Chaotic, violent, and in your face entertaining, Caught Stealing is far from the type of film one would expect from Darren Aronofsky. Despite its brutal story and blood-splattered execution, the project could be seen as “a fun one”, considering the director’s polarizing filmography of dark and depressive character studies. After his last work, 2022’s unbearably heavy-handed The Whale, Aronofsky finds himself more loose on this one, delivering a film that hopes to be something of a crowd pleaser.
Caught Stealing is set in 1998 New York City; the Twin Towers fill the cityscape while various now-defunct mini-landmarks still exist. It is a pleasure to experience a film that returns to the gritty vibe of the NYC thrillers that populated the 80s and 90s. These days, too-few directors know how to use New York City as its own character. Spike Lee, Martin Scorsese, Woody Allen, and a select few living filmmakers embrace the city and its endless cinematic potential. Others either take advantage of the Canadian tax credits by shooting their movies in the Great White North (trying to pass off Toronto for New York), or fail to properly use NYC’s grand skylines, architecture, and culture.
Aronofsky’s longtime cinematographer Matthew Libatique shoots the grim nighttime and hazy daylight to perfection. Through the rugged bar where the lead character is employed, the sweaty, crowded streets, and run-down apartment buildings, and the public parks and subway systems, Libatique’s camera allows the film (and its viewers) to move with the pulse of the city.
Adapted by Charlie Huston from his 2004 novel of the same name, Caught Stealing tells the tale of Hank Thompson (Austin Butler, oozing charismatic star power). Once a high school baseball prodigy from California, Hank’s dreams of going pro were shattered by a car crash that killed his best friend. Now in his twenties, Hank is a New York City bartender at a sleazy bar run by cokehead storyteller Paul (an underutilized Griffin Dunne). As he passes the nights away behind the bar, the haunting memory of that fatal crash never leaves him; an emotional affliction that attributes to his heavy drinking habits.
After a shift, Hank and his girlfriend Yvonne (Zoë Kravitz) head to his apartment where he finds Russ (Matt Smith), his strangely out-of-era punk rocker neighbor, in the hallway and in need of a favor. Smith has never had a role this fun nor one that lets him portray the polar opposite of his usual characters. The actor gives Russ a manic, “Fuck Off”, energy and a look that nearly renders the actor unrecognizable. While Russ disappears for a good portion of the film, the performance is one of the film’s highlights.
Persuaded to watch Russ’ cat while he is away, Hank’s troubles begin, as a rotating population of dangerous characters are trying to find Russ and will tear through anyone who knows him. These various mobsters, killers, and creeps keep Hank painfully brutalized and constantly scared.
This who’s who of thugs is well cast. Yuri Kolokolnikov and Nikita Kukushkin make something entertaining out of their standard Russian goons. Kukushkin stands out as a human equivalent of an attack dog. Bad Bunny is the stone-faced thug who controls them. He’s fun to watch, but his character isn’t anything special.
Liev Schrieber and Vincent D’Onofrio inhabit the film’s most interesting characters, Lipa and Schmully, the Drucker brothers. The two men are Hasidic Jews who carry guns and kill anyone who crosses them, or sometimes, just to make a point. Violent and unforgiving, the two take their religion as seriously as their criminal business. On the way to shoot up a wedding, the men stop to see their “bubbe” (the always welcome Carol Kane) for a shabbos meal. It is always great to see these two excellent actors on screen, and together, their moments add a dazzling gravitas.
While stacked with a great cast, the film falters by giving some of the actors the shaft. Dunne and Kravitz receive too little screen time. The former deserved more character development, especially in a later scene where a batshit moment reveals Paul’s surprising grit. Kravitz has an important role, but the screenplay doesn’t allow for any deeper development beyond the “put-upon” lover.
Regina King (one of our most interesting actors) does a fine job as a detective who is trying to figure out why Hank is caught in the middle of such a strange case. King is stuck in a standard role that holds no real surprises. The actress is given a moment where she waxes poetic about the Black and White cookie. The dialogue is rendered redundant, as a famous Seinfeld episode found Jerry telling Elaine about the social relevance of said cookie. As King spoke, the words, “Look to the cookie, Elaine. Look to the cookie!”, ruined whatever intended reaction the film had in mind.
Aronofsky infuses the picture with a constant and contagious energy. As Hank’s world spirals, the director amps up the kinetic aura and keeps his story gripping. Unfortunately, the film stumbles in a section of its final act where it veers too close to a Guy Ritchie action flick; tainting the picture’s vibe, but only for a brief time.
This time out, Darren Aronofsky doesn’t wallow in his lead character’s pain, The unique filmmaker can make art out of the spiral of the soul, but too often dwells on physical and emotional pain with a voyeuristic glee.
Austin Butler’s Hank can be seen as the flip side of Jared Leto’s Harry Goldfarb from Aronofsky’s Requiem For a Dream. Where that film is a descent into Hell, Caught Stealing is more of a fun-thriller in its design. The suffering in this one is of the popcorn entertainment variety and that is just fine.
This is a film that embraces the story’s violence and its lead character’s destructive tendencies; a welcome pleasure, as most of today’s films are afraid to get down and dirty.
Aronofsky and his cast and crew get down and get dirty. While Caught Stealing feels like a one-off and may not linger in one’s memory for too long, this is a fine throwback entertainment.
Caught Stealing
Written by Charlie Huston
Directed by Darren Aronofsky
Starring Austin Butler, Zoë Kravitz, Regina King, Matt Smith, Griffin Dunne, Liev Schreiber, Vincent D’onofrio
R, 107 Minutes, Columbia Pictures, Protozoa Pictures
