I recently caught Crime 101 in the theatre without knowing anything about it beforehand. I assumed it was an introductory course on crime, but no. The title refers to a series of jewel heists carried out by Chris Hemsworth’s Mike Davis in the vicinity of the Los Angeles 101 Freeway.
Mark Ruffalo plays the cop who notices the pattern. Halle Berry plays an insurance broker that Hemsworth wants to recruit for ‘one last job.’ Nick Nolte plays Money, Hemsworth’s handler. When they have a falling out, Money sets reckless criminal Ormon (Barry Keoghan) onto him.
All these characters are lonely individuals whose lives and plotlines gradually intertwine. The disparate story strands come together in a largely satisfying way, building to an inevitable showdown. I was sure Crime 101 would shit the bed in the third act, but it didn’t.
Stellar Casting
What makes Mike Davis interesting is that he isn’t your typical suave high-end criminal. Sure, he dresses sharply, drives nice cars, and meticulously plans his jobs to leave zero trace.
But he’s also deeply insecure about his humble upbringing; he panics when his carefully crafted plans go wrong and acts awkwardly around women.
He does everything wrong, literally, when trying to date Maya, played by Monica Barbaro, but he looks like Chris Hemsworth, so he still gets laid. Red flags don’t apply to him.
The supporting cast of Crime 101 includes Jennifer Jason Leigh, Tate Donovan, and Corey Hawkins. The casting is absolutely stellar. Mark Ruffalo in particular stands out as downtrodden cop Lou Lubesnick. He may be an insufferable ass in real life, but the man sure can act.
Halle Berry is still unbelievably hot, but she isn’t denying her age. Well, maybe a little – she’s 59 playing a 53-year-old. But in a world where middle age is a bigger handicap for women than men, it forms a key part of her storyline.
Inevitably, some plot threads are left dangling. The relationship between Davis and Maya seems short-changed. Money disappears from the movie entirely, and it is sad to see Nick Nolte looking frail. His voice is so gruff you can barely understand him.
But for the most part, Crime 101 is a slick, stylish crime thriller with at least two excellent car chases, blurred boundaries between right and wrong, and proper character arcs for the three main characters.
