'Crime 101' Director Bart Layton On The Film's Influences, His Star-Studded Cast And More!
FilmSpeak had the pleasure of sitting down with Crime 101 director Bart Layton where he discussed his influences for the crime thriller, his star-studded cast and much more.
Crime 101 centers on an elusive thief (Chris Hemsworth) who encounters an insurance broker (Halle Berry) at a crossroads . As their paths cross, a seasoned detective (Mark Ruffalo) is on their trail in order to put a stop to a multi-million dollar heist they’re planning.
The crime thriller looks absolutely stunning due to its stellar cinematography from Erik Wilson and precise, meticulous camerawork from Layton. When asked about his visual influences for the film, Layton stated, “We wanted it to be film noir but wanted it to have a classic quality to it even though we wanted it to feel very contemporary. The references were…there were a lot of seventies movies, really deep colors, really deep blacks, natural light when possible. We found a book that’s called Atmosphere of Crime. It was a photo essay by a photographer in the fifties who made this incredible book in Harlem. That became a big reference for us.” The film’s visual aesthetic has wonderful shades of Michael Mann’s Heat and Collateral in addition to Nicolas Winding Refn’s Drive, making the city of LA a compelling character in and of itself throughout.
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Shifting gears to his incredible cast, when asked about Hemsworth’s surprising character and emotionally rich performance, Layton expressed, “He’s a very commanding presence. I wasn’t sure he would find that easy to be that awkward and that vulnerable at times. Truth it, he’s not Thor. He’s a very sensitive, thoughtful human being and actually what turns out to be a really brilliant actor. He goes on to say, “What we did was we changed his posture. It’s not like the kind of alpha. It’s less confident and his voice is a little different.” Their collaboration on the camera yielded one of the actor’s finest performance, proving he can be far more than a Marvel action hero on screen.
Speaking of performances, Barry Keoghan turns in another stellar turn as an antagonist here, further showcasing the talented actor’s versatility. When discussing his surprising, explosive performance, Layton expressed palpable praise for the actor by stating, “Barry is a naturally unpredictable performer right? So you want to harness that. He’s like a hand grenade…and the beauty of it is that it raises the game of the other actors and also there’s a kind of unpredictability to where the scene is going to go which is both stressful and exhilarating.”
Adding to the enveloping immersion of the film is the practical stunt work and real world locations utilized for the film. This was a crucial ingredient to the film according to Layton who said, “You gotta really do your homework if you’re going to do something different you know? The mantra for me with this is one simple question which is what would it really feel like? The more you enter special effects or visual effects or you shoot your actor on a blue screen doing this or all the rest of it…if I can’t believe that, how can I ask you to believe it?” This mantra worked to the film’s advantage immensely, making for car chases, shootouts and other set pieces that were visceral, tactile, and incredibly propulsive.
Layton, after proving his prowess with impressive features like The Imposter and American Animals, continues to showcase his talent and versatility behind the camera with Crime 101. This is an old-fashioned, handsomely made crime thriller that feels like a refreshing change of pace for the genre. Not only is it a gorgeous looking film with stellar cinematography, but Layton is able to get terrific performances out of his incredible cast as well. This is a rock-solid crime film that will make audiences yearn for Hollywood to start making far more films like it again.