Baby Driver is now in theaters, bringing audiences one of the coolest, slickest, crime-heist thrillers in recent memory.
Edgar Wright’s film oozes style, from its pulse-pounding action sequences, to its rocking soundtrack. In fact, Baby Driver is so stylistic and fun that it got us thinking: What are some other really great examples of films that successfully made crime look so much cooler than obeying the law.
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Here are the The Top 5 ‘Cool’ Crime/Heist Movies of All Time.
Point Break
The film that helped make even bigger stars out of Keanu Reeves and Patrick Swayze still remains one of the coolest heist films around.
Point Break has a lot of elements that are now iconic in the genre: a high-octane opening heist (with some signature maks); a story where the cop and crook become too closely intertwined; and a villain that is almost more fun to root for than the hero. The film also has the unique distinction of mixing surfer culture in with its crime story – which is the “cool” factor that earns it a place on this list.
This was an early indicator of the talent that director Kathryn Bigelow had for high-tension thrillers – talent that would finally be recognized with films like Zero Dark Thirty and The Hurt Locker.
The Sting
This 1973 film starred Paul Newman and Robert Redford in their prime, and set the trends for so many con man/heist movies that followed, with an indelible “cool” that earned it multiple Oscars.
The film follows a young con man and “long con” mastermind who team up to swindle a ruthless Irish gangster, and features scenes of slick dialogue exchanges and con job sequences that are now iconic, and have been copied and/or parodied to no end.
If nothing else, The Sting made the song “The Entertainer Is Taking a Bow” so much cooler than high school marching bands ever could.
Reservoir Dogs
Quentin Tarantino’s 1st Movie made him a breakout star, largely due to the sheer amount of “cool” it brought to its psychopath criminal characters.
This is a movie where listening to a bunch of guys argue over paying a diner bill is just as watching someone get horrifically mutilated and tortured – and the best part is: Tarantino never even shows much in the way of car chase or shootout action that most fans of the genre expect.
With little in the way of action (or even setting), what makes Reservoir Dogs the iconic film it is now? Unprecedented levels of Tarantino swagger and cool. That’s what.
Snatch
Guy Ritchie had already put himself on the cinematic map with Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels in 1998 – but what really solidified his status as an auteur was his 2000 film, Snatch.
Like Lock, Stock, Snatch details the happenings of the London underworld. However, with Snatch, Ritchie had a much bigger budget and cast to work with – and he capitalized on both opportunities.
Snatch is like a playbook on criminal cool, with dialogue, stylized sequencing, sick action, and a soundtrack that all synchronize to create one of the best crime-heist movies of all.
Ocean’s Eleven
It should be obvious why Ocean’s Eleven is at the top of this list: it’s practically a seminar on how to make crime look cool.
Director Steven Soderbergh stacked the deck with some of the coolest actors in the business – with George Clooney and Brad Pitt leading the way.
If Clooney’s Danny Ocean wasn’t cool enough as a character, the way that Soderbergh stages and then executes the masterful heist Ocean’s team pulls on Terry Benedict’s casino had audiences applauding and cheering out loud.
If there’s any film that could convince you that turning to a life of crime (with your friends!) is a great idea, Ocean’s Eleven is it.
Photo Credit: Warner Bros.
