‘Caught Stealing’ Review
Stars: Austin Butler, Regina King, Zoë Kravitz, Matt Smith, Liev Schreiber, Vincent D’Onofrio, Griffin Dunne, Bad Bunny, Carol Kane | Written by Charlie Huston | Directed by Darren Aronofsky
Director Darren Aronofsky returns to the screen with Caught Stealing, a high-energy crime caper based on the novel by Charlie Huston, who also wrote the script. However, while the film has its moments, there’s an overall emptiness to it, and it lacks the director’s signature touch.
Set in 1990s New York, the film stars former Elvis Austin Butler as former baseball player Hank Thompson, who’s still harbouring serious PTSD after a traumatic car-related incident in his past. When he agrees to look after a cat (Tropic, a proper scene-stealer) belonging to his Mohican-sporting British punk neighbour Russ (Matt Smith, clearly enjoying himself), he finds himself targeted by two rival mobs, who believe that he’s hiding a stash of stolen money.
Things go from bad to worse when the Russians beat him so badly that he ends up in hospital, while his girlfriend, Yvonne (Zoe Kravitz), is also targeted by the mob. Also in the mix is no-nonsense Detective Roman (Regina King). But can she be trusted?
If there’s a defining mood to Caught Stealing (the title is a baseball/crime pun), that mood is chaos with a capital C. Aronofsky keeps things moving at such a breakneck pace that it quickly becomes exhausting, leaving no time for the supposedly emotional moments to hit home.
Aronofsky handles both the pacing and the action (including car chases and several very violent punch-ups) well enough, but it lacks any sense of depth, and none of it makes any emotional impact at all. Part of that is unfortunately down to Butler, who is undeniably pretty and carries the film well enough, but he’s also a bit of a blank slate when the script calls for a convincingly emotional response.
The supporting cast are also a bit of a mixed bag. Kravitz makes a strong impression and has palpable chemistry with Butler (their steamy sex scene is a ‘90s erotic thriller throwback in and of itself), but she’s criminally underused and her absence is keenly felt when she’s offscreen. On a similar note, Matt Smith is very funny as Russ, but he’s also offscreen for a significant stretch.
The nominally colourful cast also includes Liev Schreiber and Vincent D’Onofrio as a pair of Jewish mafia members, but their performances are lost under a ton of make-up, and they fail to make much of an impression. However, Regina King is very enjoyable as the hard-bitten cop who may know more than she’s letting on.
Caught Stealing also benefits from some fast-paced editing from Justin Allison and Andrew Weisblum, as well as a propulsive score by composer Rob Simonsen, performed by British post-punk band Idles. However, the end result ultimately feels rather generic, to the point where you wonder why Aronofsky was drawn to the project in the first place.
On a similar note, the chaotic nature of the script means that the film is all over the place, dashing haphazardly from one action sequence to the next. That isn’t helped by some over-the-top sound design that renders every sound effect at FULL VOLUME, whether it’s a door slamming, an object falling to the ground or frequent gunfire.
Effectively, then, Caught Stealing is simultaneously both overwhelming – in terms of the breakneck pacing and the sheer noise of it – and underwhelming, in terms of its overall impact. The cat is great though, and there’s a terrific final gag to boot.
*** 3/5
Caught Stealing is in cinemas now.
