Street Thief

Enjoyed it a lot.

That's all.

It's a hard movie to summarize without spoiling it.

Saw it at the Chicago Int'l Film Festival last night, and if this does receive a theatrical release, I'd recommend going. Per the director, there may already be plans to release it on cable and DVD, and theatrical options for New York/Los Angeles/Chicago are being explored. Keep your fingers crossed.

I'm sure other people will add more useful comments, but someone had to get this started.

This a sad stab at an actual documentary. The dialogue is consistently filled with hypocrisy it makes so easy to see the transparency. I usually root for the antihero, but in this case I'm watching to the end in the hopes that Kaspar gets busted and is sentenced to 20 or 30 years! You guys hungry?

I'm amazed at the number of people Lexington this film and think it portrays an actual thief doing real crimes.

It isn't.

Nor could it.

If 'Kaspar' was as 'smart' as he constantly reminds the crew (and us), he'd be VERY dumb to have his face, filmed as well as filmed proof of his crimes.

Saying that, I WILL say that unlike a lot (most) other fake, documentary-styled fiction, it is VERY convincingly made.

As this is just a review, I'll only go so far as to say that some of the methods Kaspar used are not accurate (clever, yes - & a helluva lot better than either your typical 'crime' film, or - even what REAL thieves would do/use).

Director/star Malik Bader gets credit - for making Kaspar a fully-dimensional character.

Not a likable one, but, definitely believable.

Once in awhile a truly great film flies so far under the radar it's tragic. Enter Malik Bader's STREET THIEF. I've returned to this movie over the years probably more so than most of my favorite films. Something about it just strikes the right chords in me.

Two filmmakers document the daring crimes of a master thief named Kaspar Carr as he creeps through the city planning and executing break-ins, robberies, and jewelry heists-all while staying two steps ahead of the cops and any other threat to his meticulous hustle. Think MAN BITES DOG but with a hard-edged, charismatic master thief at the enter of the action. Carr smokes like a wildfire, swears like a sailor, he's street smart, calculating and cool-and he's dangerously good at his job.

Shot on grainy 16mm, the film is intense, suspenseful with an in-your-face verism that absolutely feels like the events unfolding are real life. It's a faux doc, crime film, noir, and character study all rolled into one. Writer/director/star Malik Bader's charismatic performance as our lone wolf protagonist gives the film a rugged realism, and the open ending always stays with me awhile. I never get tired of watching this movie. It probably sounds like I'm overselling it, but whatever, I love it and I think it deserves more attention.

While I know there are rabid fans of "Man Bites Dog" I cannot agree with a previous reviewers parallel between the two films. "Man Bites Dog" is a dark, and I mean, DARK satire on how society holds criminals up and how "normal" people (in this case the film makers) can get caught up in the moment. Not with this movie. The "film makers" approach the subject with cold calculated view. There are no scenes of children being murdered like in "man bites dog" in which the film makers just keep filming. In this "documentary" the film makers take a different path. While it's easy to judge the killer in "man bites dog" as a true sociopath the thief in "Street Thief" is a bit more complex. This is a guy with complete control over himself and his actions. To be quite honest I was (God help me) kind of rooting for the guy as he did his "scores" around the Chicago area. The guy is a likable jerk. He can be tolerated yet understood. Why? He's a criminal, plain and simple. He doesn't mug for the camera or brag about how he's King Salami and can't be stopped. He KNOWS the proverbial clock is ticking. Therefore the ending is a pleasant surprise that makes you want to watch it again.