Crime 101

From Thor and Hulk to (basically) McCauley and Hanna. The reunion of two of Marvel’s mightiest heroes, Chris Hemsworth and Mark Ruffalo, as a meticulous but troubled thief and the schlebby, Columbo-alike detective on his case across LA evokes unenviable Heat comparisons. They’re overblown but not outrageous. 

Crime 101 doesn’t have quite the operatic sweep of Michael Mann’s 1995 crime masterpiece or its army of supporting characters, but it’s a serious and satisfying throwback to the golden days of the crime thriller, full of crackling dialogue, noirish LA locations and adrenalised car chases, all briskly overseen by talented British writer-director Bart Layton (The Imposter).

The title, of course, has a double meaning: Hemsworth’s hangdog jewel thief Mike Davis has a simple code – he’s courteous, avoids violence and his back story is a blank – and targets marks along LA’s 101 freeway. The road, which runs along the Pacific coast, represents something spiritual for Mike, who carries scars from a former life in the city. His spartan oceanside apartment offers more common ground with De Niro’s thief in Heat. When he falls out with his growly fence and mentor (Nick Nolte), who replaces him with Barry Keoghan’s loose-cannon biker, the stakes ramp up. Mike needs to pull off one last job. Ruffalo’s detective and his loyal but wary partner (Corey Hawkins) are hot on his heels. You know the drill.

The Heat comparisons are overblown but not outrageous 

Caught up with them both is a miscast Halle Berry as an fiftysomething insurance exec who can’t buy a date (really?) and is being put out to pasture by her chauvinist bosses, prompting a rash decision. Don’t get me wrong, she’s her usual immaculate on-screen self but only in Hollywood is Halle Berry what ‘over the hill’ looks like. 

Adapted from Don Winslow’s 2020 novella, Crime 101 knows its place in the genre and quotes its sources (there’s a whole chat about Steve McQueen cop classic Bullitt). And it’s deep enough to turn its archetypes – the cop, the robber, the woman in the middle – into fully-formed humans who are all dealing with inequities that push them to the edge.

Some of the plotting take a bit of digesting, and there’s a car chase that makes limited logical sense (it still rips through LA like it’s handbrake-turned out of a William Friedkin movie). But it’s refreshing to see a grown-up big-screen thriller this well crafted – and one that cares for its grounded characters and their predicaments. If it comes off the road once or twice, it’s still well worth the ride. 

In cinemas worldwide now.