#crime-comedy

#crime-comedy

It's not thoughtless per se; rather, it lacks the resources to bring its vision successfully to screen. Its quirks are sometimes appealing and sometimes amateurish and, while a mixture of influences swirl about, from Bond to Kingsman to Guy Ritchie and even Mission: Impossible, the film-makers don't have the necessary budget, meaning that it feels at times like a TikTok parody of more expensive films.

The new crime comedy Caught Stealing unfolds in the year 1998, traveling across a distinctly grungy New York City-all dingy subway platforms and drab Chinatown apartments. The time frame differs just slightly from that of the novel it's based on, which is set in 2000. I can think of only one reason the director, Darren Aronofsky, might have decided to make this tweak: The film shares its time and place with his debut feature, Pi, which premiered that same year.

Director Darren Aronofsky opens Caught Stealing by grounding it immediately in a time and place: 1998, the Lower East Side of Manhattan, closing time at the bar where Hank ( Austin Butler) works. Hank once had a chance at playing professional baseball, but a car accident stripped that dream away from him years ago; now, he's on the verge of a full-tilt drinking problem, but keeping his head above water with more than a little support from his girlfriend Yvonne ( Zoë Kravitz).

Deli Boys cleverly blends slapstick comedy with themes of organized crime, focusing on two hapless brothers who inherit a convenience-store empire only to lose it, leading to unexpected revelations.