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The Italian Job (2003)
There is something very entertaining about heist movies. The concept of bringing together a group of people, all experts in some field necessary for a monster robbery, and watching them go to work is just great fun when done well. I'm also a big fan of movies with really elaborately choreographed chase scenes. I'm talking about chases where extreme skill in driving is needed and the film makes that clear. The Italian Job is great fun because it takes both of those and mashes them together.
The movie starts with an elaborate heist to steal $35 million in gold, without so much as a gun. Charlie (Mark Wahlberg) is leading the team for the first time, with their leader John (Donald Sutherland) along for the ride as he heads for retirement. Rounding out the crew is demolitions expert Left Ear (Mos Def), driver Handsome Rob (Jason Statham), hacker Lyle (Seth Green) and utility man Steve (Ed Norton). The heist culminates in a chase through the canals of Venice in speed boats. Unfortunately Steve double crosses the rest of the team, shooting John and leaving the rest for dead, walking away with the recently stolen gold.
They survive though and a year later track Steve to Los Angeles. Charlie recruits John's daughter Stella (Charlize Theron) to take her father's role as safe-cracker on the team. She agrees only to get revenge on Steve. From there it's on to LA where the crew stakes out Steve and starts looking for chinks in his security that they can utilize to re-steal the loot.
Probably what makes The Italian Job most entertaining is the sense that no matter what happens, the characters are enjoying what they're doing. That makes it very easy to accept these characters. For instance, the computer hacker Lyle is absolutely gleeful whenever he succesfully hacks into something. You can see the great pride he takes in his work and that makes all the difference in selling him as a character. That sense of pride and joy in their work is built into all the characters. Stella lives to crack safes, Left Ear can't wait to blow something up and Handsome Rob is all about fast cars and faster women. Charlie is obsessed with planning and details. The only major character that doesn't display this great dedication and pleasure in their work is Steve, the movie's villain. His less enthusiastic, lazier attitude sets him apart, making him far less likable than our hard-working heroes. The distinction is important considering that they are all thieves and we need reasons to root for one thief over another.
The last twenty minutes or so is the heist, coupled with an elaborate chase through the streets of Hollywood, utilizing the trio of souped up Minis. Our heroes stack the deck in their favor by hacking into the city's traffic control, giving them all the gridlock or freedom they need. Fear not, that much is given away in the ads for the movie and what they actually do with that advantage is much more interesting than I'm hinting at. It is a masterful sequence, using the tiny Minis' size and agility to maximum benefit and entertainment value. Unlike most chase scenes, including the one at the opening of this film, this chase doesn't feel excessively reckless. Certainly, cars are wrecked and chaos ensues but the thieves' control of the traffic system lets them minimize the dangers. Really, this is sbout as nice a band of thieves as you could hope to run across. These are definitely the guys you want robbing you.
The Italian Job is a summer movie through and through. It doesn't aim any higher than to provide solid entertainment and it hits that target dead on. The characters are likable, their actions fairly believable and the action itself a hoot to watch. Any movie that can make me want to run right out and buy a Mini Cooper has to be doing something right.
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