There are a few elements that go into a great heist film. A movie doesn’t have to have all of them to be great, but usually, it has to have some of them. Things like a “pre-heist” heist that sets up the main one, or introduces the crew. A cool scene depicting the planning is important too. Oh, and a monster cast helps. A car chase, though not necessarily required, sure goes a long way to make it great also. Keeping all that in mind, here we go with our list of great heist films.
Ocean’s Eleven (2001)
You can’t have a list like this and not include Ocean’s Eleven. It doesn’t have a car chase, but it’s got everything else, including one of the most star-studded casts in film history, with names like George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, Matt Damon, and so many more. There is something so infectious about the way the cast is clearly having an amazing time making the movie which translates into a couple of hours of the most fun you’ll have watching a movie.
The Thomas Crown Affair (1999)
1999’s The Thomas Crown Affair is a remake of a movie from 1968 starring Steve McQueen, and with all due respect to that one, the modern version is better. Pierce Brosnan’s character, Thomas Crown, is quite simply one of the coolest characters of the ’90s and Rene Russo is amazing as his love interest and the one investigating him.
The Italian Job (1969)
The 2003 remake of The Italian Job (1969) is good, but it doesn’t hold a candle to the original starring Michael Caine. The original just oozes cool, with great cars, exotic locations, and the aforementioned Caine. Both have spectacular car chases in Mini Coppers, but again, you can’t beat the original.
The Town (2010)
The Ben Affleck directed The Town is based on a true story, although the accuracy, like many historical films, has been disputed. There are essentially three heists in the movie. A bank robbery opens the movie, then the crew botches an armored car robbery, and it ends with them making off with millions by robbing Fenway Park!
Inside Man (2006)
Spike Lee’s contribution to the genre is Inside Man starring Denzel Washington. True to form, Lee’s take is anything but formulaic. Instead of the usual tropes of a good heist film, the robbery in this one has much broader social implications. It’s a great take on the genre.
Mission: Impossible (1996)
Pretty much all of the Mission: Impossible movies are heist films in one way or another, so this entry can represent all of them. The heist in the first one is still a classic though, with the memorable scene with Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) dangling precariously above the floor as he tries to steal the NOC list from CIA headquarters.
Baby Driver (2017)
Baby Driver has a couple of things going for it that make it a great heist film. It’s stylish and there are some epic car chases. Those two components are critical to a certain kind of heist movie. The movie also has some fantastic music too, which goes a long way. It turns into a revenge movie of sorts, but it still belongs on this list.
Ronin (1998)
There is no question that 1998’s Ronin has a couple of the best car chases in movie history and that alone makes it a great heist movie. It has all the other elements of a great one as well, with a pre-heist and great planning. It’s really all about the car chases though.
Heat (1995)
Robert De Niro seems to love heist movies too, judging on how many he’s been. Of all of them, though, the best is probably Heat. In addition to having the epic shootout as the crew tries to escape the bank, which will forever be one of the best action sequences in Hollywood history, the movie also marked the first time De Niro and Al Pacino appeared in a scene together in a movie.
Out Of Sight (1998)
Author Elmore Leonard really knew how to write a great crime story and Out Of Sight is no exception. The adaption, starring George Clooney and Jennifer Lopez, flies a little under the radar, but it’s a really fun movie. It’s not quite over-the-top enough to be called a comedic caper, but it fits well on this list.
To Catch a Thief (1955)
Alfred Hitchcock, Cary Grant, and Grace Kelly. Do we really need to say anything more? This is a little different because the robberies don’t involve a crew, like a lot of great heist movies. It’s just one man, a cat burglar named…Cat (Grant). it’s also set in the South of France, which Grace Kelly would get to know quite well later in life when she became Princess Grace of Monaco.
Inception (2010)
Inception can be confusing with the whole “dream-within-a-dream” stuff, but at its core, it’s about stealing. Not art, or money, but information. So while it’s a lot more complicated than robbing a casino or a bank, it’s still just about stealing.
The Score (2001)
Robert De Niro first appeared on screen alongside Marlon Brando in 2001’s The Score, which also turned out to be Brando’s final performance on screen before his death in 2004. It’s a straightforward caper film, but it’s slickly done and a really fun movie to watch both for the story and for the performances.
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid is one of the all-time greats from the 1960s. Sure, it’s about a whole more than just a robbery, but the best scene in the movie is the railroad heist towards the beginning. It doesn’t hurt that stars Robert Redford and Paul Newman are at the height of their careers and look great doing the stealing.
Ocean’s 8 (2018)
Though not directed by Steven Soderbergh, like its brother Ocean’s 11, Ocean’s 8 still pops along just like the male version of the caper film. It pulls off the same super fun vibes and brings together an all-star cast of women who prove they are up to the task of pulling off a great robbery too.
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)
Audiences first heard about one of the all-time great heists in history in 1977 when they learned in the original Star Wars that the plans for the Death Star had been stolen. It wasn’t until almost 40 years later that we would get to see how the heist happened in Rouge One. It was worth the wait too, as Rogue One is arguably the best Star Wars movie since Return of the Jedi.
