Mann was this ever long and boring... First off, the score is so agressive and annoying, not sure why it's so intense but I couldn't wait for it to finally stop—very annoying sound! I don't know why this is labelled as action and thriller but there are no such things in this movie (a few gunshots don't count), it's crime drama all the way.

The story isn't very captivating but what kept me in anticipation was the heist, which was promised sinse the beginning. It circles around the drain the whole runtime before that but we finally see it happen in the last 40 minutes. Those **barely 10 minutes** of heist are awesome though, I appreciate the craft behind all the tools used to pick locks, cut wires and doors, it's fascinating and looks great.

The characters are interesting but it doesn't feel like we do anything with them. There was this one interesting deep conversation with his girlfriend in the car and then at the restaurant that I really liked but that's about it. Great cinematography in general but the best visual was the intro scene, it had perfect lighting and I loved the rainy setting and night lights. Good dialogue, alright acting, nice explosions and poor pacing.

Seen this one before but decided to do another watch at random. Really great crime-thriller with James Caan perfect alongside Michael Mann's masterful direction and writing. Not quite to the level of something like Heat but probably just below. One of the best heist films ever of the ones I've seen. **4.5/5**

You are making big profits from my work, my risk, my sweat.

Thief is written and directed by Michael Mann, who adapts the screenplay form the novel "The Home Invaders" written by Frank Hohimer. It stars James Caan, Tuesday Weld, Robert Prosky, James Belushi and Willie Nelson. Music is by Tangerine Dream and cinematography by Donald Thorin.

Frank (Caan) is a tough ex-con and expert jewel thief. He's working his way out to a normal life, but after being lured to a big job for the mob, he finds plans on both sides severely altered.

For his first full length theatrical feature, Michael Mann announced himself to the film world with some distinction, and in the process showed everyone what style of film making makes him tick. Thief is a film of stylised grit, visually, thematically and narratively. Set and filmed in Chicago, Mann, aided by Thorin, shoots the story through pure neo-noir filters.

At nighttime it is all a beautifully neon drenched haze, where the streets shimmer with dampness, a dampness brought about by the rain and god knows what else! By day there's a sweaty hue, a feeling that the heat is well and truly on, that even in daylight Frank isn't safe, his dreams may be a touch too far to reach. And no matter what the scene or scenario, Tangerine Dream are laying over the top a throbbing pulse beat, it's like The Warriors trying to get back to Coney Island, the music has a sense of dread about it, that danger is at every corner.

This part of Chicago stinks, it's a vile and corrupt place. Dirty cops everywhere, underworld criminals ruling the roost - Hell! You can even buy a baby if you want one. Is it any wonder that Frank just wants to settle down with a wife and child, to walk barefooted in the sea, to have domesticity? But Frank, as smart, tough and savvy as he is, seems to thrive on the edge of things, with Mann giving him earthy and honest dialogue to engage us with, marking him out as an identifiable everyman protagonist who just happens to be an exceptional thief.

Mann's attention to detail is on show straight away, none more so than with the two key safe cracking jobs that are undertaken. Using genuine jewel thieves as technical advisers on the film, these sequences ooze realism, from the tools used, the pre-planning and the execution of the takes, it smacks of reality and does justice to the genuine feel of the characterisations brought alive by the superb cast. And finally Mann delivers a finale of ambiguity, a noir shaded piece of abruptness, an ending that perfectly fits the whole production. 9/10

Michael Mann's directorial debut tells the story of a highly skilled safe-cracker (James Caan), doing very well as a freelancer, who falls for the temptation of glamorous scores offered by a better-connected wise guy. Caan's scuzzy bandit hawks used cars by day and slings boosted diamonds at night, a well-read but not exactly well-learned con man with a chip on his shoulder and a jumbo-sized inferiority complex. He developed his life's master plan while in prison, a grand ideal that's visualized by the oft-referenced photo collage he keeps folded in his wallet, but has overlooked the nuances of building his way up to that big payoff. As such, he's dead-set on skipping the formalities of courtship and leaping straight to material riches, familial spoils and industrial acclaim without taking the time to earn any of it. He gets pretty far by way of brazen fearlessness, unmatched technical know-how and raw willpower - right to the verge - but then the devil comes seeking his due and everything catches fire.

_Thief_ is a moody, wet-pavement type of film that's caught right in the middle of Hollywood's transition from slower, moodier '70s crime flicks to the more bombastic, narcissistic rewards of the coming decade. _Scarface_ probably borrowed a lot from this one, with its twisted sense of misplaced confidence, insatiable appetite and steep emotional distance.

Its dogged attention to detail is amazing - Mann insisted the actors learn the intricacies of the job, so when we're watching James Caan drill a safe, we're actually watching him do the dirty work - but that deliberate pace is less engaging during the long pauses and awkward hiccups of its human interactions. And the ending is more of a brick wall than a legitimate climax, a sudden rush of violent events that sees us to the credits but doesn't leave us completely satisfied. Right from the start, Mann shows he’s in full command of his medium, but he still has some room to grow.