Thief (1981) User Reviews

A thrilling, underrated gem ahead of its time

[mbanwait · 8/10 · 23 October 2010]

I've always been impressed by Micheal Mann's films. Starting with The Insider, I was intrigued by his camera-work and the use of music to compliment a scene.

With Thief, his directorial debut, he shows what movie fans will be in store for over the 30 years. Of course some of the techniques to steal are dated, but I loved the glossy, yet gritty atmosphere of the film. Tuesday Weld, was also quite good as Caan's love interest. It has an amazing ending as well.

The film is Waaaaaaay ahead of its time. And I was genuinely impressed with James Caans performance. This film is an underrated gem and should be viewed by Mann fans who liked Heat and Collateral.

8/10

Excellent character drama is worth watching for Caan's superb performance.

[hu675 · 8/10 · 23 November 2007]

Frank (James Caan) is a professional thief, who enjoys doing high profile jobs. He also owns an restaurant and sales cars for a living. He's tired of his other life as a thief. He hopes to settle down by having a wife, a family and a house. When he's been contacted by a mysterious business man (Robert Prosky). Which this man is the local crime boss of Chicago, who wants him to do a big score for him by robbing Diamonds. Once he succeed from his job, which Frank was hoping to be last job. But the mob boss turns on his back and treating his life by working for him until he dies. If Frank doesn't work for his boss, he will kill his wife (Tuesday Weld), his best friend (James Belushi) and destroy his entire life.

Written and Directed by Michael Mann (Ali, Heat, The Keep) made an stylish character drama is that extremely well directed and acted by the cast. Caan's performances makes this fascinating film works. It's certainly one of his best roles to date. The supporting cast are excellent as well, including Willie Nelson in a small role. This film was a box office disappointment, when it was first released. Now it's a cult classic... largely because of Mann's visual style, the performance, excellent cinematography by Donald E. Thorin (Midnight Run, Mischief, Tango & Cash) and Tangerine Dream's electronic score (Firestarter, Risky Business, Socerer). Look for some familiar faces as extras and bit-parts. Based on a novel by "The Home Invaders" by Frank Hohimer. Big time Hollywood Producer:Jerry Bruckheimer (Beverly Hills Cop, Black Hawk Down, The Rock) is one of the producers of this picture. This is a underrated movie worth seeing. (****/*****).

One of My All Time Faves - But the original is gone I suspect

[tandkmoran · 27 March 2006]

Saw this in the theater at it's release. Went back the next weekend and scenes were cut. They remain cut in every version I've seen since. Frank snaps chalk lines off traces of blueprints onto the safe face in the opening heist. Guess the crime commission didn't dig that, 'cause that 5 seconds is history in every cut I've seen since. How do the boys and their gear get up on the roof of the bank building? Rocket assisted grappling hook mortars firing mountain lines and Jumar ascenders from the parking lot. You won't see that scene anymore, either. Man, I miss the Corned Beefs at the Belden Deli on Clark where Frank hands the stones to Gags. Long gone. But if you are in Chicago, stop in early at the Green Mill and you might be able to have a drink in that big, round wood booth - still there. Great gun & car flick. Frank's .45 looks like a Bomar Svenson custom combat, tremendous. Watch for the High Standard 12 guage stakeout special at the end - very rare. Take a drive up north on Western Avenue to check out all the used car lots - still there. Great locations. Yup, the creme was ALWAYS cottage cheese at the old Oasis restuarants. Yuch! You know - Tuesday Weld actually even ACTS a little in this movie, amazing. Man that was a gorgeous house in my old neighborhood and yes they blew it up. Notice when they are snuggling on the outdoor patio - it had a two-sided fireplace - indoor and outdoor. Probably the best Chicago movie ever. The phone book and trash can - time honored tools of the early 80's. When I saw it opening night the theater was filled with every crook and detective on the north side with their wives. And everybody just nodded to each other on the way out. Those days are gone but not forgotten. Great, great flick. Cool TD soundtrack album, too. Also probably the best metallurgical movie ever. I want Frank's coat.

When James Caan was allowed to be real!

[SomeUselessGeek · 9/10 · 4 May 2010]

This is one of the few Michael Mann films I can stand to watch. Caan is at his absolute peak here, with his intensity just blazing off the screen. The supporting cast is excellent, the edits are perfect, everything just clicks.

As has been noted by other reviewers, the technical aspects of this film are right on the money. All the locations are really there (or were at one time) and the settings didn't have to be faked up. Yes, Chicago and surrounding Chicagoland is really like this, folks.

I try to watch this thing every few years. Should buy a DVD, I guess, and insert it into my permanent circular film buffer.

Highly, highly recommended.

