Lying and Stealing (Matt Aselton, 2019)

Art thief Ivan (Theo James) is looking for a way out of the game. Making it harder is that he is indentured to a local crime boss (Fred Melamed) who picks his next score.

When he meets an actress-turned-con artist Elyse (Emily Ratajkowski), Ivan finds a partner to help him complete one last job that will allow both of them to leave their current careers behind.

A few weeks ago, I rewatched a movie I used to love: I Come In Peace, a low-budget sci-fi action movie starring Dolph Lundgren. 

It is not a great movie, but there is something about the low-budget presentation, and how the filmmakers manage to create an effective genre piece within those limitations, that makes it more fun to watch. It is no masterpiece, but it succeeds at what it sets out to do.

The success of movies like I Come In Peace is worth highlighting because they are operating in a space now held by major studios with massive budgets. In its own humble way, these kinds of low-budget genre movies democratic-ize and demystify the process of filmmaking.  

Lying and Stealing is not a great movie. I was not even sure I wanted to write about it.

But I could not shake the feeling that this modest caper was a spiritual sibling to I Come In Peace.

The 2019 iteration of a low budget genre movie, it is not great, but there is something about the way the components are put together, without the bells and whistles, but with just enough invention and intelligence that it is entertaining.

These movies are associated with money, both onscreen and off:

You expect an all-star cast in exotic locations. Instead you have Theo James and Emily Ratajkowski in Los Angeles.

Perversely, the lack of resources gives the movie a sense of verisimilitude.

The lack of excess in the miss-en-scene draws attention to the characters’ isolation and the hoarding of wealth.

If this movie was big budget, the stars’ lack of star power would stand out. 

But because this movie is made on a modest canvas, they fit. 

Overall, within the bandwidth of this movie, I think they are pretty good.

James is probably more together than the character as written, but he is fine as a handsome blank who can slip in and out of his wealthy prey’s homes.

Ratajkowski is a little exposed during the climax - she does not show the level of anxiety the character is supposed to have. There is a bizarre inconsistency that almost feels like the filmmakers chose the wrong takes, because her performance changes drastically between shots.

She is also sharing the screen with the movie’s MVP, Fred Melamed, who lifts every scene he is in. He brings genuine menace to the film, and I wish the movie could have made him more of an antagonist.

Isiah Whitlock is also good as the FBI agent who gets on Ivan’s tail. Once again it is a case of a great actor in a minor role that does not give them much to do.

Despite their limitations, I am kind of interested to see if James and Ratajkowski can get some more roles like these under their belts - they may not be great, but they know what kind of movie they are in and they are not mannequins. 

Overall, I kinda liked Lying and Stealing - probably because of low expectations, but it is better than the unappealing title.