Film Reviews & Movie Analysis

Darren Aronofsky’s Caught Stealing marks a shift in tone and genre for the director of The Whale, Black Swan and Requiem for a Dream. This chaotic crime thriller follows a reluctant hero (Austin Butler) who is circumstantially drawn into the world of corruption and criminals.

This movie is fun, it’s frantic, and at times, it’s just plain messy — but that’s part of its charm. Whilst Butler gives a decent performance channelling his own cheeky swagger matched with his character’s internalised rage, Matt Smith was an oddly endearing off-beat British Punk. Despite his limited screen time his character left more of a lasting impression than Butlers ‘All American Boy’ bit.

While I have you, Bad Bunny deserves a mention he’s starred in a few American movies and I have a soft spot for the musician trying his hand at acting.

As entertaining as it is, Caught Stealing feels strangely shallow. Aronofsky teases themes of grief, addiction, identity and the impossibility of letting go of the past but never digs deep enough to make them land. Perhaps this movie was supposed to do what it said on the tin and no more, but if so then this character driven action movie didn’t do enough to stand out against others of its genre.

The ending, in particular, left me underwhelmed. It’s unrealistic, over-the-top, and quintessentially Aronofsky — but this time it felt incomplete, making the movie all punchline and no joke.