Michael Mann's Thief Steals the Show

[arthurclay · 10/10 · 20 January 2006]

The movie that started his career and what a way to start. Realism is played out to the hilt and nothing is left to chance with this brilliant book to movie adaptation. James Caan is at the top of his game and wows you. Caan is Frank, a professional safe-cracker who is successful and single. After pulling a heist, he finds himself in a unique position. A powerful boss offers Frank phenomenal jobs and a huge cut of the action if he will work for him and for him exclusively. Frank is impressed by his stature and agrees. However, the local crooked cops turn up the heat on Frank and want in. And Frank's new crime family wants more than his services. So Frank is forced to fight back and prove he is not only the best thief but the toughest crook in Chicago. The supporting cast was hand picked and it's easy to tell. I never thought I would hear myself say this but Willie Nelson does a fine job acting at least in this. Same goes, of course, to Jim Belushi. I have surprised myself twice in two sentences. James Caan really convinces you he is the real deal and it's the role of a lifetime. His acting is second to none and perhaps the best of the three signature Michael Mann anti-heroes. What surprised me the most about this movie was not just the realism of it but that the love interest side of the story was convincing as well. That came as quite a shock to this viewer. He does love and care for his wife and she loves him without reservation. It makes the ending all the more tragic. This film needs to be viewed by anyone who enjoys crime films, mob films, or Mann films. My favorite movie of 1981.

early stage Michael Mann

[SnoopyStyle · 7/10 · 15 April 2014]

Frank (James Caan) runs a car lot, and also cracks safes. He likes Jessie (Tuesday Weld) at the diner who doesn't know what he does. His friend Okla (Willie Nelson) is dying in prison. A gangster Leo (Robert Prosky) wants to hire him to do scores. Jessie has a past with a dead drug dealer in Columbia and she likes the straight life now. He has a picture of his perfect straight life if he could get enough money together. So he decides to do a couple of big jobs taking along his partner Barry (James Belushi).

This is an early Michael Mann theatrical movie. It already has his crime realism style. James Caan is in solid form in one of his best performance. It has the intensity, and detailed crime drama. The production is not slick yet and has a gritty quality to it. The use of advisers really pay off for this movie.

You are making big profits from my work, my risk, my sweat.

[hitchcockthelegend · 9/10 · 12 September 2015]

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

A let down - could have been so much better it had so much potential...

[danieledwards-87201 · 6/10 · 21 May 2019]

I watched and wanted to enjoy this movie. I haven't heard of it and it was by chance I found this movie and was compelled by the good reviews.

It started out so well and then it prolonged some character development that felt disassociated and dysfunctional. This maybe for a purpose, yet it somehow doesn't feel right, it feels disjointed or ass about face in some respects.

Parts for me where too long and yet somehow, I didn't get a feel for the characters even though this amount of time was set upon them creating this backstory and understanding. Some of the actions of the main character are very annoying. You want to support him but eventually you have to accept his ego is even far greater than even he realises and his idealic world. Either that, or if you don't see this and instead you support the character you may enjoy this movie more than I did? Yet, there's massive mistakes I feel where made by the main character himself where he could have handled himself in a completely different manner if he himself didn't want to happen what eventually happens. It's as though he has a death wish and the reasoning why doesn't exactly make sense beyond that of his own admiration of his ego that's largely to blame for the troubles he is facing anyhow...

It didn't feel real, instead very hollow and lacking in depth and direction that character development. It's as though the main character wants to die or is ready to die throughout, while engaged within live quick society and die hard mentality. Yet, he has dreams of a family, long desired and thought up dreams which every ounce of him is going towards fulfilling these goals and dreams. While this seems to come from a deep psychological place he has built up for himself, yet he is prepared to throw it all away at a moments notice which doesn't feel right. It surely should be the one and only thing he would want to survive for, that's why he was engaged within the level of criminal activity he was, that's why he was engaged within the one last score so he could go off into the sunset with his wife and family?

Yet he is annoyed about how things turned out from that job that he can't do this, then he acts like a child who's throwing a tantrum because he can't get exactly what he wanted while throwing everything he has that symbolically representing himself or of any potential meaning away, because his ego has been triggered into the nothing means nothing mentality mode, which he blames others for, yet largely he has himself and his own actions to blame for being within this situation...

It doesn't make sense? Wouldn't a built in his own head been a hell of a lot easier? Could he seriously not see these events coming, or at least suspected as much?

Instead, he cares about his own ego above that of anything else.

He breaks deals and promises and just acts out irrationally and stupidly when dealing with "the boss kingpin". Everyone including him should have known the way things turned out, was exactly the way things where always going to go and that he couldn't just walk away. He didn't keep up to his agreement of one or two jobs and is pissed because the other guy didn't keep up to his agreement either?

He was a grease monkey and did all the leg work, yet he had no respect for anyone other than himself which caused many of his problems.

