Thief of Hearts

Prolific producer Jerry Bruckheimer also made this one, it certainly looks and sounds like Bruckheimer, his style is stamped all over it. The erotic thrillerplot, the outragously great design and cinematography. Remember Flashdance or Cat People? Well, you got the idea! Well acted, actress Barbara Williams shines as seducted interior decorator , engaging love story with a great soundtrack and some very steamy sex scenes, it looked to me as if one of the scenes was actually hardcore! Must have been an unrated version! The story revolves around a pro burglar stealing the steamy diary of a bored nice sububan wife and then seduce her. This is not a masterpiece, just a nice erotic high-concept thriller well worth seeking out. 7/10

Though I do like this film, I found the concept immensely disturbing. Being a private person (you don't see my NAME on this, do you?), I found the idea that anyone could so completely invade a life absolutely terrifying. In spite of a few holes, the film works, chiefly because the characters enmesh the audience in their feelings. Steven Bauer is incredibly underrated as an actor and, while I have seen stronger performances from him, he's very good as the enamoured thief in search of a way out and Barbara Williams is credible as the neglected wife enchanted by the mystery man. Let's not leave out John Getz, another unexplainably underrated performer, as the self-absorbed husband. If you can ignore the flashy 80s style, the film is a fascinating study of obsession. Warning: it definitely deserves its R rating for unnecessary full nudity.

The film tells a story of a burglar who falls in love with one of his victims whilst doing her house one night. After stealing her portrait and personal memoires, he proceeds to "learn" more and more about the victim until he decides to come into personal contact. Passing himself off as a Company Director, he slowly seduces the victim and this is facilitated by her failing marriage. Inevitably, events catch up with the thief as his partner in crime goes to desperate measures to eliminate this side-distraction. I enjoyed this movie for a number of reasons but most of all, I thought it had a fantastic eighties soundtrack throughout. The story itself is not wonderfully exciting, but the fantasy of a burglar falling for one of his victims and using his psychological advantage to seduce her is quite interesting. A sense of compassion is felt for the central character as he strives to live a fantasy of his own making that slowly starts to disintegrate due to his own dark life. John Caruso puts in a disturbing and powerful performance as the drugged-crazed partner who takes matters into his own hands.

I first saw Thief of Hearts on cable while I was babysitting in high school...maybe 16 years old. As a Catholic school girl, I was obsessed with all things sexual, so I was an instant fan of the movie. I saw it several more times while it was still a popular cable choice, then lost track of it. However, I never forgot it: the sexual tension, the premise...not even the title! As an adult, I talked my fiancé into renting it, issuing the standard disclaimer: "I loved this in high school, but I was into Wham!, Duran Duran and Prince, too, so proceed with caution," etc. To my surprise, it was almost as good as I remembered it having been, and the sexual situations weren't nearly as contrived as I feared they might be. Some of the acting was a little wooden, but the premise is brilliant...I'm still trying to turn that around in my head...and, for some reason, I still don't keep a diary!

This film starts out with a drive over the Golden Gate Bridge and into the City of San Francisco with fantastic music in the background and through out the entire picture. John Getz (Ray Davis), " A Day without a Mexican" plays the role as a husband who writes children's books and has reached the top of his field. Ray is married to Barbara Williams,(Mickey Davis),"Forever Evil" who is getting rather unsatisfied with her marriage as her husband is always at his typewriter and never in bed where she wants him. Steven Bauer,(Scott Muller) "The Lost City", actually runs into Mickey Davis and things progress to the boiling point between the both of them. David Caruso,(Buddy Calamara),"Blue City", plays the role of a slime ball, who is a very evil character and looks quite young in 1984. Great tale with plenty of twists and turns and I simply Love The Ending. Enjoy