Reservoir Dogs (1992)
Quentin Tarantino’s debut film is unique on this list because audiences don’t actually see the robbery. We see the planning and (mostly) the aftermath of the heist, but all we see of the heist itself is some of the crew running from the jewelry store with the alarm going off. It goes to show you need to see the crime to make a great movie.
Triple Frontier (2019)
2019’s Netflix original movie, Triple Frontier, is a great example of a subgenre of military heist movies. It plays like a straight action movie, but the motivation is all about the money for the characters played by the all-star cast that includes Ben Affleck, Pedro Pascal, and Oscar Isaac.
Gone In 60 Seconds (2000)
Gone in 60 Seconds is another unique entry on this list, because usually these movies are about stealing money, or jewels, but Gone in 60 Seconds is about stealing cars. A lot of cars. 50 cars in one night. It follows all the familiar beats of a great caper flick, but it adds in a bunch of cool cars. It’s a remake of a low-budget movie from 1974 and is superior in almost every way.
Quick Change
One of Bill Murray’s most underrated movies has to be Quick Change. It’s really funny and completely ridiculous in all the best ways. The heist happens in the first couple minutes of the movie and the rest of the film is the three-person crew trying to get out of town before the police net swallows them up. Give it a shot.
The Thomas Crown Affair (1968)
The original Thomas Crown Affair starring Steve McQueen and the millionaire playboy who robs banks for fun is, if we’re honest, a little dated. It feels very much of its time in the late ’60s. But it’s still incredibly charming and if you can get used to the dated transitions between scenes, it’s still really good.
A Fish Called Wanda (1988)
What happens when a Monty Python vet writes a caper movie? A Fish Called Wanda is the answer and it’s exactly what you would expect. It’s a hilarious entry into the genre that includes some really funny performances from all the cast members, including the screenwriter, John Cleese and his fellow Python Michael Palin, plus Jamie Lee Curtis and Kevin Kline. Just don’t mess with Palin’s fish, Wanda!
Ocean’s 11 (1960)
The stories about the filming of the original Ocean’s 11 are as legendary as the Rat Pack cast members who star in it. It doesn’t have the same snappy dialog as the 2001 remake, but if you’re a fan of Frank Sinatra, Peter Lawford, Sammie Davis, Jr, and Dean Martin, you just have to watch it.
Lucky Logan (2017)
Director Steven Soderbergh’s best heist movie is still Ocean’s Eleven, but Lucky Logan is another movie by Soderbergh that is really great. Daniel Craig leads another all-star cast that includes Channing Tatum, Katie Holmes, Sebastian Stan, Adam Driver, and more in a movie where the crew robs a Nascar track.
The Pink Panther (1963)
The Pink Panther is unique on this list, not because it’s a comedy, but because the star of the movie, Peter Sellers, plays the guy investigating the robbery, rather than the culprit. Sellers is, of course, ridiculously funny in the movie as the bubbling, but effective Inspector Clouseau.
The Great Muppet Caper (1981)
We just had to include The Muppets on this list! The great Charles Grodin co-stars with everyone’s favorite puppets as the leader of a crew trying to steal the Baseball Diamond, which has to be the coolest name of something being stolen in a heist movie.
Dead Presidents (1995)
The Hughes Brothers released two great movies in the ’90s, the first was Menace II Society which was a cultural bombshell. The second, Dead Presidents, is not as highly regarded but it’s still a good movie. It is as much a comment on society as their first movie, but it’s wrapped up in a caper story.
Sneakers (1992)
If having an all-star cast is an indication of a great heist movie, Sneakers definitely has that going for it! Sidney Poitier, Robert Redford, and River Phoenix lead this cast which also includes Dan Aykroyd and Ben Kingsley, among others. Also, it’s one of the earliest examples of cyber-crime on film, which makes it both exciting and, if we’re honest, a little dated.
Drive (2011)
2011’s Drive starring Ryan Gosling is the prototype for Baby Driver in a lot of ways. It doesn’t have a stylish soundtrack, but it’s got great car chases and a charming star. It’s not the best movie on this list, but if you like chases, it’s great, even if they are a little too short.
Three Kings (1999)
Director David O. Russell’s Three Kings is famous for its on-set conflicts, but in the end, the director and the cast, which includes George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, Spike Jonze, and Ice Cube, ended up making a really great heist movie set during the first Persian Gulf war.
The Great St. Louis Bank Robbery (1959)
The Great St. Louis Bank Robbery is far from the best movie on this list, but it is really fun to watch a budding star named Steve McQueen early in his career. It was around this time, in 1959, that McQueen’s career exploded into the stratosphere, but here, it’s still trying to make it. It’s also a unique movie because it’s shot on location at the actual bank in St. Louis where the robbery on which the movie is based actually took place.
The Bank Job (2008)
Jason Statham can make everything he does cool. Even when he doesn’t have a lot to work with, story-wise. The Bank Job doesn’t have the most original story, even though it’s based on a true one, but the slick production and Statham’s charms make this a very fun watch.
People have always been fascinated by daring heists, going all the way back in Hollywood history, so there will always be great movies to add to the list in the future. We can’t wait for the next one!