The way he handled situations and himself largely leaves only himself to blame and it's very annoying to watch as you want to support him as on some level you can understand his actions but then, it's as if he goes into a point of meltdown and you feel like giving him a slap for the past say 30 minuets of the film which really let it down for me and parts of the film could have put more emphasis on the actual bank jobs, planning and skills rather than more emphasis being put on these relationships, as dysfunctional as they're it's what ruins it.

As you'd have to be pretty stupid to not expect the ending to end something like this between the main character and the kingpin. It was always going to go this way and the main character didn't handle any of the situations in any sort of rational manner, beyond that of brute force and testosterone fuled the big I am and if that can't be, then I'd rather die so kill me.

That maybe all well and good for the most part, but it's the fact that he never knew when to cool it and handle himself in a manner that wasn't so one dimensional that left something to be desired and a part of me wanted to see him be blown away at the end instead of actually walking off into the distance of god only knows where...

Maybe to be killed by the cops instead? Whom, in actual fact deserved to be killed more than anyone else...

It's parts of the movie that leave a bitter taste which annoys me and I feel this could have bene so much better.

Who's worse? The crooks or the cops?!

[planktonrules · 9/10 · 16 December 2021]

"Thief" is an unusual film in that there are no heroes....only thugs. The lead is the anti-hero, Frank (James Caan), a career thief who is great at his job...but who also is a loner. The rest of the folks in the film, including the cops and a judge, are crooks and cannot be trusted. But at least with Frank, what he says he will do, he will do...and so he's honest...in his own way.

While Frank is doing great on his own committing various high value robberies, he is approached by a mobster who seems to have everyone in his pockets. Leo (Robert Prosky) has a proposition...to rob a seemingly impenetrable safe. Frank agrees...but insists it's his last job, as he's retiring to a life as a husband and family man.

Amazingly, the actual robbery goes off very quickly and well...and the film actually spends very little time on what you assume will be the big finale. But instead, there is some misdirection...and 30 more minutes to the story after this deal is complete. Why? What is next? See the film.

Normally, stories with no heroes are very hard to watch and enjoy...but the story works so well with so many fine performances, direction and a great script that it manages to overcome the lack of likable people in the film. It's taut and exciting....and well worth seeing even if nearly everyone in the story is scum.

By the way, for 1981 the story is pretty rough and is NOT a film I'd recommend you see with kids or your mother. The language is very tough and the story is at times quite violent.

An uncompromising thriller about a professional thief allies himself with organised crime for what he thinks is one job

[ma-cortes · 7/10 · 5 April 2023]

This is a silently professional night-time jewel robbery , reduced to near-abstract essential and paced by a Tangerine score , sets the electric tone for Mann's follow-up to the Jericho Mile . Here a really professional robber makes one of the few mistakes in his meticulous career when he takes dangerous companions. He's contradictorily building and a risking a future mapped out as meticulously as any of his lucrative hi-tech jobs , testing his emotional and criminal independence to the limits , eventually recognising that he's either exercising or exorcising a death wish. Cheat him...and he'll blow you away ! .Tonight, his take home pay is $410,000...tax free !.

A philosophical thriller filled with modernist cool and long-standing musical score . The screenplay for this film was adapted from the novel "The Home Invaders", written by Frank Hohimer, an expert robber , in fact Hohimer was serving time in a state penitentiary at the time this film was in production . The picture packs action , violence , drama , shootouts with exciting scenes . And the final splatters bodies all over the pavement , somewhat compensating for the snail-like pace of much of the movie . Casting is frankly excellent , the main protagonists give first-class performances . Stars James Caan who gives a fine acting as the ace safe cracker wants to do one last big heist for the mob before going straight . After The Godfather (1972), this was James Caan's favorite film of his own . He had stated that some scenes and specially his monologue in the diner was the set piece of which he was most proud in his long career . Being well accompanied by the beauty Tuesday Weld , as usual , wasted as his wife . There are various film debuts of important actors . James Belushi makes a notable debut as Caan's skilful associate . Dennis Farina was a Chicago policeman at the time of filming , he played a hoodlum . Conversely, John Santucci, who performed a corrupt cop, was a recently paroled thief, and was a technical advisor. And also Robert Prosky film debut who was over 50 years old at the time of his first performance and would go on to have a notorious career as a prestigious secondary.

The motion picture was competently directed by Michael Mann , in his ordinary style. Mann has established himself as one of the most innovative and influential filmmakers in American cinema. After writing and directing the Primetime Emmy Award-winning television movie The Jericho Mile (1979), Mann made his feature-film directorial debut with Thief (1981), followed by executive producing the television series Miami Vice (1984). He went on to direct Manhunter (1986), The Last of the Mohicans (1992), Heat (1995), and The Insider (1999), Ali (2001), Collateral (2004), a film adaptation of Miami Vice (2006), Public Enemies (2009), and most recently, Blackhat (2015). As a producer, Mann's work includes Martin Scorsese's The Aviator (2004), Hancock (2008), Texas Killing Fields (2011), and the HBO series Luck (2011) and Witness (2012). Rating : 6.5/10 . Better than average . Well worth watching . The pic will appeal to James Caan fans.

