Caught Stealing
Caught Stealing or caught in the middle of something.
Darren Aronofsky’s latest film takes us back to 90s New York where we're introduced to Hank(Austin Butler) a former baseball star turned bartender who agrees to watch his neighbour Russ's cat whilst he goes away to care for his ill father. Not long after some guys call to the neighbours door asking questions, Hank is then subjected to a severe beating, ending up in hospital and in way over his head. This sparks a frantic, violent chain of events that leads getting deeper and deeper into the chaos of mistaken identity, hidden keys, mobsters, dirty cops and conspiracies.Austin Butler gets dragged into this mayhem and has to scrape his way out, his performance really carries the film in times of tension and vulnerability.
The supporting cast is strong with Zoe Kravitz, Matt Smith, Regina King, Liev Schreiber and Bad Bunny. The cast really lean into the movies mix of dark humour and over the top style, which keeps it from being to serious. Some of the characters are exagerrated but that makes the movie more fun to watch. Their performances keep it lively and unpredictabke, even when things get a little crazy. Darren Arronofsky is known for deep, psychological movies but this time he goes for something faster paced and more action packed. The movie moves quickly, packed with fights, chases, twists and close calls. It’s a non stop ride that keeps you hooked from one moment to the next. So with all the positives out of the way let’s get into the negatives.
The movie mixes a lot of different tones, dark violence, humour, deeper emotional themes and sometimes it doesnt quite know which direction to go. There are moments when the mood changes suddenly, one minute you're laughing, the next you're cringing at something brutal. Some of the character choices also feel a bit rushed or not fully explained. Hank often bounces back from situations to quickly or makes big decisions without giving it much thought. For frequent viewers of Darren Aronofsky’s films wanting deeper character studies this may leave them a little disappointed.
My rating of 3.5 stars is fair i believe. The film has energy, memorable moments and solid performances, it’s fun in a messy action filled way. But it has some uneven storytelling and a few moments that just don’t make sense. If you like gritty crime thrillers with a side of dark humour, you'll likely be entertained by this, but if you prefer tighter plots or deeper emotions you might feel somewhat disappointed. This is a bold change for Darren Arronofsky with less of his psychological style and more chaos. Its not a deep character study and even with it being rough around the edges it stays interesting.
Watch the trailer here