Chirphymium It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional
Sammy-Jo Cervantes There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.
Zandra The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.
Kayden This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama
skakiris A waste of time,Very nice cast but the movie it's so boring.The only thing that save a little bit this movie is the nice music.
lavatch There was an ingenious concept to this combination caper and romantic comedy. From start to finish, the film never takes itself too seriously, and the result is pure entertainment.Much credit belongs to the screenwriter who blended the production of Chekhov's "The Cherry Orchard" occurring in an old Buffalo theater next to the city bank. The robbers (James Caan, Keanu Reeves) ingeniously burrow into the bank vault from beneath the theater in order to rob the bank.The best scenes are from the Chekhov play, as reality blends with the stage drama in the relationship of Vera Farmiga's character Madame Ranevskaya and Reeves' Lopahkin. When the actors begin improvising lines, the audience loves it! One of the best characters in the film is the police officer who becomes the "inside man" for the bank heist. Some of the lines and deadpan humor are priceless, making "Henry's Crime" a true joy.
vchimpanzee Henry has a boring job in the Buffalo area as a toll collector. We never see exactly what road he is on, but it appears there is lots more traffic in the background than there is on his road.One morning he comes home and gets to spend some time with wife Debbie, a nurse. Their marriage seems okay. Then Henry's friends, including Eddie, come over and say they need him to play in an important softball game. But they need to make a stop at the Buffalo Savings Bank first. All four men are wearing uniforms, but Henry has to stay in the van. The other three put on masks and rob the bank. Only Henry is caught, and since he won't rat on his friends, he gets sent up the river.Fortunately, Henry's cellmate is a really nice man named Max. Max is a lifer who likes prison and has no desire to get out. Henry doesn't seem to despise prison, but he would like to leave. And his time is over pretty quickly. His wife has left him, and he needs to figure out what to do with his life. Henry finds out about a tunnel built between the bank and what is now Orpheum Theater, used for a speakeasy during Prohibition. He did the time, so why not rob the bank anyway? In the process of investigating Henry meets Julie, an actress best known for lottery commercials who is acting in a Chekhov play at the theater, but wants to be a real actress. As a cover, Henry decides to the play, and he's actually pretty good. And he and Julie seem to like each other. He later gets more help when Max gets out on parole and continues his previous life as a "confidence man" (he hates the term "con man"). And the cop who caught Henry wants to help too, because he's not appreciated.One possible problem: Eddie and his friends want in on the action.Can Henry get away with it? This is the type of movie where we want him to succeed, like in "Ocean's Eleven".In a better movie, James Caan would have been nominated for an Oscar for his excellent portrayal of Max. He is the standout performer here.Vera Farmiga is quite good as Julie, who is better than this sorry role. And yet she gives it her all. What she does on stage and in rehearsals is worthy of being seen on the Tonys.Keanu Reeves is okay. Not bad. Not great. He's better in the Chekhov play.Fisher Stevens does a very good job. I'm used to seeing him as a basically nice guy who is sleazy, but here is is just bad. Not bad in that sense. He's very good at being bad.There's no clear ending. I will say that much. So I'm not quite sure what happens. But the climactic scene is pretty amazing.It's really worth seeing.
Chrysanthepop Malcolm Venville's 'Henry's Crime' is a delightfully lowkey heist/ romantic comedy. By romantic comedy I don't mean those sugarcoated typically Hollywood rom-coms that are set in New York or that star Julia Roberts. This is nothing like that. The humour is quite dry and subtle and the romance is depicted effectively through non-verbal expressions rather than words. Then there's the heist angle which is depicted very simply. The director and writer don't attempt to build tension (as is done in most other heist flicks) because the primary focus is on the characters and 'Henry's Crime' has some fascinating ones.The production values are modest and the execution is pretty good. The sets are quite appealing without having to be lavish. Several instrumental tracks in the score are brilliant. Silence is effectively used as the quietness brings out a certain charm.Keanu Reeves plays the title character and his performance here is better than most of what he's done. He is overshadowed by Vera Farmiga, Judy Greer and James Caan. Greer has a very small role but she wonderfully conveys the layers of her character. Farmiga is superb as the feisty yet bitter but soft-hearted Juñie Ivanova. She plays the part very naturally. Caan provides some excellent comic relief. The ing cast is very good even though Stormare's caricature director does occasionally get on one's nerves.To sum it up, 'Henry's Crime' is a simple and splendid heist rom-com. The symbolic ending has various layers and it doesn't desperately try too hard to tie things up.