A great character study and crime film

[ismaelslgd · 8/10 · 15 October 2018]

Director Michael Mann sure loves his diner scenes. The scene in which Frank takes Jessie to the diner might very well be my favorite of the film, as it steadily proves that this more than just a film about heists and tough guys. James Caan is perfectly cast as Frank, and throughout the film he holds the weight of his performance up as if it were only five pounds, portraying Frank as tough, fearless and thick skinned. But in the diner, as well as in his interactions with Okla (played by Willie Nelson!!!) he is able to open us up to more. The photo Frank has in his wallet is a very strange yet alluring glimpse inside his mind and his heart that he would not otherwise show. Tuesday Weld's reactions as Jessie also help show us how he is slowly winning her over not just by being aggressive, but by showing vulnerability. From then on, I knew the film had established itself as a great one, as I now clearly understood Frank's true motivations. It proved to me that the film is just as much a character study than is a heist and gangster film. And boy, does it deliver on both fronts.

Michael Mann's theme movie

[jordondave-28085 · 7/10 · 7 July 2023]

(1981) Thief THRILLER

Adapted from the novel by Frank Hohimer, executive produced, co-written and directed by Michael Mann starring James Caan as a professional safe cracker with goals to settle down and have a family, except that his employer wouldn't allow it! Much more relevant back in 1981, but after many years, it's a common theme now which this formula has been used and reused time and time again, from John Woo's "The Killer" to "The Sopranos", "Sexy Beast", "The Matador", "Polar" and to every gangster film ever made when the bad guy don't want the people they hire to quit whether it's the mob or anything. The only difference with this film as opposed to the rest is that it's direction is from Michael Mann and it's an unique style and at times feels quite long because of it's jabbering.

The cinematography is better than the dialogue

[steiner-sam · 4/10 · 8 July 2021]

Set in 1970s Chicago, it tells the story of a sociopathic ex-con who learned to be a master thief in prison and now desires a big score so that he can live a "normal" life with a wife and family.

Frank (James Caan) went to prison as a young man for stealing $40. While in prison, he got involved in a fight in which a prisoner died and spent 11 years in custody. During this time, his wife left him. While there, he learned the safe-cracking trade from an older prisoner, Okla Bertinneau (Willie Nelson). When the film action begins, Frank has been out of prison for four years and has been a highly skilled and profitable safecracker of diamonds. On the side, he owns a used car dealership and a small restaurant. His only "friend" is an electronic expert who helps in his thefts, Barry (Jim Belushi).

Frank gets attracted to a cashier, Jessie (Tuesday Weld), who has her own history of being associated with a now-dead drug dealer. Frank has just completed a big heist, but the fence who owes him $180,000 has been killed by the mob. Frank, who is single-minded about everything he does, confronts a lower-level hood, Attaglia (Tom Signorelli), for his money and gets it. His direct, brutal honesty with Jessie actually wins her over. However, his lone-wolf approach does get him into trouble with crooked Chicago policemen who rough him up at one point.

In his haste to achieve his goal of getting out of the business and into a normal life, he agrees to help a higher-up hood, Leo (Robert Prosky), with a big $4,000,000 job that will pay him $830,000. Leo helps Frank and Jesse with an illegal adoption and a house. Frank is successful at the big theft, but Leo gives him less than $100,000 and insists that Frank continue to work for him, and threatens his family if he does not. This leads to a climactic, violent conclusion.

The movie has a lot of polish, though I think the cinematography is better than the dialogue. The storyline has potential, but James Caan essentially plays a loner Sonny Corleone (from "The Godfather")--headstrong, "no one tells me what to do," and completely unempathetic to anyone else. Tuesday Weld is let down by the script.

Michael Mann's best movie, with James Caan' best performance. 'Thief' is a hardboiled crime classic not to be missed!

[Infofreak · 11 March 2003]

