Caught Stealing Review: The Cat, The Chaos, and Austin Butler's Best Work

I started this one half watching on my phone. That’s usually a death sentence for a movie. But Caught Stealing grew on me, and by the second half I was fully in it. Phone was down.

First of all, the cat was great in this film! Let’s get that out of the way.

This was the best performance from Austin Butler for me. And I know that’s a big call when the guy has Elvis and Dune on his resume, but he just felt right here. Loose, charismatic, and completely believable as a guy who is way out of his depth.

Darren Aronofsky is known for heavy, psychologically intense films. Requiem for a Dream, Black Swan, The Wrestler, The Whale. Those are the movies you think of when you hear his name. Caught Stealing is none of those things. It’s a pulpy 90s crime caper, and the fact that Aronofsky directed it is honestly one of the most interesting things about it. He’s clearly having fun here, and it shows.

The 90s nostalgia is done really well. The production design nails late-90s New York, all grit and grime and neon. The soundtrack leans into it too, with the score recorded by the post-punk band Idles, which gives the whole thing this raw, buzzy energy that fits the chaos on screen.

I want to start a petition that Zoë Kravitz should never be a supporting actor. Every time she shows up in a movie she commands attention, and every time she’s gone too soon. Give this woman leads only!

I knew Matt Smith from House of the Dragon and slightly from Doctor Who, and it was nice to see him here in such a different light. He’s playing this punk-rock neighbor with an orange mohawk and he just goes for it. Speaking of the cast, the characters were actually interesting. The rogues gallery of villains in this movie are not the usual ones. You’ve got Liev Schreiber and Vincent D’Onofrio as Hasidic Jewish enforcers working for their grandmother, played by Carol Kane. That’s not something you see every day.

It was funny to see Bad Bunny in this, but since I’ve become a fan, it was a nice easter egg. He’s been building up his acting credits lately with Bullet Train, Cassandro, and Happy Gilmore 2, and he’s got Porto Rico coming up as his first lead role. I’m looking forward to seeing more of him and watching his acting and English improve, but true to Bad Bunny fashion, he speaks Spanish for most of the film, which was nice. Never change, king!

The pace was actually good, and I wouldn’t have figured out the ending. For an Aronofsky movie, this one doesn’t try to destroy you emotionally, and honestly, that’s kind of refreshing.

3 out of 5 stars.

Catch what I’ve been watching on Letterboxd: letterboxd.com/migmol