Tower Heist (2011) - Script Analysis

Original Title: "Tower Heist"

Spanish Title: "Robo en las Alturas"

Genre: Comedy, Action.

Director: Brett Ratner.

Story by: Adam Cooper, Bill Collage y Ted Griffin.

Screenwriters: Ted Griffin y Jeff Nathanson.

Producers: Brian Grazer, Eddie Murphy y Kim Roth.

Cast: Ben Stiller, Eddie Murphy, Casey Affleck, Alan Alda, Matthew Broderick, Judd Hirsch, Téa Leoni, Michael Peña y Gabourey Sidibe.

Synopsis: The manager of a luxury condominium teams up with a criminal to take back the retirement money stolen from him and his coworkers by a Wall Street fraudster.

Screenplay Breakdown:

• Linear Narrative.

Blake Snyder's "Save the Cat" Beatsheet:

Opening Image:

A $100 bill painted at the bottom of the swimming pool in the luxurious high-rise, "The Tower".

Theme:

The power of money and its influence on corruption.

The fight for justice.

Power strategies.

Setup:

Josh Kovaks is the manager of "The Tower," the most luxurious apartment complex in New York. We follow a typical day in his life, showcasing his professionalism, responsibility, meticulousness, and loyalty—among his daily routines, he plays chess each morning with his boss, Arthur Shaw.

We also meet the other characters:

Lester: A veteran doorman about to retire.

Charlie: A fearful concierge about to become a father.

Enrique: A young and inexperienced bellhop.

Mr. Fitzhugh: An investor, a genius with numbers, now bankrupt and evicted from "The Tower."

Slide: A criminal who lives on the same block as Josh and with whom he crosses paths every morning on his way to work.

Odessa: Cleaning staff.

Arthur Shaw: A wealthy elderly investor, resident of the Penthouse, and owner of "The Tower."

Because of his close relationship with Shaw, Josh entrusts him with the employees’ pension funds, hoping that Shaw will triple their money by the time they retire.

Catalyst:

When Shaw is arrested for financial fraud, Josh discovers that all the employees’ money is gone. His emotional state worsens when Lester, desperate after losing his savings, attempts suicide. To make matters worse, Shaw posts bail and continues his lavish lifestyle in "The Tower," untouchable by the justice system.

Debate:

Accompanied by Charlie and Enrique, Josh confronts Shaw in a heated argument. In a fit of rage, he destroys Shaw’s most prized possession: a Ferrari displayed in his residence. As a result, all three are fired.

In a failed attempt to provide the FBI with relevant information, Agent Denham reveals that the whereabouts of Shaw’s missing $20 million remain unknown. Since the legal system offers no solutions, Josh decides to take justice into his own hands.

Break into Two:

Josh devises a plan to rob a supposed hidden safe in Shaw’s Penthouse to recover the lost money. He recruits Charlie, Enrique, and Mr. Fitzhugh and even posts bail for Slide, hiring him to teach them how to steal.

B Story:

Although everyone agrees on the plan, several factors complicate its execution:

- Shaw presses charges against Josh, forcing him to appeal in court.

- Meanwhile, Josh maintains a close relationship with Agent Denham.

- He also tries to support Charlie, the most fearful member of the group, who eventually abandons the plan after being rehired at The Tower.

Fun and Games:

Josh and his team plan the heist and train to execute it successfully. They learn to pick locks, track movements inside and outside The Tower, stay calm under pressure, identify security cameras, and recruit Odessa, who knows how to crack safes. Additionally, they steal Charlie’s wife’s phone and send a fake judge’s summons, moving Shaw’s court hearing to Thanksgiving Day, when The Tower will be at the center of the parade, and the area will be on lockdown.

Midpoint:

During the Thanksgiving parade, Shaw is escorted to court by the FBI, while at The Tower, Slide betrays the team. Despite this, they proceed with the plan and, once inside the Penthouse, manage to access the safe—only to find it empty.

The team is in shock and loses direction. However, during a gunfight, a bullet accidentally hits the Ferrari, revealing that it is made entirely of gold and worth approximately $45 million. Inside the car, they also find Shaw’s ledger containing records of all his fraudulent transactions—the final piece of evidence the FBI needs.

The new plan: steal the car.

Bad Guys Close In:

The FBI discovers the ruse and goes after them. Meanwhile, the team manages to lower the car through the window into Mr. Fitzhugh’s old apartment, now under renovation, and hides it in the elevator shaft.

All Is Lost:

The team escapes the building using Lester as a decoy, but once outside, they are captured and processed.

Dark Night of the Soul:

Everyone faces charges and prison time, but Josh offers Shaw’s ledger as proof of his frauds, ensuring his downfall. He essentially bribes the U.S. government in exchange for the team’s freedom.

Break into Three:

The deal is formalized, and everyone is released without charges—except for Josh. Meanwhile, the team revisits where they hid the car: the rooftop pool of The Tower.

Climax:

All the affected employees of The Tower receive a package: a piece of the golden car.

Final Image:

Josh, smiling from jail, satisfied that he did the right thing—redeeming himself by returning his coworkers’ stolen money and even multiplying it, just as he originally intended.

(*Characters marked with an asterisk work at "The Tower."*)

Opinion:

I think this is a great comedy, the kind they don’t make anymore, since market trends have changed.

It follows a tightly structured narrative with many twists and turns, where every small yet significant clue plays a role in the final resolution—from The Tower’s in-house attorney just days away from getting her license to the opportunistic eviction of Mr. Fitzhugh.

The film has one of the best openings in the genre, where an ordinary day in someone's life completely shatters years of persistence and effort, demonstrating how fragile and dependent on money we are. And, at the same time, how money corrupts human nature. In the case of the protagonist, it corrupts his sense of duty and responsibility, leading him to justify his actions in a Machiavellian way, where the ends justify the means, turning this into a modern retelling of Robin Hood.

The film achieves a perfect hybrid of comedy and action, where neither disappoints. It delivers a finale with 90% satisfaction—leaving just a small sense that the plan wasn’t flawless, yet its intent and purpose as an act of redemption are fully realized.