The Good Thief
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Movie Reviews of The Good Thief
Movie Review: DECENT HEIST MOVIE WITH GALLIC COOL AND A SNAZZY SOUNDTRACK!
Summary: 4 Stars
Yet another Last-heist-before-I-change-for-good flick, but executed in style. While not amazing, the script includes a healthy dose of twists, snitches, plots, etc to make it a fair recommendation. Nolte stars as a junkie gambler who's also the most revered thief in town. The fact that he's a walking train wreck only adds to his grizzled charm. Ralph Fiennes pitches in a pretty convincing performance as an art dealer.
But I have a couple of gripes.
One, as with most European productions that are dubbed into English (or, as in this case, made originally in English) the vocalization of the dialogue sounds like a high school theater audition. The film has quite a whip-smart script, but verbally it sounds somewhat stilted. In particular the Bosnian actress whose voice sounds like she has a broccoli stuck in her larynx.
Second, the DVD has a problem. Each scene ends in a very short fraction-of-a-second freeze frame. I thought this was a problem with my DVD player, or my specific disc, but it seems others have had similar problems.
Not that that stops me from recommending this fairly interesting popcorn heist yarn, for at least rental.
Movie Review: Nolte is great
Summary: 4 Stars
Some critics have brushed aside Nolte's acting in this film because his personal life happens to mirror, in some key respects, the life of Bob - an American thief in southern France whose life has degenerated into a daze of heroin and gambling. Frankly, I don't care how Nolte managed to fit so seamlessly into this role, because it was amazing to watch. Bob's life is in the pits, but there's also humanity in him; if you look past the haze of smoke, the shuffling walk, and the droopy eyes you see a gentleman, a person who would never behave cruelly to others. Though the plot gets driven along by a heist on an art vault in Monte Carlo, the movie is also a complex character portrait of an old criminal. The dialogue is entertaining, the soundtrack is excellent, and the supporting characters are sharply drawn and add a lot of color to Bob's seedy world. My one complaint is that it can be difficult to understand Nolte's speech; he has a tendency to mumble and swallow his words, and although this is in keeping with his character, it can be frustrating for the viewer and will necessitate hitting the rewind button many times.Movie Review: Wondrous Romp of a Crime Movie
Summary: 4 Stars
The Good Thief packs so much of a punch that I'll put it on my short list of films I find difficulty anyone not enjoying.
Nolte gives his finest performance in years. Neil Jordan pays enormous respect to - and has fun with the classic French film Bob La Flambeur. Without knowing what "Thief" was about, I began watching it and getting strong feelings of deja vous only to realize what an IDIOT I was not to recognize the homage to the earlier film (and set in Monte Carlo as opposed to the original's Paris.) A film which has you routing for the bad guys, who are, of course, the best guys.
Everyone is obviously having a terrific time and Jordan provides a terrific reign over this large ensemble that is the equivalent of a world class conductor at the helm of a great symphony - everything is full of nuance and balanced so well that even the most convoluted moments (which are some of the best) have a feel so perfect they seem natural. A delightful bad guys are good guys perspective works splendidly and entertains completely!
Movie Review: Far from Ocean
Summary: 4 Stars
Another heisty film on a heist in a casino on the French Riviera of course, in Monte Carlo to be more precise. That sounds like the Ocean gang, or Ocean's band , but it is not. Though the idea is the same, the cops are all ready to get the upper hand, but it all goes to the dogs because one sexually ambiguous gangster is afraid of some spiders and this leads the cops to leaving the Casino per se. So the safe is emptied and the boss who has been playing all the time wins big, real big, but his gang loses and it is the small youngish others who win. The world is no longer what it used to be. Apart from that the film lacks the humor Ocean has and the very hostile world that really plays it as a game and not as a war. But apart from that it is an acceptable entertainment though it will not change the face of the world nor the color of the moon.
Dr Jacques COULARDEAU, University Paris Dauphine & University Paris 1 Pantheon Sorbonne
Movie Review: It's in English, but be sure to have subtitles "On"!
Summary: 4 Stars
People who enjoy heist films with lovable criminals addicted to hard drugs will like this film. It is beautifully filmed in France and Monte Carlo, and veers between sentimental characters using hardboiled dialogue.
Speaking of dialogue (hey, a joke!), I recommend that English speaking viewers use the "English subtitle" DVD option. Not in order to translate the occasional French lines, but to figure out what Nick Nolte is mumbling in English!