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"Let me ask you something, Jack? When was it you started thinking you were better than me?"

-- Nick Wells (Robert De Niro)

The Score is one of those movies that I recommend everyone to go see, even though most of the time no one seems to have heard ot it. It's a shame because it boasts three of the greatest actors from three separate generations -- De Niro, Norton and Brando -- and is one of the most intriguing heist dramas that I've seen in years.

Although the story is a familiar one, the film still manages to be smart, tense and clever; it's an old-fashioned thriller that got lost somewhere between the audience's lust for contemporary special effects and movies starring clean-cut, new-age action heroes (like Matt Damon). De Niro plays Nick, a veteran safecracker, who is about to retire and settle down with his woman (Angela Bassett) when his partner Max (Brando) attempts to sway him with one last score. Norton plays the hotshot youngster, Jack, who has the inside knowledge and trust of his employees, and eventually convinces Nick that they can do the job if they work as a team.

De Niro's performance is typical of a man who is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential actors of all time: Shrewd and methodical, he takes centre stage and inspires the best from his co-stars. Norton, seemingly without hesitation, takes advantage of the opportunity to work with such a talent and, arguably, even manages to steal the show. He plays two distinctive roles: One being a cocky, young thief; and the other being Brian, a janitor with learning difficulties, who manages to trick his way inside the heist venue. Norton's performance here very much reminds me of his debut performance in Primal Fear -- it's great.

Meanwhile, Brando (in his last ever role) is a spectacle that everyone wants to see. He pops up every now and then, seemingly unannounced, providing words of wisdom to the other characters, and entertaining the audience with a variety of improvised wise cracks, which add a hint of innovation to every scene that he's in. He's such a charismatic individual and will be sadly missed.

Frank Oz, the guy behind Miss Piggy in The Muppets, probably wouldn't have been everyone's first choice to direct the interplay between these three great actors; wisely, though, he keeps the whole affair very low key, giving the stars the chance to showcase their talents on screen. The Score is very much a character-driven movie; a competent, yet unpretentious film, with enough excitement -- just watch the fantastic safe cracking scene at the end -- to prove there's still plenty of life in the old genre yet.

(C) Andy Carrington, 2009.