Thief [Criterion Collection] [Blu-ray]

Director: Michael Mann Michael Mann

Overview

In Thief, James Caan plays Frank, a professional jewel thief who wants to marry Jessie (Tuesday Weld) and settle down into a normal life. In order to achieve his dream of a family, Frank--who is used to working solo--has to align himself with a crime boss named Leo (Robert Prosky), who will help him gain the money he needs to begin his domestic life. Frank plans to retire after the heist, yet he finds himself indebted to Leo and he struggles to break free. Thief is the first feature film from director Michael Mann and it seethes with his stylish, atmospheric direction. Though his cool approach may put off some viewers, it's a distinctive and effective story-telling approach, and Caan's performance ranks among his very best, making Thief a crime movie like few others.

Product Details

Release Date:	12/15/2015
UPC:	0715515166119
Original Release:	1981
Rating:	NR
Source:	Criterion Collection
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	2:04:00
Sales rank:	7,862

Special Features

Audio commentary featuring Mann and actor James Caan; New interviews with Maan, Caan, and Johannes Schmoelling of the band Tangerine Dream, which contributed the film's soundtrack; Trailer

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

James Caan	Frank
Tuesday Weld	Jessie
Willie Nelson	Okla
Robert Prosky	Leo
Tom Signorelli	Attaglia
Jim Belushi	Barry
Tom Howard	Actor
Gavin MacFayden	Boreksco
Elizabeth Peña	Actor
Thomas Erhart Jr.	Judge
Richard Karie	Salesman
Dennis Farina	Carl
Nick Nickeas	Nick
W.R. [Bill] Brown	Mitch
Norm Tobin	Guido
John Santucci	Urizzi
Chuck Adamson	Ancell
Sam Cirone	Martello
Spero Anast	Bukowski
Walter Scott	D. Simpson
Lora Staley	Paula
Hal Frank	Joe Gags
Del Close	Mechanic #1
John Kapelos	Mechanic
William Petersen	Katz & Jammer Bartender
Nathan Davis	Grossman
Marge Kotlisky	Mrs. Knowles
J. Saunders	Doctor
Michael Chan	Waiter
Tangerine Dream	Performer
Christopher Franke	Composer
Tangerine Dream	Composer
Craig Safan	Composer

Technical Credits

Michael Mann

Michael Mann	Director,Screenwriter,Executive Producer
Jerry Bruckheimer	Producer
Ronnie Caan	Producer
Vic Ramos	Casting
Russ Hessey	Special Effects
Ronald Caan	Producer
David Ronne	Sound/Sound Designer
J. Huntsman	Sound Editor

Editorial Reviews

Michael Mann's directorial debut is an electrifying profile of a professional thief trying to pull one last job so that he can retire. James Caan stars as Frank, the 40-something diamond thief and ex-con looking to achieve at least a semblance of a normal life. To that end he romances Tuesday Weld while contracting with local mob kingpin Robert Prosky to execute a major heist. Except for his role in Misery (1990), Caan has never had a better leading part in his career, and following a string of bad films, he obviously realized how good an opportunity this was. He inhabits the character of the tough-talking, ruthlessly efficient professional effortlessly, layering in an obsession with white-picket-fence life that would border on the comic were it not so grim. Indeed, the highlight of the film is a weird marriage proposal in which the thief shows his new girlfriend a battered fetish object, a collage he's assembled in prison that represents his idealized normal life complete with photos of a house, children, and a wife. The scene is at once touching, funny, and bizarre. Mann has clearly done his homework on the world of high-tech thievery, and the lengthy heist scenes have a satisfying thoroughness reminiscent of such classics as Rififi. The film is also helped enormously by the insistent, pulsating score of Tangerine Dream. Beside Prosky, the film includes a number of Chicago area veterans in its talented cast, including Dennis Farina, Jim Belushi, Tom Signorelli, and Del Close.

All Movie Guide - Michael Costello