In Honor of the newly released Ocean's Thirteen I have compiled a list of my favorite heist films. Enjoy.
5)
Reservoir Dogs. 1992 Directed by Quention Tarantino.The film that put Tarantino on the map is also one of the best looks behind the mask of film criminals. Behind that mask we find a cold, selfish heart. It is unflinching in it's portrayal of the type of person or person's who make their living knocking off casinos, robbing banks, and holding up liquor stores. However unlike most heist films, none of the members of the crew know each other besides through color coded aliases and even more unusua is that all of the action takes place after the robbery, which goes horribly wrong. Despite all of their differences all of the members are sure of one thing: there is a rat in their midst. Who it is they do not know and eventually their seeds of distrust amongst one another grow to fruition. What we do see of the robbery we see in flashback and even then very little. All throughout the film we too are wondering who the rat is and when we do find out we are rewarded with the best sequence of the film as Tim Roth's undercover officer preps himself to infiltrate this gang of professionals. Filled with great dialogue and possibly the most memorable torture scene in film history this is a heist film that isn't afraid to get its hands dirty and gives us a cynical, brutal finale.
4)
Heat.1995 Directed by Michael Mann.
You cannot think of the modern crime genre without thinking of this classic heist film from Miami vice creator and director of The Last of The Mohicans and The Insider's Michael Mann. The film is memorable for many reasons least of which having Al Pacino and Robert DeNiro on screen together for the first time in film history. The two were famously in the Godfather Part II but never shared a scene. Here they are flip sides of the same coin; Pacino as a world weary police detective chasing DeNiro's master thief. DeNiro runs a crew of highly skilled professional criminals including Val Kilmer and Tom Sizemore. Likewise Pacino also has a crack team of his own whose sole purpose is to put people like DeNiro away. The story, which could easily play out as a simple genre film elevates itself to a kind of modern epic with the action unfolding itself over a dark, visually captivating Los Angeles. As the film moves along it picks up the viewer to move along with it towards its tragic and mournfully sad ending where no one wins and everyone loses. This film shows the ultimate futility of life on either side of the law.
3)
Ocean's 112001 Directed by Steven SodeberghProbably one of the biggest surprises at the box office, Sodeberghs original Oceans movie was a remake of the classic starring Frank Sinatra. It has now surpassed its original in popularity, style, and star power. Danny Ocean, fresh out of prison hopes to make the score of a lifetime by robbing not one but three casinos in Las Vegas. He does this by recruiting a large crew of trained Pro's from his right hand man Rusty Ryan (Brad Pitt) to freshman pick-pocket Matt Damon to explosives expert Basher (Don Cheadle). The film is great fun as it unfolds the general planning of the heist only to deliver the actual job in a much more spectacular and unbelievable fashion. Through a series of cons and slight of hands Ocean's 11 manages to pull of the heist of a lifetime all the while providing plenty of humor and visually pizzaz. The film fits together perfectly and all of the stars balance their performances off of one another with amazing precision.
2)
The Sting 1973 Directed George Roy HillAs far as heist movies go this one deviates a bit from the main path leading us into territory mostly not visited in the genre. There are no strong armed-men with guns or cracking of safes but rather huge confidence scams and wagers placed upon wagers that depend on one another. The whole things is like a house of cards that could come falling down at any minute. If this movie were made today there is no doubt that George Clooney and Brad Pitt would take the place of a stellar Paul Newman and Robert Redford as the leaders in a complicated plan to enact revenge on a powerful banker for the death of one of their mentors. The set up is complicated as more than a few unwelcome special interests begin to rear their heads as Newmand and Redford set up a complex plan to get even involving horse racing. Newman and Redford are great together as the double protagonists and its many memorable scenes and unforgettable theme song make this one a classic.
1)
Dog Day Afternoon 1975 Directed by Sidney LumetRarely do heist films deeply explore the reason behind the main characters desire for money. That is what makes this 1975 film so different from any other hiest film ever made. It starts with a bang as Pacino and partner John Cazale storm a bank and hold it hostage. Things escalate as we are thrown into scene that has become familiar in contemporary films but rare at the time. The set up for this film has been copied so many times, think John Q, Mad City, Inside Man, that we forget that at the time what Lumet was doing was quite original. Pacino and Cazale hold out in a standoff that ultimately forces the robbers to reveal their motives to the police and the audience. This is a rarity in film that the desire should be so human and not guided by guilt or indulgence as misguided as the criminals actions may be. Pacino is amazing in a performance that he has unfortunately found himself repeating for the last thirty years. However at the time it was original and true. Cazale is also great and watching him makes you realize that the film world lost him long before it would have liked to.
http://www.spout.com/films/9387/default.aspx
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