Crime 101 (2026)
Directed by Bart Layton
When an elusive thief whose high-stakes heists unfold along the iconic 101 freeway in Los Angeles eyes the score of a lifetime, with hopes of this being his final job, his path collides with a disillusioned insurance broker who is facing her own crossroads. Determined to crack the case, a relentless detective closes in on the operation, raising the stakes even higher.
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42 films that influenced Crime 101
What critics say influenced Crime 101
Director
Michael Mann
Critics invoke Mann by name, and compare Crime 101 to 4 of Mann’s films.
Visuals
On Mann, rather than any one film
…packed with great characters, Crime 101 is a gripping L.A. heist picture with shades of Michael Mann…
…writer and director Bart Layton clearly is a Michael Mann fan…
Adapted from Don Winslow’s novella of the same name, Bart Layton writes and directs this slow-burn cat-and-mouse film inspired by the cool precision of Steven Soderbergh and Michael Mann.
The harshest review dubbed it “Lukewarmth,” arguing it had no business comparing itself to Heat.
…this is a “Heat” descendant—just another branch on the family tree.
He’s very much sticking to the tropes he grew up watching in films such as Casino, Collateral, Heat, etc.
It’s hard to avoid comparisons to Michael Mann classics like “Thief” and “Heat” or Willian Friedkin’s “To Live and Die in L.A”.
…my decision to see Crime 101, came from a series of reviews comparing it to the classic heist film: Heat. Michael Mann’s 1995 classic is one of my personal favorite films…
It is no small task to make a movie that very much feels like it contains the DNA of Heat, while also retaining enough originality to avoid feeling like a complete rip-off.
It’s hard to avoid comparisons to Michael Mann classics like “Thief” and “Heat” or Willian Friedkin’s “To Live and Die in L.A”.
“Crime 101” reverberates with echoes of Michael Mann movies like “Heat” and “Thief” with a side of Elmore Leonard thrown in.
The gold standard, of course, is Heat– along with Thief and The Town– each a masterpiece in its own way and incredibly hard to top.
…the cool caper crime flicks like THIEF, HEAT, and DRIVE (and maybe BABY DRIVER, too)…
Crime 101 nods to the neo-noirs of the 1980s and ’90s, namely Michael Mann’s Thief and Heat, as evidenced by its woozy synth score and that metallic blue sheen that imbues some scenes.
Though no Dog Day Afternoon or Thief, this Don Winslow adaptation works well juggling multiple plot lines and weaving suspense.
He’s very much sticking to the tropes he grew up watching in films such as Casino, Collateral, Heat, etc.
I can feel the vibe of Michael Mann, the king of Neo-noir, with films like Heat and Collateral, both of which take place in Los Angeles.
…hay ecos evidentes de Heat y Collateral…
Certain shots evoke the steely proficiency of Mann films such as Heat and Collateral, the latter of which co-starred Ruffalo as a seasoned cop.
Mark Ruffalo playing a detective who’s ahead of the curve on a mysterious criminal is directly cribbed from Collateral…
…whether Mann’s “Heat” and “Collateral”…
10 years on from Blackhat (2015), Chris Hemsworth returns to a labyrinthine world of crime as the lead in Bart Layton’s Crime 101.
…even “Blackhat” (underrated, absolutely rules)…
After taking a few leaps out of the franchise bullpen with projects like Michael Mann’s Blackhatand Ron Howard’s Rushand In the Heart of the Sea…
Chris Hemsworth as the lead, who previously played a hacker in Mann’s Blackhat, which, sadly, isn’t one of Mann’s best films.
It’s a welcome echo of his performance in Blackhat and, hopefully, a lane he continues to explore.
But Hemsworth, who starred in Mann’s Blackhat, makes this thief’s cold exterior compelling, slowly revealing Mike’s inevitable softening as Maya becomes part of his life.
