Movies: The new and improved movie, 'The Italian Job'

Associated Press
Published Friday, May 30, 2003

Mark Wahlberg isn't exactly Michael Caine -- and thankfully, he isn't trying to be. The remake of "The Italian Job" isn't exactly the 1969 original -- and it isn't trying to be, either. Which is exactly why it works.

Where the first film was all about wry dialogue and absurd agonizing over every detail of a plan to steal millions in gold from an armored car, this new version is lighter, slicker and more action-packed.

Where Caine dominated the first film, simply by showing up and being sly and sexy (and man, he sure was 34 years ago), Wahlberg has the confidence to serve as a stoic central figure while allowing supporting cast members -- especially Seth Green and Mos Def -- to stand out.

Calling this new "Italian Job" a remake is almost inaccurate, because it shares only a few elements with the original: a traffic jam staged as a distraction from the heist, a couple of character names, and an elaborate chase involving three teeny Mini Cooper getaway cars in red, white and blue.

But that's where director F. Gary Gray, working from a script adapted by Donna and Wayne Powers, went right. Rather than trying to recreate something from decades ago, Gray has created a modern film that's fast and fun, with cool gadgets and great chases.

(It's enough to make you forget Gray's most recent effort, the forgettable action flick "A Man Apart" this year, starring Vin Diesel.)

The star this time is Wahlberg as Charlie Croker, the leader of a group of thieves (Green, Mos Def, Charlize Theron and Jason Statham) who stop traffic in downtown Los Angeles to hijack an armored car carrying $4 million in gold bars.

Charlie and the crew want to steal the gold back from Steve Frezelli (Edward Norton), who double-crossed them when they stole it together as a team the first time around. Charlie refers to that first fantastic crime, which involves a safe that drops through three floors and into a Venice canal, as "the Italian job."

Not only did Steve take the gold for himself, he killed the group's veteran leader, John Bridger (Donald Sutherland). The prospect of revenge is what Charlie uses to recruits Bridger's daughter, Stella (Theron), who inherited her father's safecracking skills only to use them as a security consultant.

This may sound familiar to you for any or all of the following reasons:

-- Wahlberg starred last year in another Euro caper remake, "The Truth About Charlie"; he chased after gold bars with George Clooney and Ice Cube in "Three Kings"; and he co-starred with Theron in "The Yards."

-- Norton played a similar hotshot thief in "The Score" with Robert De Niro and Marlon Brando.

-- Statham has done the British thug routine in "The Transporter," "Snatch" and "Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels."

And let's not even get into the cornucopia of con movies that have come out recently -- including "Ocean's Eleven," which this resembles closely, with its fizzy, giddy spirit and talented ensemble cast.

So, no, it's not exactly new. And thankfully, it's not trying to be -- it's just having fun.