Thief's Recent Activity

list Thief's Recent Activity - Spout http://www.spout.com/ Recent community activity around Thief on Spout Copyright 2005-9 Spout, LLC Spout RSS http://www.spout.com/images/SpoutLogoRSS.jpg Thief's Recent Activity - Spout http://www.spout.com/ 136 30 Film:Thief http://www.spout.com/films/Thief/34742/default.aspx

Title: Thief
Year: 1981
Director: Michael Mann
Plot: In Thief, James Caan plays Frank, a professional jewel thief who wants to marry Jessie (Tuesday Weld) and settle down into a normal life. In order to achieve his dream of a family, Frank--who is used to working solo--has to align himself with a crime boss named Leo (Robert Prosky), who will help him gain the money he needs to begin his domestic life. Frank plans to retire after the heist, yet he finds himself indebted to Leo and he struggles to break free. Thief is the first feature film from director Michael Mann and it seethes with his stylish, atmospheric direction. Though his cool approach may put off some viewers, it's a distinctive and effective story-telling approach, and Caan's performance ranks among his very best, making Thief a crime movie like few others. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide
Number of Lists: 9
Number of blog posts: 1
Number of discussion threads: 1
SpoutRating: 3
]]>Fri, 14 Aug 2009 04:11:56 GMTThief1981Michael MannIn Thief, <a href="/players/P____83766/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>James Caan</a> plays Frank, a professional jewel thief who wants to marry Jessie (<a href="/players/P____75377/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Tuesday Weld</a>) and settle down into a normal life. In order to achieve his dream of a family, Frank--who is used to working solo--has to align himself with a crime boss named Leo (<a href="/players/P____57934/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Robert Prosky</a>), who will help him gain the money he needs to begin his domestic life. Frank plans to retire after the heist, yet he finds himself indebted to Leo and he struggles to break free. Thief is the first feature film from director <a href="/players/P___101066/default.aspx" style='text-decoration:underline'>Michael Mann</a> and it seethes with his stylish, atmospheric direction. Though his cool approach may put off some viewers, it's a distinctive and effective story-telling approach, and Caan's performance ranks among his very best, making Thief a crime movie like few others. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Movie Guide9113http://www.spout.com/ProductImages/t01231lrehr.jpghttp://www.spout.com/films/Thief/34742/default.aspxFilm Spout Post: Thief http://www.spout.com/blogs/jimbell/archive/2009/3/15/41041.aspx

Post By: JimBell
Post To: JimBell Blog
Post Date: 3/15/2009 1:14:02 AM
Body: Thief (1981) is a familiar story well told: A thief wants to go straight after he pulls one more job, and then things go awry. Going back a quarter century to Michael Mann’s first wide-release film reveals a good film-maker at work. Mann was inspired to go into film-making when he saw Stanley Kubrick’s Dr. Strangelove. That film, he said, told an entire generation that it was possible to say something of artistic worth and simultaneously be commercially successful. In Thief, screenwriter and director Mann says: Meet this guy; it’ll shake up your stereotypical image of a thief because this guy has some great traits and great dreams as well as some tragic flaws. The cinematography is top-notch. The opening heist sequence shows various close-ups of breaking into the safe, melding the artistry and the mechanics of the operation. Nearly every scene thereafter is shot with a color palette in mind: the icy blue fluorescent glare of the used car lot, the warm, smoky atmosphere of the bar and eatery, the rich orange glow of cutting through a safe with a torch—excellent work. The sound track by Tangerine Dream is cranked up. Some people will hate both the volume and the music. I thought it really worked. Although the 70s electronic band was too loud at times, it provided music appropriate to the film, it added some appropriate distortion, grit, and pulsating beat, and it emphasized the silence of dramatic scenes when it stopped. Incidentally, there is one short scene with a blues band playing, and the end credits give a special thanks to blues greats Mighty Joe Young and Willie Dixon. For me, the complexity of the thief came to the fore when I had to turn the DVD off with less than half an hour to go. What would Frank (James Caan) do to get out of the corner the Mafia had trapped him in? Going into hiding with his wife and kid was congruent with his character. But so was some tricky scheme where he got the cops who were trying to get a cut of his action to somehow turn on Leo (Robert Prosky) and the mob. Although Frank does neither of these things, what he actually does still makes perfect sense for his character.
]]>Sun, 15 Mar 2009 05:14:02 GMTJimBellJimBell Blog3/15/2009 1:14:02 AMThief (1981) is a familiar story well told: A thief wants to go straight after he pulls one more job, and then things go awry. Going back a quarter century to Michael Mann’s first wide-release film reveals a good film-maker at work. Mann was inspired to go into film-making when he saw Stanley Kubrick’s Dr. Strangelove. That film, he said, told an entire generation that it was possible to say something of artistic worth and simultaneously be commercially successful. In Thief, screenwriter and director Mann says: Meet this guy; it’ll shake up your stereotypical image of a thief because this guy has some great traits and great dreams as well as some tragic flaws. The cinematography is top-notch. The opening heist sequence shows various close-ups of breaking into the safe, melding the artistry and the mechanics of the operation. Nearly every scene thereafter is shot with a color palette in mind: the icy blue fluorescent glare of the used car lot, the warm, smoky atmosphere of the bar and eatery, the rich orange glow of cutting through a safe with a torch—excellent work. The sound track by Tangerine Dream is cranked up. Some people will hate both the volume and the music. I thought it really worked. Although the 70s electronic band was too loud at times, it provided music appropriate to the film, it added some appropriate distortion, grit, and pulsating beat, and it emphasized the silence of dramatic scenes when it stopped. Incidentally, there is one short scene with a blues band playing, and the end credits give a special thanks to blues greats Mighty Joe Young and Willie Dixon. For me, the complexity of the thief came to the fore when I had to turn the DVD off with less than half an hour to go. What would Frank (James Caan) do to get out of the corner the Mafia had trapped him in? Going into hiding with his wife and kid was congruent with his character. But so was some tricky scheme where he got the cops who were trying to get a cut of his action to somehow turn on Leo (Robert Prosky) and the mob. Although Frank does neither of these things, what he actually does still makes perfect sense for his character. Spout Post: Episode III: Legend http://www.spout.com/groups/Natsukashi/Episode_III_Legend/592/31909/1/ShowPost.aspx

