September 6, 2002

The Good Thief
(Fox Searchlight) Rated NYR
Release Date - March 12, 2003

I am a big Neil Jordan fan, so it was an obvious choice.  But it turned out to be a charming surprise, with Jordan continuing to find new ways of expressing himself as a director.  It seems to me that only Bob Zemeckis makes as wide a range of films as Jordan… but unlike Zemeckis, Jordan doesn’t rely on genre as a foundation.  Every Jordan film has the potential to move forward and wave to the past all at once.

And indeed, The Good Thief is a 70s style character caper movie.  You’ve got Nick Nolte in the lead, reminding us all what a damned good actor he is.  But his character is also a wonderful piece of work.  He’s a sometimes junkie/drunk/gambler/thief who is living as an expatriate in France.  Apparently, they have a seven strikes law in France, since we are reminded often that after six convictions, one more could put him away for life.

This may be sounding a little like Heist.  And it is a little like Heist.  But not a lot.  Nolte’s character is quite a bit more complex than Hackman’s.  And his motivation to make one last score is not retirement, but survival.  Mix into this a breathtaking 17-year-old Russian girl who knows her way around the streets, a gruff, loving cop who doesn’t want to have to send Nolte’s character away and a black market art dealer played with devilish charm and palpable threat by Ralph Fiennes.  And through in some great turns from directors Emir Kusterica and Mark & Michael Polish.

But even with so many icons of British crime cinema, Jordan, who also wrote the screenplay, makes much more of it than would seem fair to expect.  When people screw-up, they have really interesting reasons.  Nolte’s relationship with the girl is always male/female, but never quite what you’d expect… or what she wants. 

The only moves that Jordan uses that I didn’t love were some freeze-frames at the end of some shots.  They stank of Soderbergh and they didn’t really work.  Outside of that, the work of Jordan, cinematographer Chris Menges and editor Tony Lawson was just delightful to watch.  

And above all, Nolte… a great, great piece of work for the big guy.  And unlike so many of his better roles, it’s not about suffering, even though he suffers.  He is a man who wants to be alive and has the skills to do it.  I don’t know if this film is going to have Oscar appeal, though I imagine a Sexy Beast-like effort from Fox Searchlight.  Nonetheless, if you love Nolte, you have to see this film.  And if you like Mike Hodges, you’ll enjoy seeing a film from one of the very few people who can top him.