Director: Bart Layton
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Barry Keoghan, Monica Barbaro, Corey Hawkins, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Nick Nolte, Halle Berry
Certificate: 15
Run Time: 140 mins

Crime 101 is the new Bart Layton film, who last directed the excellent American Animals all the way back in 2018. Staying in the heist film genre, Crime 101 stars Chris Hemsworth as an elusive jewel thief, who skilfully plans violence-free robberies while escaping via the 101 Freeway in Southern California. When a job that goes wrong shakes him up, he calls off his next planned robbery, but his fence Money (Nick Nolte) sends a psychotic young biker Ormon (Barry Keoghan) to do it instead with violent results. Mark Ruffalo plays Detective Lou Lubesnick who investigates the robberies and Halle Berry plays an insurance broker who’s becoming increasingly frustrated with her firm. It’s certainly got a star-studded cast.

For the vast majority of its runtime, Crime 101 is a hypnotic heist film with brilliantly developed characters and thrilling set pieces. While many will inevitably make comparisons with Michael Mann’s Heat, Crime 101 takes the usual crime thriller and Los Angeles tropes and does something interesting with them. This is a film that gives its characters space to breathe – Hemsworth is excellent as the stoic lead who wants emotional fulfilment but can’t make eye contact or bring himself to tell Monica Barbaro’s love interest what he does for a living. Mark Ruffalo’s perhaps more impressive as the dishevelled detective, who’s under pressure from his superior to find a neat solution to the robberies and park the case, and Barry Keoghan’s suitably slimy as the unstable motorbiker with bleached white hair. Layton also lays on some interesting critique on materialism in how every character is simply concerned with earning or gaining money or possessions to feel happiness.

The meaty substance is complimented by some terrific action sequences – the opening heist is outstanding, as is a car chase around half-way through. It’s confidently shot by Erik Wilson – the opening shot of an inverted LA skyline is particularly memorable and he doesn’t resort to quick, frenetic cuts on the action sequences, instead allowing them to breathe. Blanck Mass’ moody soundtrack is also excellent and ups the film’s intensity.

My only real qualm with Crime 101 is it doesn’t quite stick the ending – while the film builds up to a satisfying finale, its final scenes feel a little too neat, but I can mostly forgive the final five minutes or so when the rest of it’s just so gripping. Otherwise, Crime 101 is yet another brilliant showcase of Bart Layton’s talent and certainly the best heist film I’ve seen since American Animals or Widows. I can’t wait to see what he does next.