The Good Thief (2002)

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.

Fmovies: Remakes are repugnant in principle, but they can occasionally be worthwhile, if the people making them actually have something new to say. That's definitely the case with The Good Thief.

Jean-Pierre Melville's 1956 Bob le Flambeur is a quirky but masterful film. It's also flawed in many ways. Its most obvious limitation is the leading man, Roger Duchesne, who clearly lacks the charisma required by the part. Melville worked on the cheap, and couldn't afford a big-name star. Neil Jordan rectifies that problem beautifully; Nick Nolte is absolutely the perfect choice to play Bob Montagné.

Bob le Flambeur also has a very peculiar loping pace, which adds to its charm, but works against its logic. Things in Melville's films seem to happen almost at random; characters often come and go, win or lose, for little obvious reason. Jordan adds several levels to Meleville's original plot, making it flow more smoothly and rationally. In the process, he turns The Good Thief into a rather different film - more of a complex heist caper, compared to Melville's simpler mood piece.

Nonetheless, The Good Thief does retain Melville's fundamental affection for the central character. In fact, we get a deeper look at Bob, who has now added a drug habit to his other vices. Jordan also does a lot more work to 'sell' the original ending. He gives us a more explicit interpretation - it's all about doing things with style. This is Jordan's personal commentary on a film he obviously admires.

Of course, despite its flaws (or perhaps because of them), Bob le Flambeur is clearly a ground-breaking masterpiece. The Good Thief is not. It's merely a very good film - likable, clever, insightful, less frustrating and far more entertaining than the original. It's not so much a remake as a reinterpretation. It deepens our appreciation of the original, but also stands alone as a fine work in its own right.

In short, I'd recommend both films very highly. See Bob le Flambeur when you're in the mood for a breakthrough art film, graced with moody black-and-white photography of 1950s Paris. See The Good Thief when you'd prefer a colorful caper film with strong characters and some real philosophical depth.

The whole movie, man this was good.. Nolte, the girl and the whole movie - all perfect.. This movie is done with style, good taste and imagination. This is not a basic average Hollywood-movie - it's a great mixture of the best stuff from both American and European movies, still without any over-dramatizing you see in independent films. The acting and the casting is just fantastic, all lead roles pull of something they might never repeat. -AND the movie really has the moods; spectacular atmosphere throughout the movie. Since this movie I've been searching for all Nolte-movies I haven't seen.. Really, I say no more, you just make sure you see this one! Totally amazing..

The Good Thief fmovies. 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.

THE GOOD THIEF (3+ outta 5 stars)

Very good character study/caper film about a drug-addicted American criminal (Nick Nolte) in France who straightens himself out for one more Big Score. He in constantly under the watchful eye of a kindly police inspector who wants to stop him for his own good... so he hits upon a plan to devise a *fake* robbery to divert attention from the *real* one. It's a remake of an old French classic, "Bob La Flambeur" (which I haven't seen yet... so I may have a different take on this movie after I've seen the original). The cast (various character actors of different nationalities) is great... and Nolte portrays a very believable down-on-his-luck substance-abuser... but that may not be much of a stretch for him. Directed and written by Neil Jordan... it may not be one of his best movies ("The Crying Game", "The Butcher Boy") but it's still a fine piece of work.

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.