Alex Reviews "Caught Stealing"

Darren Aronofsky (The Whale, Black Swan) is back to his off the rails gritty directing with Caught Stealing, which feels like the answer to “What if Quentin Tarantino, Guy Ritchie, and Aronofsky got black out drunk then decided to make a movie together?” That is meant with the greatest affection because I love all of their work.

Following a horrific injury, a baseball phenom is struggling with his demons while tending bar on the opposite side of the country. Hank (Austin Butler) gets through it with a combination of booze, low expectations, and the love of a caring nurse/girlfriend. However, his internal demons come to life after his punk rock neighbor (Matt Smith) convinces him to watch his cat when he’s called back to London for a family emergency.

First, allow me to clarify that I also love authenticity in a film and (except for a couple minor shots) the entirety of Caught Stealing was filmed in New York where the story takes place. It brought a genuine texture to every shot used in the final cut. While I doubt the tourism board would use the film, it definitely covered how dynamic and distinct many locations in the city are from each other. It makes the settings breathe life on their own.

While I enjoyed the ride the film takes us on, it does feel disjointed at times though that might be the point since it seems to relish in keeping the audience off balance. The first 20 minutes feels unnecessary beyond setting up the cat (big star in the picture) coming into Hank’s possession. An unattached opening followed by some solid title card work and straight into a weird introduction that mimicked the failing of Open Water and felt more like The Room gives way to our Hitchcock-Esque plot that is established in the trailers.

I wonder if there is a three-hour version that better fits the two opening scenes because much of the mayhem ties together well once you get past those. As the narrative twists almost every chance it gets, it does well to bring the audience along with just enough information to engage the turns rather than buck them. It does make me want to read the novel of the same name this film is based upon, which was also authored by the screenwriter Charlie Huston. It might work well to bridge a couple items that feel rushed or out of place. Aronofsky does tie the episodic acts well despite their drastic shifts. This is where the Guy Ritchie influence is really felt. The action scenes have the pop of Tarantino, but Aranofsky’s fingerprints are all over the visceral violence.

Austin Butler sounds like he is finally losing that Elvis accent that has haunted him the last few years, but he shines as a lovable loser here and does amazing work presenting in a way that it is impossible not to root from Bud and him. Zoë Kravitz again disappears into making any role hers alone, though I feel her introduction and the scene that follows (the aforementioned openings) does more to diminish her than it does to help.

If you are a fan of snappy “shoot ‘em up” pictures, you’ll enjoy Caught Stealing. If you want more substance, go for the amazing scene stealing of Liev Schreiber and Vincent D’Onofrio with their “Bubbe” and more. Worth every bit of the ticket price when it opens August 29^th.