Crime 101 (2026)
Directed by: Bart Layton
Premise: A jewel thief (Chris Hemsworth) tempts an insurance executive (Halle Berry) with an ambitious heist while a detective (Mark Ruffalo) closes in and a rival (Barry Keoghan) schemes to steal the loot.
What Works: Crime 101 is extremely well shot especially in the way the action is staged and filmed. Chris Hemsworth’s character meticulously plans his robberies to ensure success and minimize the possibility of violence. The filmmaking reflects the main character’s modus operandi. The action is perfectly framed, the camerawork is smooth but sophisticated, and the editing pieces together every shot like an engine. Hemsworth’s character is stalked by a much sloppier rival played by Barry Keoghan and by comparison these scenes are shot with a chaotic and freewheeling style. Hemsworth’s performance is surprising. He’s generally played confident and gregarious characters but in Crime 101 Hemsworth plays someone who is very insular and anxious. We can see the character’s internal life in Hemsworth’s performance and he communicates a lot with a look or a shift in posture. That human quality is found throughout Crime 101. As serious as the story is, the film possesses some humor and most of the characters are given backstories that add nuance and context.
What Doesn’t: Crime 101 simultaneously feels congested and baggy. The story has a lot of characters and subplots, pulling the movie thin. The romance between Chris Hemsworth’s character and a normie woman played by Monica Barbaro is sweet and the actors do a good job but their story does not have any substance to it. The same is true of the relationship between the detective and the insurance executive, played by Halle Berry and Mark Ruffalo. There is an inference of romance but nothing comes of it. The filmmakers seem unsure what to do with all their characters. Halle Berry is underused in the film. Her character is ultimately treated as an afterthought. Nick Nolte and Jennifer Jason Leigh also appear in very limited roles. The film feels as though it is missing chunks of plot and character development. For a story that is all about its many pieces fitting together like clock, quite a bit of Crime 101 is implausible. Some of the plot relies on coincidences and some of the characters’ choices don’t make sense. The ending is the film’s biggest problem. Crime 101 aspires to films like Heat and The Town but it concludes with a pat ending in which no one has to make a difficult choice or face unpleasant consequences. It comes across as a copout of an ending.
Bottom Line: Crime 101 is a mixed effort. There is a lot in it to admire especially in the performances and technical details but the story is strained. This feels like a much longer film that has been cut down to a feature length.
Episode: #1088 (February 22, 2026)