A Glean movie guide
Smooth Operators: The Best Heist Movies
Don't get caught.
Stylish crews, impossible scores, and the art of the perfect con.
Handpicked for this guide
The movie list
- 01
Logan Lucky
Steven Soderbergh delivers a witty, high-stakes heist that feels like a rural cousin to the Ocean's series.
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.
- 02
The Italian Job
A sleek and fast-paced ensemble heist featuring specialized roles and iconic getaway sequences.
Charlie Croker pulled off the crime of a lifetime. The one thing that he didn't plan on was being double-crossed. Along with a drop-dead gorgeous safecracker, Croker and his team take off to re-steal the loot and end up in a pulse-pounding, pedal-to-the-metal chase that careens up, down, above and below the streets of Los Angeles.
- 03
The Sting
The definitive con-artist masterpiece where two charismatic leads execute an elaborate, multi-layered long game.
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.
- 04
Inside Man
A brilliant bank robbery thriller where the true objective is hidden behind layers of clever misdirection.
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.
- 05
The Thomas Crown Affair
An ultra-stylish cat-and-mouse game between a sophisticated billionaire thief and a sharp investigator.
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.
- 06
Now You See Me
A flashy thriller where a team of illusionists uses grand-scale magic to pull off impossible heists.
An FBI agent and an Interpol detective track a team of illusionists who pull off bank heists during their performances and reward their audiences with the money.
- 07
Snatch
A high-energy crime caper featuring fast-paced dialogue and a colorful cast of intersecting characters.
Unscrupulous boxing promoters, violent bookies, a Russian gangster, incompetent amateur robbers, and supposedly Jewish jewellers fight to track down a priceless stolen diamond.
- 08
Ocean's Eight
A glamorous spin-off that maintains the franchise's signature rhythm with a high-stakes Met Gala heist.
Debbie Ocean, a criminal mastermind, gathers a crew of female thieves to pull off the heist of the century at New York's annual Met Gala.
- 09
Baby Driver
A visually stunning, high-octane heist film that moves to the beat of its protagonist's personal soundtrack.
After being coerced into working for a crime boss, a young getaway driver finds himself taking part in a heist doomed to fail.
- 10
21
A tense Vegas-set drama where a brilliant team uses a clever system to take the casinos for millions.
Ben Campbell is a young, highly intelligent student at M.I.T. who strives to succeed. Wanting a scholarship to transfer to Harvard School of Medicine to become a doctor, Ben learns that he cannot afford the $300,000 tuition as he comes from a poor, working-class background. But one evening, Ben is introduced by his unorthodox math professor to a small but secretive club of five students, Jill, Choi, Kianna, and Fisher, who are being trained by Professor Rosa to count cards at blackjack.