…una estilización nocturna que remite a Drive…
…the cool caper crime flicks like THIEF, HEAT, and DRIVE (and maybe BABY DRIVER, too)…
Chris Hemsworth playing a thief with the walls closing in feels very similar to Ryan Gosling’s unnamed role in Drive…
…the same issue that I have with Ryan Gosling’s character and performance in Drive: He’s just bland and boring…
Mike is transparently cut from the mold of Ryan Gosling’s character from Nicolas Winding Refn’s Drive: moody, tightly coiled, and tantalizingly inscrutable.
…or Nicolas Winding Refn’s “Drive”…
If you like character-driven crime films – think Out of Sight or The Town – this belongs in that company.
…sometimes as locked-in as Affleck’s “The Town.”
The gold standard, of course, is Heat– along with Thief and The Town– each a masterpiece in its own way and incredibly hard to top.
Boston has The Departed and The Town…
…why hasn’t he starred in a “Columbo” reboot?
Ruffalo is on terrific form too, shambling around like a modern-day Columbo…
Mark Ruffalo plays a world-weary detective, giving off a shambling fatigue vibe like Peter Falk did when he played COLUMBO.
Ruffalo is perfectly cast as the slovenly detective with a keen mind, a la Columbo.
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Director
William Friedkin
Critics invoke Friedkin by name, and compare Crime 101 to 3 of Friedkin’s films.
Visuals
On Friedkin, rather than any one film
There are a few Friedkin-ish car chases…
It’s hard to avoid comparisons to Michael Mann classics like “Thief” and “Heat” or Willian Friedkin’s “To Live and Die in L.A”.
CRIME 101 has much more in common with neo-noir classics based in the City of Angels like HEAT or TO LIVE & DIE IN L.A.
If Heat and To Live and Die in L.A. weren’t stone-cold proof of L.A. being the de facto crime thriller city…
The movie flirts with the gritty DNA of 1970s crime cinema, even evoking the spirit of “The French Connection,” yet it seldom pauses long enough to explore what made those films electric in the first place.
New York has Goodfellas and The French Connection…
…as risky as trying your hand at demonic possession post-Exorcist…
It reminds you of how Martin Scorsese uses this trick to contrast his violence, e.g., Goodfellas, vibrant red taillights masking a bloody affair.
New York has Goodfellas and The French Connection…
He’s very much sticking to the tropes he grew up watching in films such as Casino, Collateral, Heat, etc.
Boston has The Departed and The Town…
…or “Bullitt” with Steve McQueen…
…the film’s references to Steve McQueen, specifically his films Bullitt and The Thomas Crown Affair, both of which are literally mentioned by name in a conversation between Ruffalo and Hemsworth during the 3rd act…
…citas explícitas a Bullitt y The Thomas Crown Affair…
At one point, two characters compare the merits of their favorite Steve McQueen films, Bullitt and The Thomas Crown Affair…
…later in the film, characters go ahead and start talking about Steve McQueen movies, including "Bullitt" and "The Thomas Crown Affair"…
…there’s even a scene where Ruffalo and Hemsworth talk Bullitt and The Thomas Crown Affair…
Mark Ruffalo, whose presence can’t help but invoke Prestige TV’s most recent crime phenomenon, Task…
Ruffalo returns to “hangdog cop” territory, essentially reprising his role from HBO series Task.
Anyone who watched HBO’s Task has literally seen Ruffalo play this hangdog cop archetype in the last year alone…
Ruffalo is reliably strong as one of the few upright members of the LAPD, though between HBO’s Task and the Now You See Me films, he may want to step away from badges for a while.
Ruffalo can play this kind of rumpled cop in his sleep (see: David Fincher's best movie, "Zodiac," and the recent "Mare of Easttown"-adjacent "Task")…
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Lou deals with lots of either disinterested or downright dirty cops right out of SERPICO-style flicks…
Though no Dog Day Afternoon or Thief, this Don Winslow adaptation works well juggling multiple plot lines and weaving suspense.
…then add Collateral, Drive, Chinatown, and Training Day to create a beginner’s guide to the L.A. crime film landscape…