Caught Stealing Review: Darren Aronofsky Merges a Whimsical Heist with His Signature Harshness

      Hank Thompson (Austin Butler) grew up as a devoted fan of the San Francisco Giants. Named after a prominent figure in major league history—when the team was still the New York Giants—a clever nod from screenwriter Charlie Huston, who adapted his own novel for the film—high school Hank embraced his legacy with enough confidence to be considered a sure first-round draft pick. However, a catastrophic car accident shattered his athletic dreams permanently.

      Now, as a disheveled twenty- or thirty-something struggling with alcoholism, he remains dedicated to baseball amidst life in New York, despite being haunted at night by traumatic flashbacks of the accident. Working as a bartender for a loyal group of regulars at a Giants-themed bar on the Lower East Side, Hank has made himself at home across the country. Even with his rebellious exterior, he’s a straightforward individual focused on a few simple pleasures: dogs, drinks, baseball, calling his mother, and his girlfriend Yvonne (Zoë Kravitz). His life takes a drastic turn when cats, sobriety, and dangerous criminal elements come into play.

      Offering a thrilling twist on the well-trodden genre—with occasional indulgences in common tropes—Aronofsky’s latest film enters the ranks of noteworthy lonely-man-with-cat(s) cinema, joining the likes of The Long Goodbye, Inside Llewyn Davis, and Children of Men. While it doesn’t quite reach the same heights within the bustling realm of crime films, that’s a high bar to achieve. Ultimately, the introduction of the cat and the journey toward sobriety reveal themselves as unexpected blessings. In contrast, the chaotic web of violent criminals proves more perilous.

      The story begins when Hank’s punk neighbor Russ (Matt Smith), a drug dealer, asks him to look after his cat while he travels home to be with his dying father. Hank hesitantly agrees, unaware of the danger he's inviting to himself and others nearby. This sets off a relentless, darkly comedic journey through the criminal underworld that brutally tests Hank’s physical endurance and, in classic Aronofsky style, torments his mental state. Encountering ruthless Russian mobsters, murderous Hasidic "monsters," confrontations with NYPD detectives, and even Bad Bunny playing a character called “Colorado,” Hank experiences a tumultuous ride through New York City as though he were a pinball with no control over his fate.

      Aronofsky blends the commercial aspects of his first crime film, which melds zany caper elements with the grim realities of the genre, without deviating from his signature style of challenging both the subject matter and the audience. With sharp commentary on race relations, a jarring moment of someone vomiting on the lens, and visceral brutality, Caught Stealing presents a challenging narrative much like most of Aronofsky's works. What could evoke a more powerful reaction from Manhattan than the Twin Towers, the first image Aronofsky presents of the beautifully reimagined 1998 New York City?

      Exhibiting impressive technical skill and a deep understanding of his home city, Aronofsky takes viewers on an ambitious journey through various iconic locations: a unique car chase through the tight streets of Chinatown, a pivotal scene at the Unisphere in Flushing Meadows Park, and a spirited return to the Brighton Beach area from Requiem where he was born. Longtime cinematographer Matthew Libatique captures this dynamic film with the same energy and creativity that marked their early collaborations in New York.

      In addition to being Aronofsky’s most mainstream film, Caught Stealing is his first feature aimed at tapping into a pop-culture zeitgeist, represented by a Hey, Arnold!-meets-Nirvana aesthetic that has resurged in the mid-2020s. The ’90s influence carries significant weight, showcasing the grunge-inspired clothes, cars, bars, and overall style of that time period. Hank’s character—a newly modernized, tragic, and broke individual who exudes both rugged charm and aimlessness—mirrors the zeitgeist similarly to Chris Evans in Materialists.

      The film's supporting cast is packed with talent, featuring familiar faces (and a few unforgettable ones): Regina King, Vincent D’Onofrio, Liev Schreiber, Carol Kane, Griffin Dunne, Smith, Kravitz, Bunny, and others, along with pleasant surprises, and up-and-coming actor Nikita Kukushkin, who shines as a wildly unhinged henchman. Whether this marks a new direction for Aronofsky or a slight deviation into different territory, Caught Stealing demonstrates that the auteur retains his distinctive flair.

      Caught Stealing is currently showing in theaters.