Crime 101 Review: Chris Hemsworth vs Mark Ruffalo Should Explode In Michael Mann-Inspired Heist Thriller — Instead It Smoulders

Crime 101 (M18)

Starring Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Halle Berry, Barry Keoghan

Directed by Bart Layton

Crime doesn’t pay, so they say. But not for antihero Davis, a career criminal in the heist thriller Crime 101. Crime does pay — provided you stick to certain rules of engagement, chiefly: don’t kill anyone. Some bruises are okay, but deaths are strictly a no-no. As played by Chris Hemsworth, Davis is a tall drink of water — a lone wolf and larceny architect who specialises in taking down scores along LA’s Freeway 101. Inevitably, he plans to retire by pulling One Last Job, but God decides to throw a few roadblocks his way in the form of Mark Ruffalo’s gruff LAPD detective Lou and Barry Keoghan’s unhinged bleached-hair rival Ormon.

How much you enjoy Crime 101 — based on Don Winslow’s eponymous 2021 novella — depends on how big a fan you are of the 1995 Michael Mann classic Heat, the gold standard in cops-vs-robbers tales. At least, it starts out that way. As the film progresses, it has more in common with another Mann effort, his 1981 debut, Thief, a slow-burn portrait of existential professionalism, isolation, and the price of going straight, starring James Caan.

Elsewhere, it’s fun to see Hemsworth and Ruffalo — interestingly, both Mann veterans — sharing moments outside the Marvel Cinematic Universe. But therein lies the problem. When Mann pitted Al Pacino’s supercop against Robert De Niro’s super-robber in Heat, it was the first time these titans shared the screen, and it was electric — a big f***ing deal.  Here, Hemsworth and Ruffalo finally go face to face in the third act just feels strangely ordinary. Even more low-key is the showdown where the tension builds and builds, but it never delivers the explosive pop. It almost feels like a cop-out. Is Layton — who directed the overlooked 2018 true-crime docu-drama American Animals — subverting expectations? If so, he’s certainly committed to the bit.

Crime 101 is more than just a procedural; it also examines social anxieties, police corruption, and outright anger at a rigged system that benefits the rich. The latter is seen through the eyes of Halle Berry’s high-claims adjuster Sharon, whose shoddy treatment by her employers makes her susceptible to Davis’ proposition. As revealed in a later scene, you wonder who’s the bigger criminal: Davis or some of Sharon’s wealthy clientele. (3/5 stars) in cinemas now

The Bluff (NC16)

Starring Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Karl Urban, Temuera Morrison, Ismael Cruz Cordova

Directed by Frank E Flowers

Priyanka Chopra Jonas is in beast mode as a retired 19th-century buccaneer who has gone legit (read: new identity, marriage, kids). But she’s forced to confront her violent past when former associates — led by Karl Urban’s chief villain — return for the loot she’s absconded from them. The action is adequate but rarely generates excitement. (Sorry, John Wick spoiled us.) The low-light photography (crank up the brightness on your telly!) doesn’t help either. Nor do two f***ing annoying side characters (you don’t want them to meet the Shibuya Crossing Lady). Entertaining enough, but not enough to break out of the second-screen-fodder prison. (2.5/5 stars) on Prime Video

Photo: Paul Abell/Amazon MGM Studios

Shutter (M18)

Starring Vino G. Bastian, Anya Geraldine, Niken Anjani

Directed by Herwin Novianto

The 2004 Thai horror Shutter — about a photographer terrorised by a vengeful ghost appearing in his photos — now gets an Indonesian redo. If you thought the Joshua Jackson-starring Hollywood remake was a dud, you ain’t seen nothing yet. Save for a grisly impaling death, this Shutter slavishly sticks to the original blueprint, adding very little to make it stand out on its own.  It’s a wrecking ball of ineptitude, really. The jump scares feel like post-test-screening add-ons, the bad-haired spectre is more jokey than jolt-inducing, and then there’s that Big Climax. No, the big reveal doesn’t surprise me (remove the ending and you’re left with a checklist of Asian horror tropes). What does surprise me is how clumsily it’s all put together. (2/5 stars) on Netflix