A Glean movie guide
Masterminds & Misdirection
Don't trust the plan.
Heist movies where the job is only half the story.
Handpicked for this guide
The movie list
- 01
The Usual Suspects
A legendary crime puzzle that redefined the cinematic plot twist.
Held in an L.A. interrogation room, Verbal Kint attempts to convince the feds that a mythic crime lord, Keyser Soze, not only exists, but was also responsible for drawing him and his four partners into a multi-million dollar heist that ended with an explosion in San Pedro harbor – leaving few survivors. Verbal lures his interrogators with an incredible story of the crime lord's almost supernatural prowess.
- 02
The Sting
A charming, multi-layered con that keeps you guessing until the final curtain.
A novice con man teams up with an acknowledged master to avenge the murder of a mutual friend by pulling off the ultimate big con and swindling a fortune from a big-time mobster.
- 03
Inside Man
A brilliant bank robbery where the true objective is hidden in plain sight.
When an armed, masked gang enter a Manhattan bank, lock the doors and take hostages, the detective assigned to effect their release enters negotiations preoccupied with corruption charges he is facing.
- 04
Ocean's Eleven
The ultimate ensemble heist, capped off by a perfectly executed 'how-they-did-it' reveal.
Less than 24 hours into his parole, charismatic thief Danny Ocean is already rolling out his next plan: In one night, Danny's hand-picked crew of specialists will attempt to steal more than $150 million from three Las Vegas casinos. But to score the cash, Danny risks his chances of reconciling with ex-wife, Tess.
- 05
The Handmaiden
A visually stunning masterpiece of double-crosses and shifting perspectives.
1930s Korea, in the period of Japanese occupation, a new girl, Sookee, is hired as a handmaiden to a Japanese heiress, Hideko, who lives a secluded life on a large countryside estate with her domineering Uncle Kouzuki. But the maid has a secret. She is a pickpocket recruited by a swindler posing as a Japanese Count to help him seduce the Lady to steal her fortune.
- 06
Inception
A mind-bending thriller that applies heist mechanics to the architecture of dreams.
Cobb, a skilled thief who commits corporate espionage by infiltrating the subconscious of his targets is offered a chance to regain his old life as payment for a task considered to be impossible: "inception", the implantation of another person's idea into a target's subconscious.
- 07
Reservoir Dogs
A gritty, dialogue-driven mystery focused on finding the traitor among thieves.
A botched robbery indicates a police informant, and the pressure mounts in the aftermath at a warehouse. Crime begets violence as the survivors -- veteran Mr. White, newcomer Mr. Orange, psychopathic parolee Mr. Blonde, bickering weasel Mr. Pink and Nice Guy Eddie -- unravel.
- 08
Logan Lucky
A deceptively smart caper that proves you should never underestimate the underdogs.
Trying to reverse a family curse, brothers Jimmy and Clyde Logan set out to execute an elaborate robbery during the legendary Coca-Cola 600 race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway.
- 09
Nine Queens
A fast-paced Argentine thriller built on a series of escalating, expert-level cons.
Two con artists try to swindle a stamp collector by selling him a sheet of counterfeit rare stamps, the "nine queens".
- 10
Matchstick Men
A character-driven con movie with a heart-wrenching final subversion.
A phobic con artist and his protege are on the verge of pulling off a lucrative swindle when the con artist's teenage daughter arrives unexpectedly.
- 11
Widows
A grounded, intense heist drama featuring a major revelation that changes everything.
A police shootout leaves four thieves dead during an explosive armed robbery attempt in Chicago. Their widows have nothing in common except a debt left behind by their spouses' criminal activities. Hoping to forge a future on their own terms, they join forces to pull off a heist.
- 12
The Thomas Crown Affair
A stylish cat-and-mouse game where the heist is just the beginning of the flirtation.
Bored billionaire executive Thomas Crown entertains himself by stealing a Monet from a reputed museum with an elaborate diversion. When Catherine Banning, the insurance company's investigator, takes an interest in Crown, he may have met his match, and a complicated back-and-forth game with seductive undertones begins between them.