Although competently made, Chris Hemsworth’s “Crime 101” does little to stand out in the crowded crime thriller genre, delivering an experience that not only disappoints but fails to make its nearly two and a half hour run time remotely interesting.
After years of thieving along California’s route 101, recluse Mike Davis [Chris Hemsworth] almost hangs up the ski mask following a heist gone awry, however the master criminal is pulled back in for one more job worth over $11 million. With a violent, rival thief [Barry Keoghan] and a detective [Mark Ruffalo] hot on his trail, Davis must decide how much he’s willing to lose for the biggest cash prize of his career.
Even with its all-star cast, compelling premise and well-equipped director [Bart Layton] at the helm, “Crime 101” fails to make a meaningful impact, quickly spiraling into a by-the-numbers, poorly paced film. While there’s nothing inherently wrong with a thriller that plays it safe it does become a problem when said film borders on the length of an average “Avengers” or “Lord of the Rings” installment. Based on a short entry in author Don Winslow’s “Broken” novella, a read featuring multiple crime tales, the Hemsworth-led film should have been a tight, exhilarating 90-minute watch. Instead, Layton stretches this quick tale into a needlessly long crime epic that fails to stand tall against other beloved entries in the genre.
It’s primarily because of the film’s bland characters that its extended runtime falls flat on its face. Each character — whether it’s Hemsworth’s past-his-prime thief, Ruffalo’s gruffled detective or Halle Berry’s down-on-her-luck insurance broker — features a bland backstory backed up by forgettable motives and blank slate personalities, never leaving a lasting impression at any point in the story.
In terms of performances however, each actor does fine enough, not breaking new ground but turning in well-meaning performances. It’s nice to see Hemsworth break out of his marvel-mold once again, this time sporting a decent American accent, as well as Ruffalo continue to build out his repertoire having now secured two Academy award nominations in recent years.
Monica Barbaro — in her first role since her Oscar-nominated turn in “A Complete Unknown” last year — is adequate throughout, although it’s clear that both her character and the story line surrounding her were an afterthought. Her and Hemsworth’s chemistry is there, yet Layton never allows their romance to blossom naturally, their connection always feeling a bit stilted, stuck in an awkward zone between “this is cute” and “completely stale.”
Berry is also pleasant to watch as always, bringing her confident, bold personality to yet another thriller. Keoghan delivers an exuberant performance that borders on too outlandish, sometimes not matching the rest of the film’s grounded tone. However, he lacks any real depth for the audience to latch onto.
The nail in the coffin for “Crime 101” however, is its lack of engaging action sequences. While its car-on-car carnage and gunplay is serviceable, the two and a half hour runtime only features three thrilling scenes. With such a small number of exciting moments, “serviceable” isn’t nearly enough. The only real moment of real tension in the film is a single car, a set piece that you’ve seen a number of times in other thrillers.
With a lack of engaging characters, memorable action scenes and overbearing runtime, the star-studded film feels less like a rip-roaring drive through downtown L.A., and more like a sluggish traffic jam.
“Crime 101” released February 13 and is in theaters now.