'Thief' is one of the most underrated movies of the 1980s, if not of all time. Made in the early 80s by TV veteran Michael Mann, and co-produced by the future "king" of action blockbusters Jerry Bruckheimer, this movie can almost be seen as the transition from 1970s character based crime DRAMA to 1980s flashy but brainless 1980s crime ACTION. In that sense 'Thief' is the last great 1970s movie of the 1980s. Mann made at least two great movies after this ('Manhunter' and 'Heat'), but I still think it is is his best and most satisfying work. James Caan believes that the movie contains his finest performance and I'm inclined to agree with him. Caan is dynamite throughout. He oozes charisma and is impossible to take your eyes off, but also gives a subtle and complex performance. The film works both as an exciting caper movie, and as a human drama. In many ways it is the best crime film to pull that off since Dassin's 'Rififi' in the mid 1950s. Cann is helped by a superb supporting cast, who on the surface may seem a motley bunch, but all are very good - Tuesday Weld ('Who'll Stop The Rain'), Jim Belushi (his movie debut), a memorable cameo from country legend Willie Nelson, and especially a fantastic turn from Robert Prosky. Prosky is probably best known to most viewers as the kindly father-figure he played in 'Hill Street Blues'. His turn here as a ruthless gangster is a complete eye opener! Prosky delivers one of the most vicious lines ever heard in a movie, which is a bit too extreme for me to quote here, but believe me, you will never forget it when you hear it! Many people seem to find Tangerine Dream's dated synth score to be extremely irritating but I actually enjoyed it and thought it helped build the mood. 'Thief' is a hardboiled crime classic and is highly recommended to any fan of the genre, especially those made in the 1970s. It is wildly underrated and deserves to be rediscovered by a larger audience. 'Thief' is simply one of THE great "lost" classics of the last thirty years.

Mann is the man!

[Smells_Like_Cheese · 9/10 · 29 January 2010]

I came across this movie because of my boyfriend, he swore that this ending was one of the best endings in a movie he had ever seen. But being the ultimate film buff and being a fan of James Caan, I wanted to see the whole movie, so we watched it together. This is a tight and suspenseful thriller that is like a little gem of 1981. James Caan is such a terrific actor, so I was interested in seeing him in a lead role to see if he could carry a movie by himself and he did do an excellent job. Michael Mann, this is one of his first movies, so it's really cool to see where he has come from and even back in 1981, he had this definite talent that has taken him so far. The story may be a bit basic, the rise and fall of someone who has hit the top, but once they want to pull away, it starts to crumble. But if told in the right way, we can get a terrific film and Thief proves itself to be a good thriller.

Frank is an expert jewel thief and hard-boiled ex-convict with a set structure to his life. With a pair of successful Chicago businesses as fronts for his very lucrative criminal enterprise, Frank sets out to fulfill the missing part of his dream: a family beginning with Jessie. After taking down a major score, Frank's fence is murdered. He finds out that the man responsible is a Mr. Attaglia, a shady plating company executive for whom the fence was working. Attaglia is in possession of money that belongs to Frank, who demands it back. This leads to a face-to-face meeting with Attaglia's employer, Leo, a high-level fence and crime boss, who wants Frank to work for him, offering him "boxcar" profits. Frank is reluctant at first, but wanting to make his dream come to fruition faster, he agrees to do just one job. But after the job is done, Frank soon realizes that Leo is not so easy to let him go.

The only complaint is pretty minor, I was a little stumped by the movie's soundtrack, it did throw me off a bit. But I think that's all part of the 80's films genre, very odd music in the background. It's all good, we have a terrific supporting cast with Robert Prosky, James Belushi and Tuesday Weld, even Willie Nelson pulls in a good strong supporting role. The whole atmosphere and the strong direction by Mann pulls this movie together very well. I'd say one of the strongest scenes is the face off between Frank and Leo, when Frank is excited that he's completed his last assignment and Frank wants to just mainstream into a normal life but Leo is not going to let him go, the tension was so high and created so well by the actors. It's a very dark and suspenseful film that I have to admit that I enjoyed over all, I would recommend it.

9/10

The thief from Chicago

[jotix100 · 8/10 · 11 May 2005]

Michael Mann's debut film shows signs of greatness and what would follow. Mr. Mann is a man that knows how to get the best out of his movies, as he clearly shows in the 1981 "Thief". His adaptation of Frank Hohimer's "The Home Invaders" proved to be the right choice. Mr. Mann has to be congratulated about the atmosphere he created for the film and the brilliant music score by Tangerine Dream.

The film concentrates in Frank, the professional thief at the center of the action. Frank is a complex character. He has been in prison, but has no intention of ever going back. If the caper one witnesses at the start of the film was amazing, Mr. Mann had a bigger surprise for us in what Frank and his crew achieve with the job they pull at the end of the film! Frank seems to be a loner. When he meets Jessie, he goes too rough on her, denoting he might like women, but he doesn't know how to treat a wounded soul like this beautiful lady. The scene where Frank takes Jessie into the all night diner, and speak frankly to her, has an improvised look. Whether the director encouraged his star to do so, one will never know, but that's the way it struck us.

Frank's association with the fatherly mob figure Leo proves to be something he wouldn't normally do. Frank attracts, as a result of this partnership, the corrupt cops from Chicago. They know he is hiding behind the car dealer's front and want to shake him up. Frank is way too cool to have anything to do with them, which infuriates these bad detectives following him.

The final scenes show how Frank outfoxes Leo. He has to act tough in order to get Jessie to leave with the infant. Right after that we are treated at a few bombings as Frank is erasing his trail. The final moments at Leo's home is well paced with the violence exploding to a crescendo as we watch how Frank confronts Leo's gang.

