Crime 101 is ready to stake its claim for a place in the pantheon of crime films.
One of 2026’s crop of new movies, Crime 101, based on Don Winslow’s novella namesake, is billed as a seat-gripping heist thriller that might make for a perfect date night this coming Valentine’s Day weekend. And, with Marvel actors Chris Hemsworth, Halle Berry, Mark Ruffalo, and Barry Keoghan among its A-list cast, it’s certainly got the star power to get bums on seats.
Heat (1995)
Where to stream: Hulu and Plex (US); Netflix and Disney+ (UK and Australia)
Runtime: 2 hours and 50 minutes
Rotten Tomatoes (RT) score: 84% (critics); 94% (audience)
“If you’re shooting in Los Angeles, it’s hard not to look beyond Heat, right?” Layton said. “For most people, I think it’s the pinnacle of the entire genre. It’s endlessly brilliant and rewatchable.”
He’s not wrong. The nearly three-hour-long crime drama is a timeless flick that’s influenced countless entertainment and pop culture properties, including Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy and the universally popular Grand Theft Auto videogame franchise. Heck, Heat became so entrenched in the zeitgeist upon its mid-1990s release that it actually inspired real-life crimes, including the 1997 North Hollywood shootout.
For those who might not have seen it, the genre-defining, Michael Mann-directed movie follows LAPD Lieutenant Vincent Hanna’s (Al Pacino) relentless pursuit of professional thief Neil McCauley (Robert De Niro) after a robbery led by McCauley goes awry. Cue a compelling game of cat and mouse as Mann shows off his mastery skills behind the camera and Pacino and De Niro display their unquestionable talents in front of it.
Bullitt (1968)
Where to stream: Hoopla (US); rent or buy (UK); HBO Max (Australia)
Runtime: 1 hour and 53 minutes
RT score: 98% (critics); 85% (audience)
“We wanted to bring this style of film back to the big screen,” Layton revealed when speaking about Bullitt, the ’60s era Steve McQueen vehicle.
Based on Rupert Fish’s 1963 novel Mute Witness, it stars McQueen as Frank Bullitt, a San Francisco police detective who leads the investigation into the murder of a witness he was assigned to keep safe.
A film tailor-made to showcase McQueen’s natural acting abilities, Bullitt is best known for its absorbing car chase that was well ahead of its time. Indeed, the 1968 Academy Award winner for Best Editing created the benchmark for chase sequences upon its release, with the set-piece regularly featuring on ‘best of’ lists and being described as “the one, the first, the grandaddy, the chase on the top of almost every list” by Time magazine. With Crime 101 set to feature its own vehicle-based chase sequences, Bullitt‘s influence will definitely be felt.
The Sting (1973)
Where to stream: Netflix (US); rent or buy (UK); Paramount+, Foxtel, and Binge (Australia)
Runtime: 2 hours and 9 minutes
RT score: 93% (critics); 95% (audience)
A 1973 crime caper, The Sting “was a really formative movie for me,” Layton mused – and anyone who’s watched it on one of the world’s best streaming services will agree it’s up there with the very best films of its kind.
Starring Paul Newman and Robert Redford, it tells the tale of professional grifters Henry Gondorff and Johnny Hooker, who join forces to con mob boss Doyle Lonnegan (Robert Shaw) out of a sizeable amount of cash.
Another big-screen adaptation of a literary work – The Sting is based on David Maurer’s 1940 book The Big Con: The Story of the Confidence Man, which documents the lives of real-life con men – it marked filmmaker George Roy Hill’s second time directing Newman and Redford. Hill had worked alongside the celebrated actors four years earlier in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Little surprise, then, that The Sting proved to be another hit for the trio after the aforementioned 1969 Western buddy flick.
Thief (1981)
Where to stream: Fubo, Plex, and MGM+ (US); Mubi and MGM+ (UK); MGM+ (Australia)
Runtime: 2 hours and 2 minutes
RT score: 80% (critics); 81% (audience)
“I think most people would immediately point to any of Michael Mann’s stuff,” Layton added of the auteur behind crime genre classics such as Collateral, as well as other multi-award-winning features like The Last of the Mohicans.
It’s Thief, a 1981 film that was just the second movie Mann ever directed, which books the final spot on Layton’s all-time favorite crime movies. Fronted by James Caan, it introduces us to Frank, a jewel thief and ex-con trying to escape his life of crime.
Spoilers notwithstanding, it’s hard not to compare Caan’s protagonist to that of James Davis, Crime 101‘s main character, who’s portrayed by Hemsworth. If you want to get a sense of the story and themes that may be at play in Layton’s latest cinematic offering, Thief is well worth streaming on MGM+, which you can add to your Prime Video subscription as a channel add-on.
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