Opening in theaters August 29 is ‘Caught Stealing,’ directed by Darren Aronofsky, written by Charlie Huston, and starring Austin Butler, Zoë Kravitz, Matt Smith, Regina King, Liev Schreiber, Vincent D’Onofrio, Griffin Dunne, Carol Kane, and Benito Martinez Ocasio.
2oCIRl00rIbchiGl75kai7Related Article: Darren Aronofsky in Early Talks to Direct Guru Thriller ‘Breakthrough’
Initial Thoughts
Known primarily for intense psychological dramas that often skirt the horror genre, director Darren Aronofsky has pivoted to a dark crime comedy with ‘Caught Stealing,’ from a screenplay by Charlie Huston based on the latter’s novel. Following the director’s last effort, the heavy, tragic ‘The Whale’ (2022), ‘Caught Stealing’ finds Aronofsky in a relaxed mode and even having some fun, while also returning to his hometown of New York City (setting of his first film, 1998’s ‘Pi’).
While it’s nice to see Aronofsky go in a lighter direction, he doesn’t always successfully navigate some of the more abrupt tonal switches in ‘Caught Stealing,’ making the narrative a somewhat jarring and uneven experience. Still, he manages to keep the movie unpredictable and loose, aided immensely by great performances from Austin Butler, Zoë Kravitz, Liev Schreiber, Regina King and others.
Story and Direction
Henry ‘Hank’ Thompson (Austin Butler) is a former California high school baseball star – his career cut short by injury and tragedy – and now a semi-permanently wasted bartender living and working in Lower Manhattan’s Alphabet City circa 1998. His patient girlfriend Yvonne (Zoë Kravitz) loves him but wants to know if he’s a man who can ‘keep his s**t together.’ Hank is put to the test when his punk rocker neighbor Russ (Matt Smith) asks him to watch his cat while Russ heads to London to see his ailing father – only for Hank to get a serious beating by two Russian thugs who come looking for Russ.
But that’s only the beginning of Hank’s problems. After getting out of the hospital minus one kidney, Hank is harassed by the thugs again, this time with a drug baron (Benito Martínez Ocasio, aka Bad Bunny) in tow. Soon even more people are involved in whatever trouble Russ has landed Hank in, including detective Elise Roman (Regina King) and Orthodox Jewish gangsters Lipa (Liev Schreiber) and Shmully (Vincent D’Onofrio).
‘Caught Stealing’ begins on a dark yet still humorous note, gets even more grim as it goes along, and finally takes a slightly more absurd turn as it barrels toward its conclusion. Aronofsky rides those tonal shifts the best he can, but one particularly shocking moment halfway through is a bit difficult to recover from. The plot also grows more convoluted as it goes along, with one exposition dump in the middle delivered so fast that it’s hard to sort out just who’s screwing over who.
Yet the film, ostensibly a caper, also stays resolutely unique thanks to its eclectic characters – including Russ’s adorable cat, played by Tonic — the grainy throwback sheen given the film by Aronofsky and cinematographer Matthew Libatique, its authentically gritty and diverse late-‘90s NYC milieu, and a propulsive soundtrack from post-punk act Idles.
Cast and Performances
Aronofsky has assembled a glittering ensemble for ‘Caught Stealing,’ but it’s still all tied together by the commanding work of Austin Butler. After a wasted performance earlier this summer in ‘Eddington,’ he’s got far more to work with, gradually peeling away the layers of Hank’s dissolution and lack of focus to get at the hurt, grief, and anger underneath. It’s a complex performance that showcases the actor’s rare ability to be both a leading man and a chameleon.
The rest of the cast is up to the task as well, but come in and out of the movie in fits and starts. Zoë Kravitz does solid, sympathetic work as Yvonne in her relatively brief screentime, while Regina King is both tough and enigmatic, and Matt Smith takes a big swing as the annoying, histrionic Russ. But our favorites are undoubtedly Liev Schreiber and Vincent D’Onofrio, whose Lipa and Shmully threaten to steal the last third of the film away from Butler with their funny yet strangely menacing repartee.
Final Thoughts
Thought we wished we could see more of those Hebrew crime barons – they really should be in more of the movie — ‘Caught Stealing’ gets by on the charm of its leading man and that darn cat. It’s also nice to see Darren Aronofsky play in a different field as a filmmaker, even if he doesn’t quite master the balance of absurd comedy and grittier melodrama. As with all the director’s films, ‘Caught Stealing’ is set in a reality that’s slightly off-kilter from ours, and while it’s not top-tier Aronofsky, it’s a welcome change of pace.
‘Caught Stealing’ receives a score of 70 out of 100.
What is the plot of ‘Caught Stealing’?
Former high school baseball star Hank Thompson (Austin Butler) is now a bartender living in downtown New York City. When his punk-rock neighbor Russ (Matt Smith) asks him to take care of his cat for a few days, Hank finds himself caught in the middle of a motley crew of angry gangsters — and has to find out what they want and why he’s their target.
Who is in the cast of ‘Caught Stealing’?
- Austin Butler as Henry “Hank” Thompson
- Zoë Kravitz as Yvonne
- Matt Smith as Russ
- Regina King as Roman
- Liev Schreiber as Lipa
- Vincent D’Onofrio as Shmully
- Griffin Dunne as Paul
- Benito Martínez Ocasio as Colorado
- Carol Kane as Bubbe
List of Darren Aronofsky Movies:
- ‘Pi’ (1998)
- ‘Requiem for a Dream’ (2000)
- ‘The Fountain’ (2006)
- ‘The Wrestler’ (2008)
- ‘Black Swan’ (2010)
- ‘Noah’ (2014)
- ‘Mother!’ (2017)
- ‘The Whale’ (2022)
- ‘Caught Stealing’ (2025)