James Caan has one of the best moments of his long and distinguished career playing Frank. The actor, under the guidance of Mr. Mann, gives what might be, the performance of his lifetime. Mr. Caan's instincts plays a big dividend. He makes Frank a likable man on the wrong side of the law.

Robert Prosky plays Leo with great panache. This cunning old man feels he can get away with swindling a thief, but in the end, he is proved wrong. Mr. Prosky, a distinguished theater actor, makes an invaluable contribution to the film.

Tuesday Weld, as Jessie, doesn't have too much to do, since the emphasis is on showing Frank. Ms. Weld is not seen as much as one would like to, and it's a shame because she is an intelligent presence in whatever she plays. James Belushi is right in his part. Willie Nelson shows up briefly in a couple of good scenes.

Mr. Mann's film debut heralded there would be better things coming, although if he had only directed "The Thief", he could have felt satisfied of what he accomplished.

Thief is an impressive debut from Michael Mann but does feel sporadically disengaging.

[TheMovieDiorama · 7/10 · 25 February 2018]

I believe Mann is a good director. From acclaimed works like "Collateral" and "Heat" to underrated gems like "Blackhat". He has always been known for creating gritty realistic crime thrillers. This all started back in 1981 with this uncommonly different piece of cinema. Having the desire to rid his past life of crime, a thief is hired for one final heist. However, we all know greed gets the better of us as soon he is trapped in a contract that requires him to perform more heists. If you're good at something, you will always be in demand. Much like our eponymous thief. This is a good solid thriller that is fuelled by dialogue. I mean, if a fifteen minute scene is just two characters talking in a diner, you know you'll need to focus on every word spoken. It's sharp, and I mean very sharp. The problem with this is that the need for dialogue feels far too forced. It's just fluff, and really doesn't develop these characters. The thief perhaps more than others, the supporting characters were redundant. I was completely disinterested during the first hour, I didn't connect with any of the characters and did not care for what was happening. James Caan was effortlessly in control though. Then the final heist begins and somehow my eyes are glued to the screen. Mann's slick urban directing style, the synthesised musical score, the flashing neon lights and city backdrop. It all worked. Then silencing the background music during scenes of tension, like breaking into the vault, was genius. I was intrigued by the thief's methods and thought it was intricately executed. Then the final twenty minutes arrive. I was in suspense heaven! I just wished the thrills were maintained throughout. Think of this as a precursor to "Heat". This is technically accomplished, whereas the latter is that and full of investing characters. A great debut though, just too much focus on dialogue that I didn't care about.

MICHAEL MANN'S CLASSIC MASTERPIECE

[pinballwizard-83712 · 10/10 · 14 October 2022]

Michael Mann's stunning directorial film debut is a mesmerizing crime drama about a meticulous master jewel thief named Frank, brilliantly played by the late great James Caan in a bravura performance, who is caught between corrupt cops and a double crossing syndicate boss named Leo, excellently played by the talented character actor Robert Prosky. Frank just wants to make one big score so he can leave it all behind and retire to his dream of a wife, kids and a fine home. Flawless supporting performances by James Belushi in his screen debut, Tuesday Weld, and Willie Nelson, but it is Caan's ultra-cool performance that dominates this entire film. Highly stylishly cinematography by Donald Thorin, with an extraordinarily powerful score by Tangerine Dream that gives this brilliant film an exhilarating vibe. Masterful direction by Mann who has created a unique sense of heightened reality with his rain-soaked streets and neon-lit city that has since become his trademark style as a director. An atmospheric and exceptional cinematic achievement and one of the very best films of the early '80s.

(I swear, every movie with Jim Belushi takes place in Chicago...)

[sc8031 · 7/10 · 6 October 2008]

"Thief" is a pretty interesting project. The Chicago locale is smoky and covered in blue hues; the characters all seem lonely or isolated from one another, and a sense of betrayal lies around every corner and plot twist. Michael Mann gives a preview of what would come in his later directed works, "Miami Vice" and "Heat", and sets the stage for later stylized, crime-romance flicks.

Basically the plot has been done to death by now, but back in the early '80s it wasn't so cliché. Frank (Caan) is a successful professional thief who makes his living with a small, loyal crew and operates under the front of a used car dealership. When a client is killed and some of his money is stolen, Frank goes out to find the perpetrators and finds himself involved in a deep underworld ring connecting mobsters and the police. As per usual, Frank is willing to do one last job in order to make enough money to retire with his sweetheart, but there's always a catch when making deals with serious high-level criminal organizations. Still it's pulled off pretty well. There are not specific twists, so much as well-placed acts and interesting thematic choices (for instance, the "big score" or "hit" or what-have-you, is given pretty minimal coverage when it happens).

