One of the unsung heroes of cinema is the heist movie. From meticulous planning to high-octane chases, heist films bring out the best in creators and deliver exciting and unforgettable stories.
Not all heist films follow the same formula, and others can be found in franchises that never explored heists before. Nevertheless, the end result, especially in the 21st century, has been exciting films worth watching for various reasons.
Baby Driver Delivers Fun Editing in a Fast-Paced Heist Film
Directed by Edgar Wright, Baby Driver follows a young man with tinnitus who has to constantly listen to music, even when he’s the wheelman for a heist. The film follows his desire to leave the life because he fell in love and the chaos that ensues from his decision.
Baby Driver is a fun and stylish film with great action that also features some impressive editing techniques to run in time with the music that’s being played. It makes all of the chase sequences exhilarating and gives the movie a tempo most other heist films never have.
Inside Man Shows Two Sides of a Heist
Spike Lee’s Inside Man takes an incredible director’s visionary style and delivers a heist film no one could suspect. Following the perspective of the robber and the detective trying to catch him, viewers see two sides of an elaborate bank heist.
The performances in Inside Man are what fuel the story as Denzel Washington and Clive Owen shine in their roles. Lee also forces the audience to see the side of the robbers and understand the grey area in why they are stealing in the first place. Conflicting ideals culminate in a twist ending no one could suspect, but are what make Inside Man so good.
Fast Five Shifted a Classic Franchise in a New Direction
The Fast & Furious franchise was and still is always about the cars. But how those cars are used and altered are what make the franchise exciting long after the street racing angle took a backseat. Fast Five was the start of this, as it showed how cars can be used for the perfect heist in an unsuspecting way.
While the franchise is one that has become the butt of many jokes, Fast Five is a surprisingly good time as Dom Toretto and Brian O’Conner conduct a bank heist to live in peace while outrunning the authorities. The stunts of Fast Five are the highlight, and it’s also the first film to shift the franchise into a genre beyond car racing.
Inception Twists the Concept of a Heist in a Fun Way
Christopher Nolan’s films often take traditional genres and give them a mind-bending twist or convey them in a way never seen before. Inception is one of the best examples of this, as it serves as a heist film where a man travels into the dreams of his target and he and his team plant an idea that could change the course of events for businesses or more.
Inception is a great example of amazing effects to convey a dream world as well as a story that lets the character’s personal motivations impact the larger narrative. Inception is a strange and fun heist movie that’s worth checking out at least once.
Ocean’s Eleven Elevated a Heist Classic
A remake of the classic Frank Sinatra film, Ocean’s 11, the 2001 remake upped the ante with its plot to have Danny Ocean and his crew steal from three of the biggest modern casinos in Las Vegas in one night. While the trilogy is a great time to watch, the first film set a new standard for heist films in the 21st century.
Ocean’s Eleven has flash and style and more than a few laughs and brought a gravitas to the heist genre that had been missing for some time. It’s not about the shootouts or the twist ending, just a group of people doing their best to pull off an impossible job.