There are certain movies that are made to be watched high, and there are certain movies that induce a high feeling when watching them. Thief is a film that belongs in both categories.
When I went to watch this movie, I could only find a free streaming version of it on Tubi* but it had commercials, and this movie sucks with commercials. It’s a meditative movie, in a way, so breaks in the flow really take you out of the film. This is a sit back and get absorbed into the movie film experience.
*If you don’t know about TUBI, it is awesome. It has EVERYTHING. Don’t sleep on Tubi. (@ Tubi - call me, I can do your marketing) It’s not the most ideal because there will be commercials, but do you remember how one way we used to rate kinda mid level movies as “I mean, just like if it’s on TV check it out.” Tubi has a lot of those movies. *
I ended up buying the Criterion edition, which I highly recommend if only to listen to the commentary track featuring Michael Mann and James Caan. Both come across as adorable close friends who goof around with each other, and also have great insights into the movie and the filmmaking process.
At one point, I was watching the movie with the commentary on, and it was the opening scene—a scene that is silent except for Tangerine Dream and the sound of the work itself. And I thought, see even the director and star in watching this are just mesmerized into silence. Turns out..I had turned off the commentary, and Michael Mann and James Caan talk a lot in the opening scene about how they made everything look so real.
Thief is a movie I adore and an incredible movie to watch high. It’s Michael Mann at his Michael Manneist. Maybe? The music, the visuals, it all just pulls you in. Try and take something that gives you a body high, because you physically feel this film as you watch it. It’s definitely more suited for a calming strain so the movie can wash over you and you can live in the world of 1980s Chicago crime for a bit. The music. The lighting. Jim Belushi. I always think the feeling is as if you were on a spaceship or held in by some force surrounding you as you watch the film (look this is about watching movies high, it might get weird). It’s sort of a blue wavy line in my mind. Like a triangular force surrounds you and keeps you still. Or as Michael Mann described, much more eloquently, as if you were in a tunnel. Okay, Universal Studios, hear me out. A Michael Mann Thief ride. You’re in a tunnel, dolcet sounds of Tangerine Dream and blue and red colored tones surround you as you drive along a rainy Chicago night.
The movie is hypnotic and opens with Frank (James Caan) completing a “score” (stealing diamonds). As I mentioned, there’s no dialogue in the first segment of the film, and the Tangerine Dream soundtrack just complements the visuals so well. The aesthetic of the film are so mesmerizing you are kind of startled when there is dialogue. In the original released version of the film, I think this scene is cut, but in the Criterion version there’s this beautiful opening scene where Frank sits with a fisherman, just looking out at the sunset. “That’s the Sky Chief “ the fisherman says admiring the beauty of mother nature.
The film follows Frank who is growing tired of his life of crime, and wants to move on to achieving the other goals he has displayed on the vision board he keeps folded up in his pocket.
His mentor and friend, Okla played by Willie Nelson, is suffering from a heart condition with doctors only giving him so much time to live, so Frank determines to see what he can do to get Okla out of jail so he can die peacefully and with dignity.
Frank is your typical kid from the “inner city”, so society sort of brushes him off, “ah just a bum, no wonder he ends up in crime,” but once we delve deeper we learn he is a human being with a history of trauma, loves that have come and gone, and maybe we shouldn’t judge poor people because maybe they are human too? Maybe yes laws are broken, but maybe also there are some systemic things we could address and maybe that would lower the crime rate? I don’t know, just chewing up wads of paper into balls and throwing them at a wall.
The justice system is screwed up and Frank’s story is that he went to jail for stealing something like $40, but then when in jail, got into fights, and a two year bid with six months probation became eleven years. He got out and enrolled in a rehabilitation program that helps people impacted by the system gain access to vocation training…just kidding, he gets out and becomes a thief.
