Thief

***
Cast: James Caan, Tuesday Weld, James Belushi, Robert Prosky, Dennis Farina, Willie Nelson
Director: Michael Maan
Year: 1981
Country: USA
Language: English
Approximate Running Time: 2hrs 3mins

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A precursor to Heat which was also directed by Michael Mann, Thief is a character study of a safe-cracker and harks back to Melville's loner criminal who lives by his own code. Frank (James Caan) is an expert safe-cracker by night, taking down big scores with his partner Barry's (James Belushi) help, while he runs a used-car business as a front during the day. Raised by the state, he spent many years behind bars and is determined not to go back there again. He has a father figure Okla (Willie Nelson) who taught him everything he knows about his profession, but is now cooling his heels in a prison.

Frank is an independent guy who enjoys his freedom, but can't help falling in love with beautiful Jessie (Tuesday Weld) and proposes to her in a restaurant which sounds more like a business offer, yet is honest and shows his vulnerable side. But before he can build his dream life with Jessie, he is offered a job by the mob, headed by avuncular Leo (Robert Prosky) who offers to take care of Frank and treat him like a family. It's probably the absence of Okla that makes Frank a bit sentimental and he agrees to the proposal, thinking that he could walk out after a big score.

But before Frank finds out that the mob owns his life and won't let him go that easily, he has to reckon with persistent cops who are on to him, as well as crack a heavily protected safe. He realizes too late that everything he'd gained - his wife, kid and a beautiful house - is on the line and he stands to lose it all if he doesn't play his cards right.

As is the case with Heat, in this film too, much research went into safe-cracking, with an ex-safe-cracker employed as an expert. There are minimal props used and the scenes of burglary employed real tools and a real safe. James Caan gives a fine performance as a hot-headed loner with his own code of ethics, and doesn't take any guff from anyone, be it the police of the mafia. The other fine performance is by Robert Prosky who disarms Frank with his friendliness and makes him an offer that Frank should've refused but doesn't, with dire consequences.

Michael Mann couldn't have made his directorial debut with a better film and if you're in the mood for something that's more than an hour-and-a-half of special effects explosions, give it a try. It's a bit slow-paced at times (though it kept me engrossed), but makes up for it in a thrilling and explosive climax.

Aamir

***
Cast: Rajeev Khandelwal, Gajraj Rao, Jhilmil Hazarika
Director: Raj Kumar Gupta
Year: 2008
Country: India
Language: Hindi
Approximate Running Time: 2hrs 14mins

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Does a person make his own destiny, or is it made by circumstances out of his control? That seems to be the question that Dr. Aamir Ali (Rajeev Khandelwal) ponders when he returns from UK where he works, to visit his family in Mumbai. First he is harassed by the customs officer who taunts him about doctors and engineers making the country proud - a reference to Dr. Sabeel Ahmad who was arrested after the Glasgow Airport attack, and Dr. Haneef who was a suspect in Australia. When he exits the airport, his brother and sisters who were supposed to pick him up are nowhere to be seen. As he finishes calling home and getting no response, a cellphone is thrown to him by two men on a bike, and from that instant on, his world turns upside down.

At the other end of the phone - which only accepts incoming calls - is a shadowy stranger (Gajraj Rao) who manipulates Aamir, stokes his passions and prods his identity - along with the threat of killing his family - to goad him into doing something he doesn't want to do. (No prize for guessing what that is.) Not unlike a treasure hunt - though no treasure awaits Aamir and he doesn't even get a glass of water - he is given directions to go from one place to the next, where he finds new directions to get to the next location. Along the way, Aamir gets to see Mumbai like never before, the crowded, congested and dirty section where poor Muslims live. Finally, when the moment of reckoning comes on a Mumbai public bus, it's up to Aamir whether he'll go ahead with the plan and save his family, or be a true leader and write his own destiny.

The film is superbly shot in cinéma vérité style on real locations - the streets and markets of Mumbai, and it evokes real feelings of being in the midst of crowds and narrow streets, or the rush hour traffic. One can almost reach out and touch the sweat and grime. It's also realistic in presenting terrorism-related issues, be it the strings being pulled from Pakistan, some Indians sympathetic to terrorists and giving support, cunning masterminds who live in luxury eating sumptuous meals but invoke destitute conditions of the kaum (community) to manipulate others into doing dastardly acts, or the challenges faced by "secular" Muslims who want to get educated, work hard and move forward, like Aamir. On one hand, Aamir has to listen to the suspicious customs officer and on the other hand, he gets guff for neglecting fellow Muslims. Newcomer Rajeev Khandelwal gives a fine performance as an edcuated Muslim whose day goes from bad to worse and he's forced to choose between two options - neither of them pleasant.

The only drawback is the unrealistic story and loose script. It seems far-fetched that if someone wanted to plant a bomb, he'd go to the trouble of manipulating a complete stranger like Aamir and take a greater risk dealing with unknowns, when it's much easier for a reliable gang member to do the same with success. And there didn't seem to be a paucity of them as so many were trailing Aamir. If you can suspend your disbelief at the incredulous premise, you can enjoy the film. The climax scene could have done with some tighter editing, and the moment of revelation for Aamir happens through a very manipulative device that's been tried and tested before, from Sholay to Mr. India.

There are five songs in the film and some of them play in the background as the action is unfolding. The two I liked were Chakkar ghumiyo and Ha Raham (Mehfooz), which is sung in the qawwali style. Overall, it's not a great film, but it is a promising debut by Raj Kumar Gupta who was associate director on Anurag Kashyap's Black Friday and No Smoking.