Don Reviews "Crime 101"

Running a successful jewelry store is very difficult.  Besides the normal expenses like the rent and employees, the inventory itself is where things can get complicated.  Insurance is a must in this case, which can average about one to two percent of the annual value of everything being kept there, and the bigger the store and inventory, the higher the costs.  Add to that the possibility of jewel thieves rolling in, and you have Crime 101.

Bart Layton (American Animals) writes and directs here with a cast that includes Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Halle Berry, Barry Keoghan, Corey Hawkins, and Nick Nolte.  This is your basic crime movie based in Los Angeles with expert and meticulous criminal named Mike (Hemsworth) who specializes in high-end jewelry robberies.  He is being chased by Lou (Ruffalo), who has found out his pattern, even though others on the force don’t buy in.  When he decides to not take a heist he plans, his fence (Nolte) hires a younger and more reckless thief named Ormon (Keoghan), and after that goes a bit sideways, they both get into a caper that involves a number of jewels coming to a wedding with information supplied to them by Sharon (Berry), who works for the insurance company that has the policies on them.

This cast contains some well-known actors including some award winners and long-time veterans like Berry and Nolte, and they all do a good job here.  I have always enjoyed Ruffalo’s work specifically, and he also has good chemistry with Berry.  Hemsworth’s work is different compared to some of the stuff he has done in the past, but here he does well playing a quiet and secluded person who does not open up to people but is very on-point with his work.  The cinematography is also fine, using good camera techniques and angles.

The core story is good, but with a running time of two hours and twenty minutes, this is way too long.  It reminds me too much of Heat down to even the crime at the center of the story.  Don’t get me wrong, Layton has done great crime films in the past, but this doesn’t get there.  There are a few good moments, but it does not make up at the end, so I can only recommend Crime 101 to be watched at home on cable service like HBO.