Written, directed, and produced by Christian Gudegast, 2018’s heist movie, Den of Thieves, presently sits on Max’s High Ten checklist. It follows Detective Nick O’Brien (Gerard Butler), a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Division deputy, and his crew who attempt to cease a gang of thieves comprised of former top-notch MARSOC Marines who’re planning to rob the town’s Federal Reserve constructing. Lately launched from jail, Ray Merrimen (Pablo Schreiber) enlists the assistance of his pals Enson Levoux (Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson) and Bosco Ostroman (Evan Jones) after a singular alternative presents itself. After a number of profitable low stage financial institution robberies, Merrimen and his group need one last heist to finish all of them. After buying Donnie Wilson (O’Shea Jackson Jr.) as a getaway driver, they set their plan in movement.
Nonetheless, after stealing an empty armored car that resulted within the loss of life of a police officer, Detective O’Brien and his unit are sizzling on Merrimen’s path. It takes a second for the movie to search out its footing, however ultimately viewers are left with fairly an entertaining film. It’s no surprise the movie has managed to climb Max’s most watched checklist. A gritty story with gritty characters, it’s actually not a movie for everybody, and it wasn’t essentially obtained positively upon its launch. On Rotten Tomatoes, its Tomatometer sits at 41% whereas its Popcornmeter sits at 63%. Regardless of the criticisms, the movie introduced in $80.5 million on the field workplace in opposition to a funds of $30 million, and even garnered a forthcoming sequel, Den of Thieves 2: Pantera. Nonetheless, as followers revisit the movie, its polarizing nature is obviously apparent.
- Launch Date
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January 18, 2018
- Runtime
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140minutes
‘Den of Thieves’ Appears to Have fun Poisonous Masculinity
As quickly as viewers are launched to Detective O’Brien and his colleagues, it’s fairly clear the movie has an abrasive presence ripe with overly masculine characters and underdeveloped feminine counterparts. That isn’t to say the movie doesn’t have its moments. Reasonably, these moments are sometimes overshadowed by poisonous masculinity. O’Brien clearly places his profession earlier than his spouse and children, which isn’t inherently an issue within the movie, given the kind of film Den of Thieves is. Nonetheless, when he’s confronted by his spouse concerning the lengthy hours and his dishonest, she’s depicted as loopy and unreasonable. Moreover, there’s no regret on O’Brien’s half, simply anger.
Whereas protagonists in such movies don’t must have redeeming qualities, the movie itself ought to be capable of counter them by some means. As an alternative, Den of Thieves virtually places individuals like O’Brien on a pedestal. Positive, they attempt to present his sentimental aspect at occasions, however it doesn’t really feel like a real try and humanize O’Brien. In consequence, he usually looks like a caricature of what males suppose a “powerful man” ought to appear like and the way they need to behave.
That being mentioned, O’Brien isn’t the one poisonous man, he’s merely essentially the most egregious one. Merriman and Levoux have their issues as nicely, however they really appear to care about ladies and their households. In reality, they’re a lot nicer than O’Brien, regardless of their legal fame. Nonetheless, they nonetheless often use ladies for their very own good points whereas concurrently appearing as guardians of the ladies of their lives. Such behaviors are merely completely different types of management, however both method, the lads within the movie embody the idea of an alpha male, every of whom tries to outdo the opposite.
The Cops Play Soiled in ‘Den of Thieves’
With O’Brien on the helm of his unit, they’re simply a gaggle of cops who play tough. After they roll in, somebody’s certain to get thrown round a bit. They actually aren’t corruptible and do get pleasure from being cops, however they don’t thoughts bending a number of guidelines as a way to get what they want from criminals. As is the case with many heist movies, it’s private for O’Brien. His drive to seize Merrimen pushes him in an all-consuming type of method. In consequence, he’s prepared to arrest Merrimen in any respect prices, which is harmful for a cop who holds plenty of energy. Given the assets he and his crew have, and the dearth of oversight they’re granted every day, they’re simply blinded of their efforts to uphold the legislation.
Nonetheless, Den of Thieves tells a fascinating story with a intelligent ending and showcases a few of the finest elements of many heist movies. Whereas it’s actually not an ideal heist movie, it’s positively price watching, particularly at dwelling. Given how entertaining the film finally is, its misgivings are simple to miss so long as viewers don’t thoughts doing so. If audiences are capable of look past the movie’s poisonous masculinity, and take the movie for what it’s, they’ll benefit from the entertaining trip. Den of Thieves is presently streaming on Max, and Den of Thieves 2: Pantera is scheduled to reach in theaters on January 10, 2025.