A "master thief" (James Caan) is trapped in a vice created by on-the-take cops and the neon signed Mr Bigs that run him and also the local big-time-heist business.
Crime will always appeal to B league directors such as Micheal Mann because they allow anything to happen at any time. Other films do not have this solid backbone and while they could be excellent (with luck and casting) and catch on, when they start to fail they can fail big. Like our friend the Western -- you can only go so far wrong in a script where anybody can shoot at anybody else at anytime. You are living in Cheap Thrills City.
What drags this movie down further is Mann's belief that scenes are better if played along to third rate electronic "excitement" music that just goes on-and-on-and-on. The beats of the music having nothing to do with what is happening on the screen -- like you are trying to watch a movie while your kid brother is playing music too loud in the next room.
The lead role suits Caan down to the ground -- although I don't really get him. He acts thick as a brick one minute (his speech at the adoption agency, for example) and a mastermind that can outwit the best minds in the security business the next.
The inspirational book is written by a criminal doing time they say and while some of it convinces -- others do not. The criminals start throwing (yes throwing!) tables about when out on the job. What is that about? I thought the first page of the safe crackers manual said to make as little noise as possible!
This piece is dated as today extra technology -- such as little old men who listen out for people throwing things about in the vault room or even CCTV. Or even technologies that don't allow you to open the vault in the middle of the night by telling them a code word! Yes -- it is that silly when you think about it.
Mann was still learning his trade when he made this film and while I am sure he could make it better today I am not sure that he can ever escape his own mediocrity and heavy handling. He should be grateful for the solid actors and actresses (including a late "sex interest" Tuesday Weld) that keep this thing afloat -- although even they can't reach out of the screen and turn down the crap video game music.
Crime will always appeal to B league directors such as Micheal Mann because they allow anything to happen at any time. Other films do not have this solid backbone and while they could be excellent (with luck and casting) and catch on, when they start to fail they can fail big. Like our friend the Western -- you can only go so far wrong in a script where anybody can shoot at anybody else at anytime. You are living in Cheap Thrills City.
What drags this movie down further is Mann's belief that scenes are better if played along to third rate electronic "excitement" music that just goes on-and-on-and-on. The beats of the music having nothing to do with what is happening on the screen -- like you are trying to watch a movie while your kid brother is playing music too loud in the next room.
The lead role suits Caan down to the ground -- although I don't really get him. He acts thick as a brick one minute (his speech at the adoption agency, for example) and a mastermind that can outwit the best minds in the security business the next.
The inspirational book is written by a criminal doing time they say and while some of it convinces -- others do not. The criminals start throwing (yes throwing!) tables about when out on the job. What is that about? I thought the first page of the safe crackers manual said to make as little noise as possible!
This piece is dated as today extra technology -- such as little old men who listen out for people throwing things about in the vault room or even CCTV. Or even technologies that don't allow you to open the vault in the middle of the night by telling them a code word! Yes -- it is that silly when you think about it.
Mann was still learning his trade when he made this film and while I am sure he could make it better today I am not sure that he can ever escape his own mediocrity and heavy handling. He should be grateful for the solid actors and actresses (including a late "sex interest" Tuesday Weld) that keep this thing afloat -- although even they can't reach out of the screen and turn down the crap video game music.