The Art of the Steal (2014)

Simply A Masterpiece

Don't listen to the negative reviews

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

This was a fun and funny twist on the perennial heist theme! I enjoyed the performances of Russel and Dillon particularly. This was a lot funnier than your standard heist movie. Kurt Russel is always classic as the vulgar ex-con. The two funniest characters were Francie and Uncle Paddy. My favorite segment was when Guy was telling the story of the theft of Mona Lisa, it was a fun segment with an entertaining way of telling it. I like how it was fast paced and funny, it kept the laughs coming while keeping the pace moving. One of the funniest bits was when Russel was like "No, I'm being held at gunpoint by a pirate! I'm in the bathroom, what do think Francie?". The side story of the Interpol agent tracking them is quite funny too. I had never heard of it, but the synopsis looked entertaining, and I like the actors so I tried it and enjoyed it. It is a brief movie, so even if you aren't enjoying the ride, it will be over all too quickly. Many fun twists to be had, give this one a go. 8/10.

Well just seen it and very shocked, most of the films you never hear of or go straight to DVD, tend to have good reason (there is many horrible big budget films also) and so as a Kurt fan I watched it.Its a lower budget Oceans 11, but what it does have is a good story, great cast who work well together, good direction, and a hell of a script.........its a very funny film, not often I laugh out loud, but there is loads of quotable lines.Its a shame it never got any real cinema time, I would rate it very high on the entertaining side, and if you get a chance to watch it, do so.

Heist movies are usually popular, but guys like Luc Besson or Guy Ritchie have introduced us with so skillful creations that it is virtually difficult to excel them. Nevertheless, people keep on trying, and if there are witty angles and/or distinct cast, then the result is good as well. The Art of the Steal is a fine example of the latter, as its 85 minutes are filled with witty and funny lines, unexpected twists, peculiar characters and noted actors, particularly Kurt Russell as Crunch Calhoun, Matt Dillon as Nicky Calhoun, Terence Stamp as Samuel Winter, Jay Baruchel as Francie Tobin; as for Baruchel, Francie is his role I have liked most.Thus, the movie in question is not a flabby hare-brained entertainment: you have to monitor and follow closely, as new angles and situations appear again and again. As the pre-ending and ending are also unexpected, you would most probably be content with what you saw when the credits are shown. Well done, Jonathan Sobol (director and screenwriter), although you remain still unfamiliar to me...

STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday Morning Scam artiste Crunch Calhoun (Kurt Russell) pulled off a job in Poland, that saw him turned in by his own brother Nicky (Matt Dillon) for a reduced sentence. A few years later, after a motorcycle stunt went wrong, he finds himself holed up in casts, until he's asked to retrieve the real copy of a stolen book, reuniting his old crew and setting out on a mission that is not all that it seems and everything can change in the blink of an eye.Kurt Russell seems to have disappeared in to the background in recent years, flitting as he always did between hit and miss, and now he pops up in this technically impressive, but overly flawed thriller, that actually declines in quality the more it goes on.The things that make it interesting to start with are the things that come to be it's downfall, with the slick, stylish opening, and the plot that requires your attention becoming respectively over whelming and just convoluted and overly complex. But it maintains a sense of substance and sophistication that never stops commanding your attention throughout, and while it's not the sum of it parts, it doesn't fail to cover the cracks. **