Shadows on the Wall | Caught Stealing

Caught Stealing

dir Darren Aronofsky
scr Charlie Huston
prd Darren Aronofsky, Jeremy Dawson, Dylan Golden, Ari Handel
with Austin Butler, Regina King, Zoe Kravitz, Matt Smith, Benito Martinez Ocasio, Liev Schreiber, Vincent D'Onofrio, Yuri Kolokolnikov, Griffin Dunne, George Abud, D'Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai, Carol Kane, Laura Dern
release US/UK 29.Aug.25
25/US Columbia 1h47

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With a blast of scrappy energy, this crime thriller ricochets through a messy plot in which anything might happen next. While it's comical, the violence is sudden and very nasty. Filmmaker Darren Aronofsky is gifted at cutting through genres while keeping the audience engaged, and that's what makes it so easy for us to root for an unruly central character who is innocently dragged into a brutal situation.

In 1998 Manhattan, barman Hank (Butler) is still trying to forget that his pro baseball dream was shattered in a car crash. And now his girlfriend Yvonne (Kravitz) is helping him take life more seriously. Then one day, thugs looking for his British punk neighbour Russ (Smith) beat Hank up horrifically. Investigating detective Roman (King) understands the trouble Hank is in, caught between the Russian mob and two fearsome Orthodox Jewish brothers (Schreiber and D'Onofrio). But Hank is running out of people he can trust, and everyone is looking for a huge stash of cash.

Adapting his novel, screenwriter Huston creates a wonderfully ramshackle narrative, as each scene spirals quickly out of control, leading to something even more perilous. Thankfully, quiet moments along the way allow us (and the characters) to catch a breath. And the presence of Russ' tetchy scene-stealing cat Bud helps too. So while some situations are improbable, especially action beats involving a guy who has just had major surgery, the likeably loose pacing encourages us to hang on for the ride.

Each character is a fascinating bundle of conflicting thoughts and feelings, including the goons, which adds layers of engagement to every confrontation. In an unusually nuanced action performance, Butler puts his full physicality to terrific use as Hank gets beaten and broken but never stops moving, fuelled by a mix of adrenaline and emotional rawness. Both King and Kravitz skilfully add textures to their roles, Smith is riotously nonstop, and there are great scenes for side players along the way, most notably the wonderful Kane as the brothers' Bubbe.

While Hank certainly doesn't deserve this escalating chaos, his lingering guilt and grief convince him that he does. So we refuse to give up on him, holding our breath with each astonishingly staged action set-piece, including desperate chases, explosive shootouts, terrifying conversations and fiery standoffs. The collateral carnage is sometimes jaw-dropping, especially alongside a series of blackly comical riffs on attempts to gentrify New York during this period. But the resulting film feels enervating and surprisingly empowering.

themes, language, violence 26.Aug.25

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