The cast is effective. James Caan is as angry as he ever gets, Tuesday Weld is down-key and melancholy, Robert Prosky plays an unusually vulgar crime boss, Willie Nelson looks like he's about to cry every time you see him, and Jim Belushi comes across as a dopey, likable man-child. Of course, plot-wise, James Caan's character, Frank, functions as the hub around which all of their fates revolve.

There are a few weird moments. The conversation between Frank and Jessie (Caan and Tuesday Weld) at the coffee shop at night goes on for much longer than it needs to. Frank's scrapbook picture is a little bit... hokey or overly sentimental (but who knows, maybe badass thieves and killers have cheesy, soft, artistic expressions?) and the soundtrack at times seems out of place. Don't get me wrong -- the soundtrack is fantastic. It's by the German electronica group, Tangerine Dream. I generally love Tangerine Dream, but there are moments here when the music doesn't quite fit thematically (i.e. during the big safe job). It does not bother me, but folks who don't dig the extreme '80s synth-techno aesthetic might be irritated. As a stand-alone, the soundtrack rules, but with the film it can get a little over-the-top. (But the appearance of the "Beach Theme" is truly awesome, haha)

This movie is interesting for doing a number of things that seemed ahead of its time. At moments I was reminded of a darker version of the Peckinpah film, "The Killer Elite" (also with James Caan) and obviously some of the sad, desperate themes from Mann's big '90s achievement, "Heat". Also in line with "Heat" are the blue hues, the electronic music, the heart-broken romance (which here has equal elements of DePalma's "Carlito's Way" and the Tarantino-penned "True Romance"), and a good look at the criminal underworld.

Another DePalma movie, "Scarface", also explores themes initially found here. Like Tony Montana after him, Caan's Frank is a lone wolf in the underworld. He has equally violent and kind-hearted streaks, yet his destructive emotions tend to betray his best interests. Thus Frank (like Montana) is complex because he is both unlikable and angry and yet a far better person than his criminal counterparts in the underworld.

"Thief" is certainly recommended for any fans of James Caan, Michael Mann, underworld crime-thrillers, or any of the films mentioned above.

Abandoned Principles & A Cherished Ambition

[seymourblack-1 · 8/10 · 17 April 2013]

This cool, slick and often violent crime drama is gritty, tense and action-packed. It's also, however, a story which features a selection of fascinating characters that are brought to life convincingly by a fine cast of actors who make everything that transpires seem totally authentic. The use of ex-criminals in certain roles and some great hardboiled dialogue, also add to the realistic style of the whole production.

"Thief" is a movie that looks particularly good. The night-time scenes which feature rainy streets, neon lights and vivid colours are awesome and the brilliant synth score by Tangerine Dream is perfectly fitted to the tense, urban environment in which the action is played out.

Frank (James Caan) is a highly-skilled jewel thief who was state raised and spent eleven years in prison before achieving success in his chosen profession. In prison he benefited from the guidance of his mentor Okla (Willie Nelson) and also learnt that in order to survive in his business, it's essential to have no fear and to show no signs of vulnerability. This belief had made Frank fiercely independent and his only trusted friend and collaborator is Barry (James Belushi), who's a security equipment expert.

Frank runs into a problem when his regular fence is murdered and some money that's owed to him is missing. During his pursuit of the money, he crosses paths with a Chicago crime boss called Leo (Robert Prosky) who sets up heists and employs people to carry them out. As an admirer of Frank's work, Leo promises him the opportunity to become a millionaire in just four months if he works for him. Although impressed by the rewards on offer, Frank is reluctant to go against his principles and team up with Leo.

Frank privately longs for a conventional lifestyle and when he meets Jessie (Tuesday Weld) who's an attractive cashier at a diner, the potential value of Leo's offer starts to become more appealing. Frank reasons that if he could do one major job for Leo, he could then retire and settle down to a happy family life. Unfortunately, after Frank carries out a robbery for Leo, what follows doesn't correspond with Frank's vision and violent consequences ensue.

James Caan is marvellous as the tough professional who's persuaded to abandon his long-held principles in order to achieve a cherished ambition and Robert Prosky is fantastic as the ultra-manipulative crime boss who is seemingly calm and helpful but also has an immense capacity for violence. Willie Nelson makes an extraordinary impact in his relatively minor role as someone who means a great deal to Frank and Tuesday Weld is convincingly streetwise and empathetic as the woman in whom Frank confides.

"Thief" was Michael Mann's first feature film and as well as being technically impressive and exciting to watch, it contains a certain level of humanity that distinguishes it from the majority of similar thrillers.

Serviceable neo-noir, but uneven and occasionally implausible

[gmaileatsyourlunch · 6/10 · 18 June 2022]

Thief is an uneven film with a few great moments. Mann's directorial style and the soundtrack by Tangerine Dream will hold your interest, but ultimately the payoff is lacking. This is more style and atmosphere over substance.

