Thief (1981)
Average Rating: 7.6/10
Reviews Counted: 20
Fresh: 19 | Rotten: 1
No consensus yet.
Average Rating: N/A
Critic Reviews: 4
Fresh: 3 | Rotten: 1
liked it
Average Rating: 3.7/5
User Ratings: 5,979
My Rating
Movie Info
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
Mar 27, 1981 Wide
May 15, 2001
MGM Home Entertainment
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Cast
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James Caan
Frank -
Tuesday Weld
Jessie -
Willie Nelson
Okla -
James Belushi
Barry -
Robert Prosky
Leo -
Tom Signorelli
Attaglia -
Chuck Adamson
Ancell -
Spero Anast
Bukowski -
W.R. [Bill] Brown
Mitch -
Michael Paul Chan
Waiter -
Sam Cirone
Martello -
Del Close
Mechanic #1 -
Nathan Davis
Grossman -
Dennis Farina
Carl -
John Kapelos
Mechanic -
Marge Kotlisky
Mrs. Knowles -
Gavin MacFayden
Boreksco -
Nick Nickeas
Nick -
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William L. Petersen
Katz & Jammer Bartender -
John Santucci
Urizzi -
J. Jay Saunders
Doctor -
Lora Staley
Paula -
Norm Tobin
Guido -
Bruce A. Young
Mechanic #2 -
Walter Scott
D. Simpson -
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Thomas O. Erhart Jr.
Judge -
Hal Frank
Joe Gags -
Richard Karie
Salesman -
Mike Genovese
Bartender at Green Mill
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Thief Trailer & Photos
All Critics (20) | Top Critics (4) | Fresh (19) | Rotten (1) | DVD (3)
A slick Chicago crime-drama with a well-developed sense of pathos running throughout.
Top CriticA philosophical thriller filled with modernist cool.
It's one of those films where you feel the authority right away: This movie knows its characters, knows its story, and knows exactly how it wants to tell us about them.
Mr. Mann may well become a very good theatrical film maker but, among other things, he's going to have to learn how to edit himself, to resist the temptation to allow dialogue that is colorful to turn, all of a sudden, into deep, abiding purple.
neo-Melvillian existentialism
Not just the best film of [Michael Mann's] career, but one of the best American films of the whole of the 1980s.
A tough and intense crime thriller. James Caan gives one of his finest performances.
A cool action film.
Thief embues the crime story genre with fresh sophistication.
An engrossing early effort from Michael Mann
It's a shame Thief isn't better remembered by people. If you really enjoy films about robberies, this one is right up your alley. Caan is terrific, and Mann's budding talent is evident.
Good guys and bad guys have never been harder to peg, which is why Thief is so much fun, filled with nuance and subtlety not often found among caper flicks.
Audience Reviews for Thief
Super Reviewer
"Tonight, his take home pay is $410,000... tax free."
Michael Mann's debut, Thief, is a stylish and intelligent heist thriller. There's a lot of cool stuff going on in Thief. It's one of those crime classics that have been forgotten because of movies like Heat. Thief is a great film in its own right. Mann showed the success he would be right from the get go. The film doesn't mess around, and has one of the single coolest end sequences I have ever seen. I'll admit, the film did take a little while to suck me in, but once it did I was enamored by it.
Frank is a professional thief. He breaks into safes for diamonds and cash only. He's always wanted to retire to a normal life with a wife and kid. He thinks he has the chance when a crime boss asks him to join up for a big score. Frank thinks he can take the cash and settle down to a nice life. The boss has slightly different plans for Frank which may interfere with him getting exactly what he's always wanted.
The heist scenes are really good, and Mann doesn't pump up the cliché of fighting against a clock and the police like the normal heist film will do. Thief isn't your standard heist film at all. Standard heist films go through a formula normally leading up to the final heist scene which will pretty much end the movie. Not this one. There's a lot of time after the final heist, and the after effects are the best part of the movie hands down.
The acting is left in the capable hands of James Caan. He is at his best in Thief. He plays a stubborn criminal to perfection. His performance in this one may be my favorite single performance from him ever. He struts his criminal character around with a sense of anger and cool, that just makes you pay attention to every little detail of his performance.
This is kind of a forgotten film in the grand scheme of cinema, but it is one you should really seek out. It is loads better than 98% of the crime thrillers out there. It has an accomplished director(now) at the helm and a terrific actor in the lead. There isn't much not to like about it. I wouldn't go as far as to say it's a masterpiece or anything, but it is one that will surely blow you away. Well, well worth a watch.
Super Reviewer
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- Frank: If I wanna meet people, I'll go to a fuckin' country club.
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- Frank: Your criteria are so far up your ass, they can't see daylight!
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- Okla: Lie to no one. If there 's somebody close to you, you'll ruin it with a lie. If they're a stranger, who the fuck are they you gotta lie to them?
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- Okla: Lie to no one. If there 's somebody close to you, you'll ruin it with a lie. If they're a stranger, who the fuck are they you gotta lie to them?
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- Frank: I am the last guy in the world that you wanna fuck with.
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Foreign Titles
- Der Einzelgänger (DE)
- Le Solitaire (FR)
