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With: Austin Butler, Regina King, Zoë Kravitz, Matt Smith, Liev Schreiber, Vincent D'Onofrio, Benito A Martínez Ocasio, Griffin Dunne, Carol Kane
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Written by: Charlie Huston, based on his novel
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Directed by: Darren Aronofsky
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MPAA Rating: R for strong violent content, pervasive language, some sexuality/nudity and brief drug use
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Running Time: 107
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Date: 08/29/2025
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Wild Goose Base
By Jeffrey M. Anderson
Caught Stealing doesn't quite feel like a Darren Aronofsky movie. His best movies — Requiem for a Dream, The Wrestler, Black Swan, The Whale, etc. — go deep and dark. They run you through a wringer, and even though they are profoundly affecting experiences, they do not leave viewers eager for a re-watch. Caught Stealing is something more along the lines of Bullet Train or Fight or Flight, an adrenaline-fueled, twisty action flick that may have been inspired by Tarantino or other Tarantino inspirations that came down the line. Yet it doesn't feel frivolous. It feels grounded, and violence has consequences. There is loss and grief, and there is kindness and love.
Austin Butler plays Hank, a bartender in New York in 1998. He's a die-hard San Francisco Giants fan, and was once considered a draft pick for the team until a car accident cruelly ended his career. (He calls his mom every day and signs off with, "I love you. Go Giants!") He has a girlfriend, Yvonne (Zoë Kravitz), and they have just decided to take their relationship to the next level. (They both have apartments that they should scarcely be able to afford.)
Hank's neighbor Russ (Matt Smith), an English, mohawked punk rocker, asks him to watch his cat while he travels to London. While getting cat food from Russ's apartment, he's jumped by two thugs, and thus finds himself involved in a dangerous criminal scheme. Detective Roman (Regina King) questions him, and warns him about hassidic killers Lipa (Liev Schreiber) and Shmully (Vincent D'Onofrio). To make matters worse, he finds a key hidden in the cat's litter box, and everyone wants it. Many people die.
Griffin Dunne co-stars as Paul, Hank's boss at the bar, and Carol Kane plays Lipa and Shmully's Bubbe, who serves our hero matzo ball soup in one funny scene. The movie does a wonderful job of balancing humor and pathos, and the screenplay by Charlie Huston, based on his own 2004 novel, is tightly structured, maintaining a novel's breadth and scope. Events take place during the real-life race between the Giants (which then included Barry Bonds) and the New York Mets for the coveted National League wild card slot. (They both lost and the Chicago Cubs took it.) I'd see this again.
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