The Good Thief

Heist movies are of two kinds: those where the heist is successful and end in some sort of bliss for the robbers (on whose side the viewers always are) and those where it fails and ends up in tragedy. The heist told in this movie belongs to a third kind because in my opinion it's neither successful nor unsuccessful like you will see in the end and understand why I am saying so. Nick Nolte does an excellent job in the role of a middle aged gambler, heister and drug addict who plans a robbery of valuable pictures in a casino in the south of France despite the fact that he is being watched by the police. The heist plan is very original indeed and it is based on a fake heist on one place while the real robbery will take place on another one. The end of the movie is bit confusing while mixing luck at gambling (in a rather unbelievable and unexplained way) with the success or failure of the heist itself. Well but it's a merry movie (except for the only death that occurs there)and Nick Nolte plays his part in a wonderful way.

Set on the scenic French Riviera, Neil Jordan's `The Good Thief' is a remake of 1955's `Bob Le Flambeur,' a Gallic film that enjoyed a successful re-release in this country a few years back. This new version is a stylish caper film about an aging master criminal who comes out of retirement to help lift some priceless paintings from a Monte Carlo casino.

In terms of plotting, there is little that we haven't seen in this type of film before. First, there's the idea for the heist, then the wooing of the reluctant `reformed' criminal, then the gathering of the other participants, then the intricate planning and rehearsing for the job, followed by the inevitable double dealing and double crosses, and ending with the sly turnabout ending to set our heads spinning and make us question everything we have seen heretofore. But Jordan has a knack for turning the ordinary into the extraordinary, and this he accomplishes with a complex screenplay, a strong sense of atmosphere, a host of well-developed characters, a sly sense of humor and an assortment of first-rate performances from a talented cast. Nick Nolte is superb as Bob, a shrewd, world-weary thief who is also a compulsive gambler and drug addict. Needless to say, the role seems tailor made for the star. Most of the rest of the cast is made up of French or Eastern European actors, all of whom do a fine job in their assorted roles.

Actually, the only complaint I have about the film is a direct result of that largely international cast. Much of the film's dialogue is hard to understand due in large part to the very thick accents emanating from most of the actors. Even the one native English speaker, Nolte, is difficult to comprehend at times, but that's just because Nolte is simply being Nolte and we expect to miss half of what he is saying anyway.

Apart from that, `The Good Thief,' less polished and slick than movies like "Ocean's Eleven," offers top-notch entertainment for the hardcore heist film aficionado.

A heist movie that oozes style, particularly in the form of Nick Nolte, gangster, part-time heroin addict (he handcuffs himself to the bed to go cold turkey before a job) and good guy. He befriends a gorgeous young waif (Nino Kukhanidze) with only altruistic motives (when she could potentially become his Achilles Heel) and proceeds to mastermind a complex heist, playing a chummy cat and mouse with the chief of police. Far classier than your average thriller, and mercifully lacking (with the occasional plot-based exception) in explosions and fast car chases.

In `The Good Thief' Nick Nolte plays Bob Montagnet, a down-but-not-yet-out Bogie, a very bright thief, and a heroin addict. Natsa Kukshianidge's femme fatale, Anne, is a 17-year old Bacall. It's the south of France--Nice and Monaco-- and it's time to relieve Monte Carlo of some precious paintings. Picasso is the model for Nolte's scamming talents: Picasso's conflicted painting of a woman with 2 sides to her face is the appropriate analogy for the duality of the young girl, both innocent and depraved, and Nolte's gambler, good and bad as the title suggests. Picasso's being accused of stealing from everyone adds to the allusive charm. The caper involves a Judas deceiver to support director Neil Jordan's frequent Christian motif (Remember `Jude' in "Crying Game"). The ‘crucifixion's' good thief, Nolte's thief, is good to the young Anne by saving her from the pimp. Jordan again joins an unlikely couple (Consider Fergus and Dil in "CG"), here a father figure with an errant daughter.

The winding roads of the Mediterranean shoreline are also fitting metaphor for Nolte's tortuous path to redemption. The requisite drying-out scenes, where Bob handcuffs himself to the bed and rejects Anne's offer of sexual freedom, are effective realism in an otherwise stylish film that eschews clarity and ingenuity in favor of some character development and much atmosphere.

The scenes at the casino are smoother than "Casablanca's," slicker than James Bond's, and lighter than "Croupier's." When Bob and Anne begin their end of the elaborate heist by challenging the house odds, there is little to worry about their losing but much about the philosophy of gambling, of going all the way regardless of the outcome. However, Jordan's take on slick thievery is not really different from that found in the recent `Confidence,' `Heist,' or `Ocean's Eleven.' The denouement is hardly logical or dramatically tight: Does an ex-thief go clean? Does he save his Mary Magdalene? Does he stop his losing streak and addiction? Does he pull off the heist? None of this is the point.

Bob as a "good thief " is all that matters.

And Nolte as a good actor? He is very good.

'The Good Thief' is the best film Neil Jordan did since 'Mona Lisa' almost two decades ago. It is a classical and well written robbery story, complex enough to catch the interest, simple enough for the spectator to follow and enjoy, and with the special twist at the end that makes a good script. The main character fits Nick Nolte like life, I can imagine only Humphrey Bogart doing better in this role. There are a few other memorable characters, with the Georgian (from the other Georgia) Nutza Kukhianidze promising to become soon a star if she has enough luck to continue to work with good directors and scripts. The cinematography has a special quality, with final stills after each shot, enhancing a good digital camera work. I also liked the soundtrack, it's a mix of classic, jazz and even Leonard Cohen sounds right for a change. 8/10 on my personal scale - certainly worth seeing.