James Caan had a wild reputation, much of what seemed to be embellished, his role of Sonny Corleone in The Godfather influencing how others saw him in public. He has some old timey macho conservative ideas, but he seems one of those men whose tough persona hides the more accurate sensitive, soft artist behind the mask. Michael Mann describes James Caan as an artist. James Caan really respected Michael Mann, even though the filming of Thief almost broke him. He started filming at 175 lbs, and dropped to 150 by the end of production. James Caan made the decision in his portrayal of Frank to speak slowly, clearly, not using contractions so he wouldn’t have to repeat himself. I could screenshot all the moments from the film where he *does* use contractions, but I think I’m being picky. The point is he speaks clearly, he speaks like…a ….thief…who…should….not….be…..fucked….with.
This diner scene, where he convinces Jessie to marry him. He tells her he is on the up and up, a true blue collar guy, and he wants her to be the woman in the picture of his vision board, holding their baby. He tells her about prison, about how he avoided being gang-raped and learned to survive by forgetting about the existence of time, and even the existence of himself. It’s James Caan’s favorite pieces of his acting. There’s this ping-pong of dialogue about coffee creamer that happens in the midst of their discussion about Jessie’s previous life, the wife of a criminal and her own experiences of trauma and Frank telling her about his experiences in prison.
Jessie: “I was alone. I had no money, no clothes, no visa, standing on the corner in Bogota, Colombia…stuff happened. Where were you in prison? Would you pass the cream please?”
Frank: “Jolliet — whoa God, stop” (noticing the cream). Can we get some new cream here?”
Waitress: “What’s wrong with it?”
Frank: “What’s wrong with it? It’s cottage cheese.”
…and right back to discussing the trauma of time spent in prison for an innocuous crime.
The whole scene is worth watching, and often when I just want a lil taste of Thief, I’ll watch it. Frank makes a case for their relationship, tells her he’s ready to commit. Jessie is hesitant because, she can’t be the woman in Frank’s vision board. She can’t have children. But Frank, a child of the state, eases her concerns, “so we’ll adopt.” When the social worker denies them due to Frank’s prison history, he goes off. “There’s more kids than adopters here…I grew up in the system, look we’ll take any kid you got. You got a black kid? We’ll take him. No one likes older kids…you got a 8 year old black chink kid, we’ll take him.” The language is crass, but Frank makes a good point about the hypocrisy of the child welfare system. And of course the woman is from the suburbs and has no direct knowledge of the experience of being a child in foster care, and probably works from view point of pity and feeling sorry for people who have lived through and survived more trauma than she could ever imagine before they even hit puberty.
In the midst of all this commentary on the working class tragedy that underlies the film, Frank is a bad ass diamond thief. It’s why mob boss Leo Prosky wants to hire him. He notices his talents, hires him to do this big bank heist. Frank sees it as an opportunity to do one last job, one that will pay significantly well, before retiring. The scene depicting Frank and Jim Belushi completing the heist is so cinematic. It’s beautiful, focused, tight camera shots of the intricate work of breaking into a safe. Sparks fly everywhere as fire burns through metal. James Caan once said in an interview, “I don’t need Hollywood, I know how to break into a safe.” (Jim Belushi does as well). The soundtrack from Tangerine Dream works perfectly in this scene, and it’s this vibe that sort of carries the whole film.
Watching James Caan work in such a specific and precise manner, focused intently in doing the job the right way, is… hot. It’s just hot to watch folks in their element doing what they know how to do. Especially when it’s dangerous and involves a certain level of manual labor and sexual prowess. At the end of the big heist scene, James Caan, sits down on a bench, takes a breath of relief, glances up to the camera, and then makes love to the audience with his eyes, blowing out a puff of smoke and nodding in recognition of his own talents. (6:01, fyi, video at end of post)
There’s so much more to this movie, and it’s truly an experience, a wild ride. Frank, of course, cannot just leave the game, he does end up surviving, but after losing his best friend, his wife and child (who his boss purchased for him from the underground market). Okla dies, but thankfully in a hospital and not in prison. I’ve literally been writing this piece for what seems like an eternity. So yadda yadda, bank heist, moment of happiness, shoot out scene, Frank walks away thanks to a bullet proof vest, roll credits.
Check it out, and let me know what you think!