Crime 101 – Dir Bart Layton (13th Floor Film Review)
Crime 101 written and directed by Bart Layton and based on the 2020 novella of the same name by Don Winslow.
Starring Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Barry Keoghan, Monica Barbaro, Corey Hawkins, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Nick Nolte, and Halle Berry.
From the opening tracking shot of Los Angeles — with the camera disconcertingly tilted almost on its side — Layton signals that things are not quite as they seem. The significance of this visual choice doesn’t fully land until you leave the theatre and think, wow, that was some clever foreshadowing, Mr Layton.
If you were to put Heat and The Thomas Crown Affair into a blender, you might end up with a close approximation of this multilayered offering from BAFTA-winning documentarian Layton (The Imposter). Making his narrative fiction debut, he delivers a smart, sensitive heist film that provides plenty of adrenaline while also giving the heartstrings a solid tug.
Mike Davis (the Hemsworth commonly known as Chris) has been carrying out a series of meticulously planned jewellery heists along LA’s 101 freeway. The police are, naturally, baffled — except for Detective Lou Lubesnick , (Mark Ruffalo, in full grizzled-cop mode), who recognises a clear pattern and a consistent commitment to non-violence. Galvanised by the challenge, Lou becomes determined to track down this gentleman thief, despite resistance from his superiors, who are wary of anything that might affect their closure rate.
Also drawn into the orbit is Sharon Colvin (Halle Berry), a high-end insurance broker growing increasingly disillusioned with her misogynistic boys’ club of a workplace, where a long-promised partnership is forever being dangled just out of reach.
Berry is in fine form here, delivering one of the best performances of her career. She strikes a perfect balance between steely resolve and underlying heartbreak. The only slightly jarring note comes when Sharon’s boss age-shames her — Sharon is 53, apparently Zimmer-frame territory in his eyes — a moment that doesn’t quite land given that Berry, closer to 60 in real life, looks… about 33. Those supposedly unforgiving close-ups are no match for her luminous glow; if anything, she looks better than ever.
Speaking of looking good (yes, you knew I was going there), Hemsworth gets to prove he’s far more than a pretty Thor-face. His Mike is part sophisticated criminal mastermind, part wounded little boy, with the two deeply intertwined. Hemsworth is at his best when he allows Mike’s innate vulnerability to surface, particularly in his scenes with Monica Barbaro’s Maya — a woman he meets after a fender bender, who sees past his socially awkward, OCD exterior.
Alongside Lou and Sharon, Mike and Maya’s tentative romance adds an unexpected sweetness to Crime 101, elevating it beyond the average heist film. That’s not to say genre devotees are left wanting there’s a cracking car-versus-motorcycle chase and a final showdown so tense I found myself forgetting to breathe.
Nick Nolte’s “Money”, a shadowy, Fagin-like figure, offers a chilling glimpse into where Mike’s tightly suppressed childhood trauma may have originated. Barry Keoghan (Saltburn) continues his recent run of playing deeply unlikeable weasels, and his Ormon is a chaotic contrast to Mike’s measured approach. A hair-trigger human grenade, Ormon’s botched jewellery store robbery is an anxiety-inducing standout — I haven’t rooted so hard for a character’s sticky end in a long time. And yet, beneath the chaos lies the sense that Money is the true malign force, with Ormon as exploited as he is dangerous.
Layton delivers a masterclass in ensemble casting: no character feels superfluous, and each plays a clear role in driving the narrative forward. At a solid two hours and twenty minutes, Crime 101 could easily feel overstretched, but instead the runtime allows for genuine emotional investment in its characters.
Berry and Ruffalo are standouts. Ruffalo’s Lou is a world-weary detective jolted back to life by one last worthy adversary — a familiar archetype, perhaps, but one played with warmth and intelligence.
And that opening tracking shot? It ultimately feels like a visual metaphor for the film itself: everyone sees the world from their own skewed angle, shaped by lived experience — and nothing is ever quite as straightforward as it first appears.
Jo Barry
Crime 101 opens in cinemas today. Click here for showtimes and tickets.
