4K ULTRA HD REVIEW / HDR SCREENSHOTS
James Caan gives the finest performance of his career as Frank, a highly skilled, independent safecracker who goes about getting the money he’s due following a job.
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“THIEF: THE CRITERION COLLECTION”
4K Ultra HD & Blu-ray, 1981, R for violence, language and brief sexuality
Best extra: The 1995 commentary with writer/director Michael Mann and star James Caan
IMDB LISTS 137 credits for James Caan, among them Brian Piccolo in “Brian’s Song” (1971), John Baggs Jr. in “Cinderella Liberty” (1973), Paul Sheldon in “Misery” (1990) and, of course, his Oscar-nominated performance as fiery Sonny Corleone in “The Godfather” (1972).
But there’s a solid case to be made that he was never better than as Frank, the no-nonsense jewel thief he plays in “Thief,” the gritty feature-film debut from writer/director Michael Mann (“The Insider,” “Heat”).
As if “plays” does his gripping, complex performance justice. In a 1995 commentary with Mann, Caan says he arrived in Chicago four weeks before shooting began to learn the tools of the trade from the film’s “technical advisers” — the real-life thieves hired by Mann, a native of the Windy City. He also honed his speech pattern to reflect Frank’s time in the slam — he never uses a contraction — and went through a Navy SEALs firearms course so when he handled his piece, it was second nature.
“Of all the movies I’ve done, I don’t remember being prepared vis a vis the details and back story,” Caan says. “Shooting was the easiest part because all the work had been done upfront. When I came on the set, I was Frank.”
(1) Caan learned to use the same 200-pound magnetic drill wielded by real-life thieves to crack a real safe early in the movie. (2) The next morning, he issues some marching orders. (3&4) Frank brings the stones to the fence Joe Gags (Hal Frank), who agrees to pay him $185,000. (5) Tuesday Weld is excellent as Jessie, a cashier with her own past. She and Frank marry and “adopt” a son.
He goes on to say that “the beautiful simplicity” of Mann’s script attracted him to the role. “Raised by the state,” Frank did a stretch in Joliet, where he survived by not marking the days, months and years and learned that “nothing means nothing.” Four years after his release, he owns a used-car lot, a bar and pulls in serious money as an independent high-line thief: He only steals more valuable uncut diamonds.
All that changes when he marries Jessie, who has her own past. Tuesday Weld (“Looking for Mr. Goodbar,” “Once Upon a Time in America”) is wonderful in the role — like Caan’s, her performance couldn’t be more authentic. Their intimate scene in a diner where Frank shows all his cards is one of the best in the movie.
Frank is good at his work, so good that he attracts the attention of Leo, a sad-faced mobster played by Robert Prosky (“Broadcast News”) in his first film role. Leo offers him $830,000 to crack a safe in Los Angeles; Frank takes the job on his terms: He works with his own crew, gets paid in cash and when the job is done, so is he. When Leo double-crosses him, Frank blows up his house and bar, burns down his car lot and throws out Jessie and their adopted son so he can again become the nihilist he was behind bars and get even.
The entire cast is on their game, especially Willie Nelson in a too-brief appearance as Okla, Frank’s mentor in Joliet, and Jim Belushi (“Red Heat”), in one of his first roles as Frank’s partner Barry. “Thief” was also the debut of the prolific Dennis Farina (“Get Shorty”). Look closely and you’ll also spot first-timer William Petersen, whose leading-man chops were on full display in Mann’s third film, 1986’s “Manhunter.”
And there’s no question that Mann was ready to roll when he settled into the director’s chair. Cases in point: the heist that opens the film and the job in L.A. are as authentic and tense as the sequence Jules Dassin orchestrated in his 1955 classic, “Rififi.”
(1) Frank keeps a collage that he assembled in prison depicting the life that he wants. (2) Willie Nelson, in a too-brief appearance, is also excellent as Okla, Frank’s mentor in prison. (3) In one of his first film roles, Jim Belushi plays Frank’s trusted partner Barry. (4) Frank meets Attaglia (Tom Signorelli) to discuss the money he’s owed. (5&6) Robert Prosky made his film debut as Leo, the mobster who recruits Frank for a job in L.A., then stiffs him.
VIDEO/AUDIO
Created from the 35mm original camera negative and approved by Mann, “Thief” (1.85:1 aspect ratio) shines, so to speak, in 4K UHD. It’s a dark movie in every sense, but, presented in Dolby Vision HDR, nothing is lost. Working with first-time cinematographer Donald E. Thorin (“Purple Rain”), Mann’s rain-slick streets and dark, claustrophobic alleys are menacingly alive. Detail is top-flight, too, while a steady grain caps the you-are-there experience.
Everything was encoded onto a 100 GB disc and the video averages in the mid-80 Megabits per second.
Mann also OK’d the remastered 5.0 surround soundtrack. It checks all the boxes: the soundstage is broad and deep, dialogue, even at its most hushed, is clear and the gunfire hits you square in the gut. The pulsing, ominous score by German electronic pioneers Tangerine Dream ties everything together.
EXTRAS
There are only three, all of them carryovers, but they do the job. The Mann-Caan commentary is one of the best. Mann said there were no props — the cumbersome drills that Frank uses and the safes he cracks were the real deal because anything else would “limit authenticity.” Caan laughs when he recalls getting a round of applause from the technical advisers for the way he handled the tools. Mann also points out that for decades beginning in the 1940s, most of the crews, including those who operated nationally, came from Chicago.
And how’s this for authenticity? John Santucci, who plays the police sergeant who leans on Frank, was a high-liner in real life.
The other extras are interviews with Mann, Caan and Tangerine Dream’s Johannes Schmoelling and an insightful essay by Nick James, former editor of the British Film Institute’s Sight and Sound magazine and author of a 2022 book on Mann’s “Heat.”
— Craig Shapiro
(1) Frank and his crew case the fortress-like California bank where the diamonds are kept. (2&3) John Santucci, a real-life thief and one of the film’s “technical advisers,” is Urrizi, a Chicago police sergeant who leans on Frank to bring down Leo. (4&5) The high-liners use a specially-made device to crack the bank safe; Frank takes a breather after the job. (6) Frank, Jessie and David get away from it all. (7) Before tracking down Leo, Frank prepares to torch his used-car lot. (8) Dennis Farina, in his first film, plays Carl, one of Leo’s henchmen.