"Crime 101" Isn’t Packing Enough Heat

Though it hadn’t initially been on my radar, my decision to see Crime 101, came from a series of reviews comparing it to the classic heist film: Heat. Michael Mann’s 1995 classic is one of my personal favorite films and an absolute titan of the genre, so anything compared to it is an immediate watch in my book. Unfortunately, while these comparisons are not without basis, Crime 101 comes up short of these lofty expectations, playing less like a modern homage to an aging classic and more like a movie you might enjoy watching on a plane, but will never think about again.

Chris Hemsworth plays Mike, a mysterious jewel thief with a penchant for avoiding messy violence. Pursuing him is by the Detective Lou Lubesnick (Ruffalo), a shlubby, aging detective who sees the patterns in the unsolved crimes committed by Mike that none of his colleagues want to. After a job goes wrong, a dispute with his boss (Nick Nolte) brings the recklessly dangerous Ormon (Barry Keoghan) into Mike’s life, and he enlists the help of Sharon (Berry), an undervalued insurance broker, for one final score. 

While Crime 101 has elements that I enjoyed, Chris Hemsworth’s performance unfortunately cannot be counted among them. Now, this wasn’t a case of Hemsworth phoning it in or simply playing himself. My issue with the performance, and really Mike as a character, is the same issue that I have with Ryan Gosling’s character and performance in Drive: He’s just bland and boring. It’s not as if deliberately mysterious characters don’t work, they just need to have something to cover up with their enigmatic nature. While we get a glimpse behind the proverbial mask that Mike wears towards the end of the film, it’s doesn’t feel substantial enough to make Hemsworth’s earlier evasion routine seem justified.

Alongside this, his relationship with Jennifer Jason Leigh’s character, Maya, feels incredibly one note and cliche - he’s mysterious and she likes that, but she also wants him to open up to her, which he is seemingly incapable of doing. The parts of the film focusing on Mark Ruffalo’s role as down-on-his-luck Detective Lou held my attention much better than those following Hemsworth, to the point that I began to wonder if the film would have been better served by swapping their screen time. Lou has immediate charm and likability - he’s a soon-to-be-divorced cop who struggles with being the only one in his department smart enough to recognize the pattern behind Mike’s robberies - something that makes him look nuts in the eyes of his coworkers. He has struggles, is an underdog, and Ruffalo plays him in a way that feels well meaning, but a little sleazy at times. Halle Berry also shines brightest when opposite Ruffalo, but unlike him, suffers by having to spend a good portion of the second act being egged on by Hemsworth to break bad. 

The second act is a problem. While both the first and third acts have engaging and suspenseful sequences to keep the pace flowing and the audience alert, the second act mostly focuses on relationship building broken up by the occasional car chase between Hemsworth and Barry Keoghan’s villainous Ormon. Though Keoghan’s performance as the motorcyclist menace is easily one of the more memorable of the film, he feels neutered by the script during the second act, tethering the intense energy that he brings in the 1st and 3rd acts so that Mike can have a shadowy threat to chase around when he’s spent too long brooding romantically. Going back to the Heat comparison, there is simply not enough action and intrigue to keep this film moving at the pace that it’s spiritual predecessor did. 

Crime 101 feels the need to make its inspirations known, and this is perhaps most felt in the film’s references to Steve McQueen, specifically his films Bullitt and The Thomas Crown Affair, both of which are literally mentioned by name in a conversation between Ruffalo and Hemsworth during the 3rd act. Mike is essentially a Steve McQueen cosplayer, which, had it not been explicitly pointed out by the film, might have come off as a cool homage, but instead it serves to make Mike look like a huge nerd (and not in the flattering way). While the film’s actual references to Heat are largely contained in the moody lighting and framing of certain shots of LA, it tries (and largely fails) to do a similar “two sides of the same coin” ending for Hemsworth and Ruffalo’s characters that Heat did for DeNiro and Pachino’s cop and robber duo. While I really wanted to like this ending, I unfortunately found the resolution to Mike’s story to be unsatisfying, and Lou’s to be unearned. 

While the cinematography and overall vibe of the film were on point, Crime 101’s performances and character writing fail to reheat its script full of tropes that have been getting cold since the 90’s. While it isn’t a waste of time by any means, I’m not so sure that I can recommend Crime 101 as a theatrical experience. As a film to watch on your couch or in a plane seat, I believe most will find it totally serviceable, if not a good time. Unfortunately, the greatest obstacle that Crime 101 faces as a film struggling to attract an audience is the greatness of its inspirations in comparison to its own mediocrity.