If I had to put it down to why the film doesn't quite work it's because it just never really conveys the motivations of the main characters well, or invests the audience in what happens to them. There are just no likeable characters, not even on the level of comic relief, wittiness or style. Caan's character is a run of the mill bad guy and just not particularly interesting.

Worth watching with expectations kept within reason.

Thrilling crime drama and one hell of a debut

[Mr-Fusion · 8/10 · 11 February 2012]

You don't hear "Thief" mentioned as often as Michael Mann's other signature movies, but I have a serious soft spot for this movie. For a debut, this has the man's unmistakable style all over it, and the character study at the heart of this thing keeps the burglar-pulling-one-last-job story fresh. There's a tremendous amount of research backing this, not only making the actual safe-cracking scenes riveting, but also James Caan's expounding on prison life. It's just a dialogue scene, two people in a coffee shop, but it's earnest. He's desperate to make a life happen before the clock runs out.

It's compelling cinema all the way, a neon-lit crime drama on the seedier streets of Chicago, pulsing with Tangerine Dream synth. For my money, this is James Caan's best performance; hard-boiled and profoundly sad.

8/10

Well worn material -- but well enough done.

[Pedro_H · 6/10 · 29 October 2005]

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.

One Last Caper and I Retire.

[rmax304823 · 5/10 · 20 July 2008]

James Caan is a thief recently released after eleven years in the slams. Somebody owes him money and he collects it -- out toughing the possessors. This boldness impresses the Big Man, Robert Prosky. Prosky, who has a finger in every meretricious pie, delivers the money personally and invites Caan to join him in his organization. The benign, agreeable, avuncular Prosky and his team will plan out jewel robberies, pay for equipment, and so forth, and Caan and his partner, Jim Belushi, will execute the plan for a given percentage of the take.

Caan, an expert thief in every way, is reluctant. He's always been his own boss. But he has a problem. He needs money to hire a good lawyer to get his friend, Willie Nelson, out of the slams. Nelson is terminally ill and would rather die on the outside than on the inside, though he never explains the logic of that position.

Caan meets Prosky and agrees to one last caper. Prosky not only agrees but sees to it that Caan gets a ranch house in the suburbs and that he and his wife, Tuesday Weld, are able to adopt a baby.

Well, I pretty much foresaw a bad end for Jim Belushi as the cheery partner of the main character, close enough to be on hugging terms with him. And when the Belushi family and the Caan family spend a few days frolicking on the beach together, with still almost half an hour to go in the film, I figured Belushi was dead meat.

Most of the movie is about as formulaic as that. Prosky has promised Caan almost a quarter of a million for pulling off a long, risky, highly technological heist, but after the job he hands Caan an envelope with only a tenth that amount. Additional expenses and all that. Not to worry, though, because Prosky has a dozen other scores lines up for Caan.

Caan balks and winds up semi-conscious on the floor with Prosky standing over him, viperous in his wrath. Before his goons dump Belushi's body in what seems to be a vat of acid, Prosky tells Caan that Caan has no gratitude. That Prosky now OWNS him and he will do as he's told, otherwise he and his family will find life increasingly unpleasant. "I'll put your **** of a wife on the street and ******* and ****** ****** will **** her in the ***!" Caan gives all his accumulated money to his wife and child and kicks them out. Then he walks away from the final shoot out wounded but alive.

The story is basically sound and Caan's part is well written, if not as well delineated or nuanced as Dustin Hoffman's in "Straight Time." Caan plays it nicely too. He's particularly good in a scene in a coffee shop in which he explains the subculture of inmate life to an engrossed Tuesday Weld. If the plot is predictable, it's still engaging.

The problem is that the direction sucks. I'll give an unimportant example. Near the beginning, after Caan has warned the white-collar crook that he expects his money back, he has to leave the office and walk through a room full of nerds and female secretaries. They're all sitting and staring at him and his gun -- except one woman who is standing in the corner. Caan lifts his pistol in a two-handed grip, aims it at her, says "Sit down," then lowers it and walks out the door. Why did he do that? Why aim a pistol at a terrified young woman in order to get her to sit down? Why get her to sit down? What the hell does Caan care whether she's standing or sitting; she's in a state of tonic immobility like a frozen mouse. How did that take find its way to celluloid? Caan has been drawn as the essence of cool. He should have strode through the room like an expressionless Superman, his pistol at his side.

I said the example would be small, but there are too many multiple small examples. I think there are four shooting deaths and one wounding. Every one of them is in slow motion. So is the body dumped in the acid. There are two explosions -- ditto. Ho hum.

And the musical score is atrocious -- pounding, edgy, distracting, loud electronic guitars and percussion that could have come straight from a skin flick. That approach isn't necessarily inappropriate in a crime thriller -- if it's used judiciously. Wang Chung had it just about right in "To Live and Die in L.A." But this score is simply unimaginative noise and should be reserved for the exclusive use of the CIA in torturing prisoners.

On the whole, above average performances; average script; bad marks for direction and score.