It is easy for audiences to connect with films built around crime stories. That binary contrast between good and evil, embodied by police officers and criminals respectively, places the viewer in a comfort zone. The brain only has to choose between two options and let our ideas and assumptions do the rest. In the case of Crime 101 (2026), the film adheres closely to the established rules of the crime-thriller genre. We are presented with the classic cops-versus-robbers story.

As is common in this type of film, the screenplay seeks to go further by turning the thief into an antihero we can empathize with. Davis, played by Chris Hemsworth, is a criminal who follows a strict moral code that, from his perspective, justifies his illegal actions. This is the foundation of the central character around whom all the others revolve. First, there is the veteran police officer (Mark Ruffalo), obsessed with solving the case of the mysterious robberies. Then we have Sharon (Halle Berry), an executive at an insurance firm who plays a vital role in Davis’s plan. Next comes Maya (Monica Barbaro), the love interest and the character who humanizes the protagonist. With all the pieces in place, the final element is the antagonist, embodied by Barry Keoghan as an unbalanced criminal.

The premise of Crime 101 works very well. The story sits somewhere between Thief (1981) and Heat (1995). Its visual style flirts with neo-noir, and conceptually, its characters exist in moral gray areas that are reinforced by the dilemmas they constantly face. Meticulously planned heists, chases, and the idea of one last big score drive the film’s pace and keep the tension consistently high.

Crime 101 is one of those films that, in today’s landscape, might have gone straight to a streaming service, but fortunately found its way to the big screen. The film delivers exactly what it promises: a well-made, tightly paced thriller. Its only weakness is that it rushes to please by crafting an ideal ending, which slightly diminishes its dramatic impact.