Crime 101 Review

It’s not particularly original to compare Crime 101 to Michael Mann’s Heat, but that’s only because of how nakedly writer/director Bart Layton is quoting it. His adaptation of Don Winslow’s 2020 novella brings a modern flare to the car chases, adds a subplot of criminal in-fighting, and dials down the moral complexity, but the story is unmistakable. It’s a game of cat and mouse between a grizzled cop whose marriage is on the outs (Mark Ruffalo) and a professional thief (Chris Hemsworth) whose opposition to violence and meticulous planning has kept him out of trouble, until someone else’s short fuse brings heightened scrutiny. Only in this version, the colorful cast of characters surrounding both are largely stripped away. No one in the department, apart from Lou, even believes these robberies are connected. And Mike Davis is a lone operator, only working with Money (no, seriously, that’s the name of Nick Nolte’s character) on picking targets. Well, until Mike objects to a job, and Money gives it to the far more chaotic Ormon (Barry Keoghan, of course).

It’s a solid conceit, but the actual forward momentum doesn’t reveal itself until a little later. A hacker passes points Mike at Sharon (Halle Berry), a high-value insurance broker, whom he stalks then befriends in an attempt to capitalize on her frustration at being passed over for a promotion again. Sure enough, she comes around, and hands over info about an upcoming $11 million diamond deal her company is insuring, and he begins working on a plan.

As stylish as all the action in-between the building story is, it never culminates into anything all that compelling. Rather than reading as “cool”, the suits and fancy cars and diamonds are sterile and hollow. Mike is a caricature of the gentleman thief. His pacifism means we’re never worried that he’ll lash out when backed into a corner. It’s taken so far that when he’s grazed by a bullet in the heist that opens the movie, he takes off driving like a bat out of hell through the streets of LA, power sliding all over the place until he makes it to his usual hotel garage. Not that anyone is chasing him; he’s trying to outrun his fear, implying that despite the string of high-value targets he’s gone after, we’ve just witnessed the first instant it went wrong, which is hard to believe.

Sharon’s experience is the most engaging, although its position at the intersection of the two feuding men means her scenes involve more of the plot that most, which serves no one. But most of us can identify with getting pissed that our job loyalty and high performance is not rewarded in kind. Maybe we wouldn’t go so far as to spill secrets to robbers in retaliation, but it’s nowhere near enough for us to condemn her. It also makes Sharon the most morally complicated character in the whole movie, which doesn’t bode well for keeping our attention. Hell, Mike provides water for the security personnel he locks in the trunk. The worst thing he does is lie to Monica Barbaro (as Maya), which isn’t quite the same as being prepared to walk out on your whole life in 30 seconds flat.

We’re quite fortunate that neither Mike nor Ormon have the opportunity to speak at length, as both are doing American accents for some reason. The two men are famous as much for their distinctive accents as for their physicality. Why mess with that? Neither is a complete disaster, but neither can keep the awkward strain out of the voice at all times, either. I don’t get it; what’s the necessity of making them American? These are underworld figures in modern LA; it’s not like they’re government employees in an era of extreme xenophobia. Nolte sounds like a cement mixer, as if trying to one-up Tom Waits despite his absence, so it can’t be a focus on auditory clarity. While it wouldn’t elevate the movie by any stretch, it would make for one fewer distraction in a movie that seems to reject focus.

There’s fun to be had here, for sure. You just need to sit back and let it wash over you, rather than expecting what came before to have much impact on what comes next. Live in the now, and the film is alright. The first time Mike and Ormon come into contact erupts into an preposterously wonderful chase through the streets. Just don’t think too hard about why Ormon didn’t exploit the maneuverability of his motorbike to slip past Mike’s sexy black muscle car. The rapport between Sharon and the two opposing men crackles from time to time, although never enough to raise the specter of a dangerously exciting love triangle, à la The Departed. Mike meets Maya when she rear ends him at a red light, and she accepts his proposal that they grab dinner because…the movies!

All of which is to say this is more or less the kind of January/February movie you want. Yes, there are a bunch of dangling plot threads. Yes, a handful of talented actors are criminally underused (hello Jennifer Jason Leigh and Corey Hawkins!). Yes, it’s far too convoluted for how little happens and how disinterested you are about the story. But it’s a solid enough “turn your brain off” movie that does delight on occasion with spectacle or a fun little exchange. It will do to pass the time until March delivers some of the year’s first heavy hitters, after which it will be quickly (and rightly) forgotten.