THE GOOD THIEF

[FeverDog420]

http://imagecache2.allposters.com/images/151/501376.jpg

Scored passes for a screening on March 27 for Neil Jordan's latest release, an apparent remake of a 1955 French (sorry, "Freedom") movie called Bob le Flambeur.

The plot: An aging gambler (Nick Nolte) on a losing streak attempts to rob a casino in the South of France. But someone's already tipped off the cops before he even makes a move.

I hope this is the movie that gets Jordan back on track. He had an international smash in 1992 with The Crying Game, the best movie of its year (IMO) that earned him a Best Original Screenplay Oscar.

Jordan's movies since then have been hit-and-miss. Interview with the Vampire was a success, but I never cared for it. On the flip side, I really liked The Butcher Boy, but I'm in the minority here, I think. His other movies include In Dreams, a confusing, overplotted misfire, and Michael Collins and The End of the Affair, both unseen by me.

Nick Nolte, star of The Good Thief, certainly could use some good press right about now, but IMDb's user rating for this movie is an average 6.3/10, so I'm not holding my breath for cinematic excellence here. This movie will be only the second movie I've seen so far this year, though both this one and the other (Spun) have 2002 release dates.

The Good Thief opens April 2 in limited release.

[ilovemovies]

I saw the trailer for this a while ago when I saw Dark Blue, I think. It looks fantastic. I love Nick Nolte and this looks like one of his best movies.

[Fergus]

I loved the trailer when I first saw it awhile back. Looks like a sexy mood piece/thriller--an intriguing mix. I'm looking forward to it to say the least. Tell us how it is FeverDog. And I want that poster, excellent.

[FeverDog420]

Okay, I did go see The Good Thief last night, but I've put off my "review' for it all night since I don't really know how to approach the act of committing my thoughts about it in words.

Ever see a movie that's just barely better than average that you wished you liked more, but can't? That's the response I'm having to this movie. I guess the best place to start is with Neil Jordan's direction. What he was thinking, I wish I could figure out. For some reason he chose to end scenes with a distracting split-second freeze frame; all night I've been trying to decipher the meaning of this odd visual tic, but I'm at a loss for an explanation.

But Jordan isn't the only below-the-liner whose decisions I'm questioning. I'm not sure whose job this falls under - either the cinematographer or the art director - but the visual style presented here can only be described by the seemingly oxymoronic phrase "neon decay." So much of what's filmed is washed out, but there are moments when day-glo green or purple dominates the frame. This stylistic choice may be significant in some metaphoric way, but, again, I'm without a clue as to how, or why.

While I'm focused on the negatives, I might as well mention Nick Nolte's performance. Years of hard living have not been kind to this man's voice, and it took several scenes before I grew accustomed to his gruff, scraggly intonation. For a while I was wishing I was watching a DVD, just so I could turn on the subtitles. But I eventually accepted this, like I accepted the fact that everyone in a movie set in Monte Carlo speaks English at all times (except for a brief scene early on where a character from Algeria needs to not be understood for the sake of the story).

But Nolte's performance was, all in all, a strong center to a slew of supporting characters, one of which was inhabited by newcomer Nino Kukhanidze. Anyone who's seen Mona Lisa or The Crying Game is aware that Jordan has a knack for creating intriguing, mysterious female characters who aren't quite as wise as they think they are, and Kukhanidze's Anne, a jailbait but almost-jaded Russian prostitute, is no exception. Her performance recalls the early work of Chloë Sevigny, and I'm interested in seeing her develop as an actress.

Other supporting actors include Saïd Taghmaoui (best known to American audiences, perhaps, as the Iraqi captain in Three Kings that holds Mark Wahlberg captive), Mark & Michael Polish (the stars of Twin Falls Idaho, who in this movie are integral to much of the intricate heist plot), and, most bizarrely, an actor (whose name I can't recall) who plays a transsexual bodybuilder, and who can be credited for much of the movie's humor.

Many of these characters are quite interesting but aren't developed enough to be truly memorable. This undernourishment is really the main problem of The Good Thief. The movie's first half is quite choppy and disjointed; there seems to be footage left on the cutting room floor that fleshes out much of the background to this story and these characters.

Oh, the story? It's your typical heist scenario, dealing with surprise double crosses in a plot about ripping off a Monte Carlo casino which also somehow hold priceless works of art, so I won't spoil it for those who are interested in this movie. Let me just say that things seem to make sense when all is said and done, although I struggled to put together the details of the theft. Something about gambling as an alibi while a gas main is or isn't supposed to explode at the right time, while the main guy (Nolte), whose gambling addiction comes in handy, is being tailed by a detective who almost knows what's going on.

Have I made The Good Thief sound like a confusing jumble of half-baked ideas? In a way, it is, but the story, once it gets going, hums along nicely, and the movie is never boring. The climactic sequence, which includes a tense gambling jag, is actually quite suspenseful, the soundtrack makes good use of Leonard Cohen, Serge Gainsbourg and Euro-Arab pop, and the plot is unpredictable even if you can follow every detail of the story.

6/10

[rushmore beauty]

The trailers for this flick look pretty damn good...although I do wish they had used someone other than Nolte.

[Puck Bond]

The Good Thief is a solid, classy heist thriller about an againg gambler and junkie, who plans to steal $80 million from a casino in the South of France. Well known Irish director Neil Jordan, who has made films such as My Left Foot, The Crying Game and In the Name of the Father directs a solid cast in this entertaining European styled caper. Nick Nolte gives a very nice and distinguished performance as Bob Montagnet, who is a gambler and recovering heroin addict. He has retired from the thieving game until he is presented with an opportunity for one last big score. He and his crew plan to steal $80 million worth of paintings from the high-security vault of the Riviera Casino in Monte Carlo the night before the Monaco Grand Prix. He also befriends a young, sultry 17 year old russian waitress/whore named Anne played by newcomer Nutsa Kukhianidze. Naturally he recruits the usual team of colorful characters to help him including a friend named Paulo, a guy undergoing an identity change named Philipa and even an in house Judas named Said, who is there to tip off the police. Tcheky Karyo plays Roger the detective, who shadows and follows Bob and waits for him to make his big play. Alot of the fun of this movie comes from the cat and mouse game that Roger and Bob play. They each know what the other is up to, but you can tell they have a lot of respect for each other. There is really no action in this film, instead of car chases and explosions we get a sort of high-class manouvering and dealing type of flair. Ralph Fiennes even appears as a backer for the plan. The setting of the South of France also adds to the international and classy atmosphere of the film. The score is good and features moody covers of Frank Sinatra songs. Although the ending is somewhat unbelievable I still enjoyed it...its good to do without the cliched double-cross and the hero coming out on top. Overall, The Good Thief is a well made, classy caper about a down on his luck thief, who goes for one last big score. It features a very solid and entertaining performance by the gruff and scratchy voiced Nick Nolte and the European setting adds to the up-scale flair and style of the film.

[blankpage]

I was rather dissapointed with The Good Thief. To me, it tried to be a smart, cool, and all around good heist film. Which it failed doing. The film is all over the place. It can't focus on one thing, it jumps from one thing to another. Not letting the viewer understand what the fuck happened.

Nick Notle was excellent in his role too. The only thing that saved this film.

While the film wasn't terrible all the time. It had a few moments, but nothing to really impress me. The Good Thief was a rather medicore film. With some top notch acting by Nick Notle, and a couple of "okay" scenes.

Being generous....

5/10 or C-