Heist, heist, baby: The most hype heist movies ever
It might have something to with all the economic fracas currently being suffered across the world or the apparent mistrust the average person seems to now have for banks and general government spending, but it seems like everyone is hot for heists right now. If you’re feeling that hype too, allow us to steal your attention with our official ranking of the 21 best heist movies (and shows) ever made.
21. Out of Sight (1998)
Heists got way sexier once Steven Soderbergh (Unsane) teamed up with George Clooney (The Descendants) and Jennifer Lopez (The Boy Next Door) for this charming little number.
20. Bottle Rocket (1996)
Wes Anderson’s debut feature introduced the world to his singular cinematic style. Three pals (played by Owen Wilson, Luke Wilson, and Ned Dowd) with hapless criminal ambitions make a flawed plan to pull off a simple robbery while the filmmaker’s recognizable tropes play out with majestic finesse.
19. Money Heist (2017 – )
Granted, it isn’t a movie, but this Spanish Netflix Originals show is nonetheless cinematic in scope. Full of fascinating character studies and shocking twists, it might also be one of the most addictive shows in recent memory.
18. Fast Five (2011)
Featuring one of the most exhilarating car chase sequences in recent memory, Fast Five offers the only heist movie experience in which vaults are casually dragged through traffic while Vin Diesel (Guardians of the Galaxy), Dwayne Johnson (Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle), and Paul Walker (Running Scared) chew the scenery in their own wonderful inimitable style.
17. Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998)
The movie is smarter and funnier than it has any right to be and remains the sparkling gem of Guy Ritchie’s otherwise floundering career.
16. The Town (2010)
Ben Affleck’s crime thriller is far better than anyone likely imagined. The director plays a longtime heist expert whose damn emotions could botch an upcoming job while Jon Hamm (Mad Men) plays a stern FBI agent tailing his every move.
15. Baby Driver (2017)
Edgar Wright’s music-infused thriller saw Ansel Elgort (The Fault in Our Stars) reneging on a heist to the beat of his own playlists. Giving a unique spin to the pacing and choreography required to pull off a good heist, Baby Driver made us wish it was more of a musical than a crime drama.
14. Bonnie and Clyde (1967)
Arthur Penn’s violent biopic stars Warren Beatty (Bulworth) and Faye Dunaway (Network) in two of their most iconic roles and remains one of the most thrilling crime movies of all time.
13. Logan Lucky (2017)
Featuring a script from Rebecca Blunt so intricate you’ll be jaw dropped for the entirety of the third act, Soderbergh’s NASCAR heist movie starring Adam Driver (Inside Llewyn Davis) and Channing Tatum (White House Down) is a spree of quick wit and invention.
12. Inception (2010)
Big horns and spinning tops! Christopher Nolan’s innovative take on the heist movie sees Leonardo DiCaprio (The Departed), Tom Hardy (Mad Max: Fury Road), and Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Looper) skipping through dreams in a bid to steal corporate secrets.
11. Die Hard (1988)
We might not see the heist from the thieves’ perspective, but from the heroic instincts of John Mcclane (Bruce Willis), but damn – Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman) for life!
10. A Fish Called Wanda (1988)
By far the funniest film on this list, with Jamie Lee Curtis (Halloween) proving herself to be more badass than anyone could have ever anticipated.
9. Reservoir Dogs (1992)
Quentin Tarantino’s stylistic drama has become a paragon of the genre and one that film students the world over continue to inexplicably steal from.
8. Dog Day Afternoon (1975)
Sidney Lumet’s devastating true-crime drama about a man (Al Pacino) who botches a bank robbery intended to help pay for his lover’s sex reassignment surgery is still one of the most influential films of all time.
7. The Sting (1973)
We could watch Paul Newman (Cool Hand Luke) and Robert Redford (Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid) colluding on crime capers all damn day.
6. Sexy Beast (2000)
It’s a classic trope: The retired gangster is brought back for one last job which will inevitably go tits up. However, Jonathan Glazer (Under the Skin) manages to give the story fresh life and maintains a breathless pace throughout. Ray Winstone (The Proposition), Ian McShane (American Gods), and Ben Kingsley (Schindler's List) are all absolutely formidable in the film, too.
5. Ocean’s Eleven (2001)
As the all-female Ocean’s 8 sprints to our screens seventeen years after the release of Soderbergh’s original, this slick ensemble movie packs a punch with stars like Matt Damon (Good Will Hunting), Brad Pitt (World War Z), and Bernie Mac (Guess Who) giving the movie a total bromance edge. We're still living for all the casino scenes in this movie.
4. Inside Man (2006)
With some vivid performances courtesy of Denzel Washington (Training Day), Jodie Foster (The Silence of the Lambs), and Clive Owen (Children of Men), Spike Lee’s exploration of a heist gone wrong studies the situation from a range of perspectives and with a ferocious tension that never lets up.
3. The Usual Suspects (1995)
Is Keyser Söze still the most fascinating (and shocking) character in crime movie history? Absolutely. Bryan Singer’s mysterious thriller also boasts career-defining performances from Kevin Spacey (House of Cards) and Benicio Del Toro (Sicario).
2. Heat (1995)
Uniting Hollywood heavyweights Al Pacino (Scarface) and Robert De Niro (Taxi Driver), Michael Mann’s legendary drama sees a single mistake set a series of chaotic and violent events in motion.
1. Point Break (1991)
Keanu Reeves (The Matrix) as an undercover cop! Patrick Swayze (Road House) as a badass surfer crook! Lori Petty (Tank Girl) as a pissed off surfer babe! Kathryn Bigelow’s classic heist flick has it all and then some. But is it the best heist movie of all time? We’d like to think so.
