Critic Reviews

This is a special movie. It has a life force unlike any other crime thriller I’ve seen. It’s about characters who suffer a personal failure but emerge transformed. It’s a violent movie, but not a cruel one, and unexpectedly moving by the end.

Whereas Michael Mann gave Heat the perfect narrative offramp, Crime 101 tends to circle the block toward the end.

Crime 101 is an underworld drama that’s clever and compelling in unusual ways.

Overall, it is a highly watchable spectacle, leaving a sizzling streak of rubber on the tarmac.

Layton sustains the slow-burning tension, punctuated occasionally by some riveting chases, as the quartet circle each other on the way to a nerve-jangling, edge-of-your-seat climax where the outcome is anything but predictable.

Crime 101 is sleek like a Michael Mann venture, but with a healthy dose of 2020s nihilism.

While the film's reliance on established crime stories dips a bit too much into the realm of cliché, the overall result is a thrilling ride that's fun to watch, from its quietest character moments to its loudest chase sequences.

It’s refreshing to see a grown-up big-screen thriller this well crafted – and one that cares for its grounded characters and their predicaments. If it comes off the road once or twice, it’s still well worth the ride.

Crime 101 will get your pulse pounding on a wild ride.

An extremely down-to-earth, character-driven heist movie that in the best ways resembles similar fare from the 1990s.