L. A. Nocturne's Los Angeles Caper Movies

Los Angeles Nocturne's
Caper Flicks

We update this page on an irregular basis, as we find and watch Los Angeles Caper Flicks.
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ARMORED CAR ROBBERY (1950) *** IMDb

Halliwell's says "A police lieutenant leads the recovery of half a million dollars stolen by gangsters." Good police procedural with great LA locations, with crisp direction by Richard Fleischer.

"Imagine a dish like this married to a mug like Benny McBride. The naked and the dead."

reviewed by Tim

asphalt jungle ASPHALT JUNGLE (1950) ***+ IMDb
The first caper flick showing the heist from the planners' point of view. Great characterizations & chemistry with this extremely seasoned group of actors. Written and directed by John Huston (with Ben Maddow), from the novel by W.R. Burnett, one of the masters of roman noir.
see also film noir
"People are being cheated, robbed, murdered, raped. And that goes on 24 hours a day, every day in the year. And that's not exceptional, that's usual. It's the same in every city in the modern world. But suppose we had no police force, good or bad. Suppose we had... just silence. Nobody to listen, nobody to answer. The battle's finished. The jungle wins. The predatory beasts take over."

reviewed by Tim

CRISS CROSS (1949) *** IMDb

Another great Ciodmak thriller with great Bunker Hill locations and all the classic film noir elements. Dan Duryea is his usual psycho-self. Remade as The Underneath (1995) with a better ending.

reviewed by Tim

Heat HEAT (1995) ** IMDb
A Michael Mann L.A. cops and robbers movie, not really a caper flick. It takes place in Los Angeles, but that's the only reason we're listing it here. Fabulous cast, should be a better movie... but it's kind of a snore.

"Man, I can get killed for telling you some of this stuff."
"You can get killed walking your doggie!"

reviewed by Tim

THE HEIST (1999) *** IMDb
I liked it. Since the box-office success of Pulp Fiction, many films have tried, painfully, to capture that blend of action, madcap humor, and dysfunctional, likeable, unlikely characters - all with their own dark desires - on a predestined course to disaster. We've seen the trailers, sometimes suffer through the video, hitting Stop and Rewind with a curse, a roll of the eyes, and a big sigh, wishing there were a rebate on the 89 minutes just wasted watching "bad film"
The Heist is not one of those. It ain't Pulp Fiction; however, the plot doesn't try to be, either. It's a caper-gone-sour flick, with enough twists and switchbacks to keep your interest. The feel captures the cyclotron nature this city's streets can sometime provide. Just what is going on in those warehouses in between the freeway and downtown?
See it, you'll be glad you did.

reviewed by Tim

To Live and Die in LA TO LIVE & DIE IN L.A. (1985) **** IMDb...This time, Roger got it.
This cynical tale of a counterfeiter with an unshakable moral code and the treasury agents on his tail who step far over the line includes one of the best car chases ever filmed.

reviewed by Tim

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	ARMORED CAR ROBBERY (1950) *** IMDb Halliwell's says "A police lieutenant leads the recovery of half a million dollars stolen by gangsters." Good police procedural with great LA locations, with crisp direction by Richard Fleischer. "Imagine a dish like this married to a mug like Benny McBride. The naked and the dead." reviewed by Tim

	ASPHALT JUNGLE (1950) **+ IMDb The first caper flick showing the heist from the planners' point of view. Great characterizations & chemistry with this extremely seasoned group of actors. Written and directed by John Huston (with Ben Maddow), from the novel by W.R. Burnett, one of the masters of roman noir*. see also film noir "People are being cheated, robbed, murdered, raped. And that goes on 24 hours a day, every day in the year. And that's not exceptional, that's usual. It's the same in every city in the modern world. But suppose we had no police force, good or bad. Suppose we had... just silence. Nobody to listen, nobody to answer. The battle's finished. The jungle wins. The predatory beasts take over." reviewed by Tim

	CRISS CROSS (1949) *** IMDb Another great Ciodmak thriller with great Bunker Hill locations and all the classic film noir elements. Dan Duryea is his usual psycho-self. Remade as The Underneath (1995) with a better ending. reviewed by Tim

	HEAT (1995) ** IMDb A Michael Mann L.A. cops and robbers movie, not really a caper flick. It takes place in Los Angeles, but that's the only reason we're listing it here. Fabulous cast, should be a better movie... but it's kind of a snore. "Man, I can get killed for telling you some of this stuff." "You can get killed walking your doggie!" reviewed by Tim

	THE HEIST (1999) *** IMDb I liked it. Since the box-office success of Pulp Fiction, many films have tried, painfully, to capture that blend of action, madcap humor, and dysfunctional, likeable, unlikely characters - all with their own dark desires - on a predestined course to disaster. We've seen the trailers, sometimes suffer through the video, hitting Stop and Rewind with a curse, a roll of the eyes, and a big sigh, wishing there were a rebate on the 89 minutes just wasted watching "bad film" The Heist is not one of those. It ain't Pulp Fiction; however, the plot doesn't try to be, either. It's a caper-gone-sour flick, with enough twists and switchbacks to keep your interest. The feel captures the cyclotron nature this city's streets can sometime provide. Just what is going on in those warehouses in between the freeway and downtown? See it, you'll be glad you did. reviewed by Tim

	TO LIVE & DIE IN L.A. (1985) **** IMDb...This time, Roger got it. This cynical tale of a counterfeiter with an unshakable moral code and the treasury agents on his tail who step far over the line includes one of the best car chases ever filmed. reviewed by Tim