Caught Stealing: A Filthy, Fun Mess
Caught Stealing is dark and gritty, but also enlightening in its own way
Protozoa Pictures
1990s New York City was not for the weak, no matter what kind of vibe you were into. That’s what’s cool about Caught Stealing. In what world does a suit-wearing narcotics officer, a Latino gang leader, Russian thugs, Orthodox Jewish brothers, and a British Punk Rocker all have connections to one another? And better yet, how does a baseball loving mama’s boy find himself mixed up with them? It’s because to survive in the Big Apple, you have to have a certain amount of grit and edge that the city brings out of you, whether you like it or not.
How Was the Movie?
Caught Stealing was a good crime thriller with deeper hidden elements that are slowly revealed throughout the movie. On the surface, it appears to be an action packed thriller that is going to keep the blood pumping. Yet, when the film starts peeling layers back on our main character Hank (Austin Butler), you begin to understand his internal battles that are just as painful as the ass whoopings that he keeps finding himself caught up in.
Caught Stealing is not just about a guy caught in a terrible situation based on pure bad luck, but it’s also about running away from internal demons. He eventually figures out that he has to find a way to confront both if he wants a true chance at surviving.
We’ve seen this scenario before in films, but Caught Stealing does a great job of not presenting it in an overly cliche’ or cheesy way. In fact, I caught myself questioning “how the hell is he going to get out of this?” multiple times throughout the film. The film does an overall good job of getting the story done but it could’ve benefitted from some more intense action scenes and music to really make the film pop. Even so, I really enjoyed this movie.
Protozoa Pictures
Best Parts About the Movie?
The All American Grit:
This film is pretty damn gritty, just how ‘90’s New York City was for a lot of folks. Director Darren Aronofsky seemed to be going for a punk rock vibe and he pretty much got it across. Strangely enough, how he mixes this grit in with a love for baseball and it works out pretty well especially via the main character.
Hank sounds like a good ol’ country boy (as described by his love interest Yvonne played by Zoe Kravitz) that calls his mama everyday and loves baseball. At the same time he’s an alcoholic bartender that lives on the rough side of town. He seems almost out of place until he is in his darkest moments.
Austin Butler:
Austin is showing off his versatility with acting more and more. We’ve seen him in many prominent roles now that are completely different from one another. A man who can play both Elvis and the psychotic blood thirsty Feyd from Dune is a great actor in my book. His role as Hank may not be his most memorable but it is still a solid job.
Bud The Cat:
Between all of the violence, blood, and anger the characters seemed to bond over one thing; the cute fluffy cat named Bud. Everyone took a moment to try to pet/care for the cat and depending on how the cat reacted, it gave us a bit of a glimpse on if that character could be trusted or not.
The cat may seem random but there's a reason why the Egyptians worshipped these majestic creatures. The way a cat reacts to a person can tell you a lot about their character, but also, some cats are just assholes.
Protozoa Pictures
Is This Movie for You?
If you like crime thrillers and a love for the ‘90s NYC vibes then you should enjoy this movie. Full warning that there are some gross/graphic moments, so you’ll probably turn your head a couple times if you are squeamish.
It’s punk rockish with a bit of action and comedy. The serious moments aren’t super heavy but they will make you think about what it means to bury our internal struggles. And if you don’t like cats, you’ll just need to question who you are as a person and judge yourself harshly while doing so.
Protozoa Pictures