genius whose ability to hack government networks, makes him an on-going threat to the authorities.
There's nothing particularly original in "Bait" but what makes it so enjoyable is Jamie Foxx, some crazy over-the-top moments (like the stunt at the end of the movie) and the skillful way in which the violence and the humour are balanced so effectively.