Post By: usesoap
Post To: Natsukashi
Post Date: 6/30/2008 3:28:10 PM
Body: LegendRated: PGDir: Ridley Scott Starring:Tom Cruise as JackMia Sara as Princess LilyTim Curry as the Lord of Darkness By Rob Rector Past Memories: In my hometown, there was a gaming store much similar to the “Android’s Dungeon” in The Simpsons. And while there were no morbidly obese employees, they were still woefully hopeless and socially palsied. But they were the gatekeepers for us – ‘us’ being my fellow Dungeons & Dragons-playing geeks, who would walk from our houses when the promise of a new edition of “Dungeon’ magazine would hit the shelves, or the latest 12-sided dice were unveiled to a chorus of breathy gasps. For children of the 80s, there was no ‘World of Warcraft’ in which our medieval-fueled fantasies could be embodied by walking-talking computer-rendered likenesses. It was left to imagination and free time – both of which were in overstock to a suburban, middle-class kid. Perhaps this is why ‘Legend’ had such resonance at the time. Starring an up-and-coming young heartthrob who blasted onto the scene in his tighty-whiteys a couple years earlier in ‘Risky Business,’ and envisioned by the prolific director of ‘Alien,” and ‘Blade Runner,’ ‘Legend’ was like a dog whistle to all of nerd-dom. “Legend’ added breadth to our imaginary underworlds of magicians and monsters, and sprinkled it with lots and lots of glitter (quite literally). When we spoke of trolls, we could now use the images of Blix, Brown Tom and Screwball as reference points, and when evil lords were mentioned, we needed look no further than Tim Curry’s embodiment of the Lord of Darkness. And perhaps one of the most memorable aspects of the film for me was its soundtrack. A score from Tangerine Dream, purveyors of 80s moody, synthesized soundtracks (Risky Business, Thief, The Keep), and a rockin’ closing track from Brian Ferry (Is Your Love Strong Enough?) and John Anderson’s “Loved by the Sun.” The music cemented this film into my memory. At times, I would enter the film in the middle just in anticipation of its closing credits. Does the film withstand the passage of time? Fantasy films, which typically have a much shorter shelf-life due to the ever-evolving world of special effects (CGI, green screen), are typically the quickest to disappoint…
]]>Mon, 30 Jun 2008 19:28:10 GMTusesoapNatsukashi6/30/2008 3:28:10 PM LegendRated: PGDir: Ridley Scott Starring:Tom Cruise as JackMia Sara as Princess LilyTim Curry as the Lord of Darkness By Rob Rector Past Memories: In my hometown, there was a gaming store much similar to the “Android’s Dungeon” in The Simpsons. And while there were no morbidly obese employees, they were still woefully hopeless and socially palsied. But they were the gatekeepers for us – ‘us’ being my fellow Dungeons & Dragons-playing geeks, who would walk from our houses when the promise of a new edition of “Dungeon’ magazine would hit the shelves, or the latest 12-sided dice were unveiled to a chorus of breathy gasps. For children of the 80s, there was no ‘World of Warcraft’ in which our medieval-fueled fantasies could be embodied by walking-talking computer-rendered likenesses. It was left to imagination and free time – both of which were in overstock to a suburban, middle-class kid. Perhaps this is why ‘Legend’ had such resonance at the time. Starring an up-and-coming young heartthrob who blasted onto the scene in his tighty-whiteys a couple years earlier in ‘Risky Business,’ and envisioned by the prolific director of ‘Alien,” and ‘Blade Runner,’ ‘Legend’ was like a dog whistle to all of nerd-dom. “Legend’ added breadth to our imaginary underworlds of magicians and monsters, and sprinkled it with lots and lots of glitter (quite literally). When we spoke of trolls, we could now use the images of Blix, Brown Tom and Screwball as reference points, and when evil lords were mentioned, we needed look no further than Tim Curry’s embodiment of the Lord of Darkness. And perhaps one of the most memorable aspects of the film for me was its soundtrack. A score from Tangerine Dream, purveyors of 80s moody, synthesized soundtracks (Risky Business, Thief, The Keep), and a rockin’ closing track from Brian Ferry (Is Your Love Strong Enough?) and John Anderson’s “Loved by the Sun.” The music cemented this film into my memory. At times, I would enter the film in the middle just in anticipation of its closing credits. Does the film withstand the passage of time? Fantasy films, which typically have a much shorter shelf-life due to the ever-evolving world of special effects (CGI, green screen), are typically the quickest to disappoint… Spout Tag:money http://www.spout.com/members/0/tags/money/MemberTagFilms.aspxmoney
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