Thief (1981)

Greetings from Lithuania."Thief" (1981) is a great movie. Amazingly directed by one of my all time favorite Michael Mann, this is a kinda simple story, yet amazingly told. This has to be one of the two best performances ever by James Caan ("The Godfather" comes in a first place). First feature film of Michael Mann, the ones whose movies i always liked to say the least.All in all, "Thief" is a pure movie gem. Great soundtrack, simple yet very involving story, great script and amazing work by Michael Mann - this is a one superb movie.

Thief is written and directed by Michael Mann, who adapts the screenplay form the novel "The Home Invaders" written by Frank Hohimer. It stars James Caan, Tuesday Weld, Robert Prosky, James Belushi and Willie Nelson. Music is by Tangerine Dream and cinematography by Donald Thorin.Frank (Caan) is a tough ex-con and expert jewel thief. He's working his way out to a normal life, but after being lured to a big job for the mob, he finds plans on both sides severely altered.For his first full length theatrical feature, Michael Mann announced himself to the film world with some distinction, and in the process showed everyone what style of film making makes him tick. Thief is a film of stylised grit, visually, thematically and narratively. Set and filmed in Chicago, Mann, aided by Thorin, shoots the story through pure neo-noir filters.At nighttime it is all a beautifully neon drenched haze, where the streets shimmer with dampness, a dampness brought about by the rain and god knows what else! By day there's a sweaty hue, a feeling that the heat is well and truly on, that even in daylight Frank isn't safe, his dreams may be a touch too far to reach. And no matter what the scene or scenario, Tangerine Dream are laying over the top a throbbing pulse beat, it's like The Warriors trying to get back to Coney Island, the music has a sense of dread about it, that danger is at every corner.This part of Chicago stinks, it's a vile and corrupt place. Dirty cops everywhere, underworld criminals ruling the roost - Hell! You can even buy a baby if you want one. Is it any wonder that Frank just wants to settle down with a wife and child, to walk barefooted in the sea, to have domesticity? But Frank, as smart, tough and savvy as he is, seems to thrive on the edge of things, with Mann giving him earthy and honest dialogue to engage us with, marking him out as an identifiable every man protagonist who just happens to be an exceptional thief.Mann's attention to detail is on show straight away, none more so than with the two key safe cracking jobs that are undertaken. Using genuine jewel thieves as technical advisers on the film, these sequences ooze realism, from the tools used, the pre-planning and the execution of the takes, it smacks of reality and does justice to the genuine feel of the characterisations brought alive by the superb cast. And finally Mann delivers a finale of ambiguity, a noir shaded piece of abruptness, an ending that perfectly fits the whole production. 9/10

With Thief, Michael Mann distilled his crime film style into an archetypal, haunting aura that would go on to influence not only his excellent later work, but other filmmakers as well, everything from Refn's Drive to the police procedural we see on television today. A style that consists of kaleidoscope neon reflections in rain slicked streets, Chrome cars bulleting through restless urban nocturnes and a lyrical, pulsating score, here provided by underrated German electronic maestros Tangerine Dream, who would go on to provide their dulcet tones for Mann's phenomenal 1983 The Keep. Thief weaves the age old tale of a master safe cracker(James Caan in a beautifully understated performance) the high stakes at risk of him performing one last job to escape, with said stakes represented as his angelic wife (Tuesday Weld) and newborn son. Robert Prosky in his film debut is a serpentine wonder as Leo, Caan's boss, whose chilling metamorphosis from paternal employer to domineering monster is a joy to watch. The jewel heist scenes are shot with a researched, assured and authentic feel, spurred on by Tangerine Dreams cosmic rhythms and are especially dynamic points of the film. Thief, for me, belongs that special subcategory of Mann's career along with Heat, Miami Vice and Collateral, (Public Enemies doesn't get to come in this elite cinematic treehouse club, it didn't do anything for me) that are very special crime films. They possess an intangible, ethereal quality of colour, metal, music, and shady people moving about a thrumming urban dreamscape, professionals at what they do, cogs in the ticking clock of crime that inexorably drives toward the narrative outcome, be it bitter confrontation and violence (of which Thief has an absolute gorgeous, poetic revenge sequence) or cathartic resolution (like the conventionally satisfying way Collateral ends). Mann has captured neon lightning in a bottle with Thief, and against the odds of people saying you can't catch lightning twice, he has spark plugged a good portion of his career with that same lightning, creating an artistic aesthetic all his own. To me that is the ultimate outcome of filmmaking, and art as a medium.

Michael Mann's debut feature film. Wow. This film certainly establishes the great style that Mann's films have. It's also a film that Nicolas Winding Refn must have watched before making Drive, because there's a lot of similarities between the two. Both are the tales of men who are involved in heists and criminal activity and fall in love with a woman, until their criminal ties lead to bad things. The only difference being that this film has a LOT more dialogue than Drive. Drive attempts to silently convey the emotions found in Thief. James Caan gives a really great performance in this. He stands out especially in a scene in a diner where he explains his thinking in regards to life, and it's really great. All the other people play their roles perfectly, and it was really cool to see the first role that William Petersen got, even if it's like 5 seconds of screen time.The visual style of this film is what stands out. I watched the Criterion Bluray and it looks amazing. The cinematography is great, especially during night time scenes in the streets, and other colorful scenes like the beach scene. It looks great, and the bluray is stunning.The film kept me on edge, especially towards the end. The tension is there, and it's quite thrilling. I'd really recommend it to fans of crime drama, and also people who loved Drive. It's really good, and it's cool to see where Michael Mann started off.