Obscure but Worthwhile Heist Movies

by Kevin Gardner

Precious stones are not only very valuable but also exquisitely beautiful. It is easy to see why people are drawn to them and desire to possess them. Perhaps it is even easy to understand why people would go to any lengths to get them. This may be one reason for the popularity of jewel heist movies. It is easy to admire the skill that goes into planning the heist yet, even if the jewel thieves are sympathetic, it can be satisfying to see them eventually caught. 

There are plenty of jewel heist movies that are justly famous, such as A Fish Called Wanda and To Catch a Thief. However, there are others that are less well known but just as good. If you are looking to make a new cinematic discovery, check out the following obscure and underrated jewel heist movies. 

Sushi Girl

If you like the over-the-top caricatures, snappy dialogue, and gratuitous violence of Quentin Tarantino movies, you may enjoy Sushi Girl. The plot concerns a team of thieves that reunites for a dinner party of sorts after one of them gets out of prison. He is believed to have hidden the diamond stud earrings and the rest of the loot, and the boss wants to know where he hid them. Violence breaks out when the recently released convict swears that he doesn't know where the loot is. At first, the titular character appears to be nothing more than a prop. Her pivotal role in the plot isn't revealed until the end. 

Flawless

If you have ever wondered about what happens after a heist, the consequences that one must face within and without the legal system, you may enjoy Flawless. Demi Moore dons old-age makeup to tell the story, through flashbacks, of a frustrated corporate cog at a diamond exchange who teams up with a disgruntled janitor to stage an inside job after being repeatedly passed over for a promotion. Michael Caine, a heist-movie veteran, plays the janitor. 

The Hot Rock

There are many legends about large and valuable diamonds being cursed, bringing misfortune on those who possess them and especially those who acquire them dishonestly. Whether there is any truth to the legends or they have been made up to deter potential thieves, the idea of a cursed stone is a sound premise on which to build an engaging heist movie. With a script by venerable screenwriter William Goldman and a star-studded cast, The Hot Rock is the story of a seemingly simple heist that turns into a long string of misadventures. 

The Pink Jungle

The Pink Jungle is a heist movie for people who don't like heist movies. It's less of a caper and more of an adventure in treasure hunting, but there are diamonds and they do illicitly change hands more than once over the course of the motion picture. There is plenty of action in the form of shootouts and fisticuffs, and plenty of laughs as well. 

11 Harrowhouse

If you like your heist movies seasoned liberally with ironic British humor, 11 Harrowhouse is for you. Charles Grodin plays an American diamond broker who has to stage a heist to recover jewels that are stolen from him, trying to exact some revenge in the process. Much of the humor of the film comes from his sarcastic and woebegone voiceover narrations. The device is effective despite taking away from some of the suspense as his character, Chesser, narrates from a past-tense point of view. Candice Bergen plays Chesser's girlfriend, who seems to have a lot more on the ball than he does. The film features a third-act car chase that manages to be thrilling despite the absurdity of including dogs and horses as well as automobiles. 

Within the genre of the heist movie, there is a wide range of variations. They can be humorous, action-packed, ironic, and even surreal. However, there is one trope that runs through all of them as a common thread, making a heist movie instantly recognizable as such: A seemingly well-laid plan in which something ultimately goes wrong.