Den of Thieves (2018)

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Leisher
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Den of Thieves (2018)

Post by Leisher »

Gerard Butler is a cop in a special unit that play by their own rules. If you've ever seen The Shield, they're essentially Vic Macky and crew, but not that far... (If you've never seen The Shield, do so.) There is a crew pulling off advanced heists while Butler's struggling with personal demons.

I enjoyed it.

Stop. If you want to go in completely fresh, stop reading right now.

Ok, if you're still here, this is a incredibly well acted, entertaining, but deeply flawed movie. Everyone brings their A game, but the cast is so large that when someone died, I didn't care. There's simply no time given to anyone outside of the main players. That characterization results is some really fucking odd scenes. It's almost like you're watching multiple movies at the same time. Is this a heist movie or a dramatic character piece? Part of the problem is it doesn't know. There are a ton of interactions between characters that mean nothing because there's no setup. For example: Butler and an FBI agent are constantly feuding. Why? Who fucking knows.

The story is pretty good, but it has some flaws. Some big ones. There's one scene late that really destroyed my suspension of disbelief. In fact, as interesting as the actual heist is, the stuff that immediately follows is probably where the story fails the most. The writer should never plan an actual heist because he'd get caught. The opening scene has some huge logistical flaws as well. Also, as part of the larger scene, the main baddie does something completely out of character. Hint: Hollywood should really stop trying to write characters with military backgrounds... The biggest problem with the story is it tries really hard to be another iconic movie. (That is critical. You could almost call this a re-imagining of that film.) I won't tell you which one because that would be a massive spoiler. I don't know if I blame the writer or the director for that. Was it the story or the translation? I mean, those character development scenes were odd.

Although, shout out for the funniest fucking "my daughter is going on a date I think I'll scare the guy" scene in Hollywood history. It doesn't have a great line like "I've got a .45 and a shovel and I doubt anyone will miss you.", but it is a fantastic scene and idea.

Overall, I enjoyed the film despite its flaws. It does run a bit long thanks to all the weird, unnecessary scenes. However, the acting and action carry it just enough to get a thumbs up. (This is reflected in reviews. 40% on RT, but 7.0 on IMDB.)
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