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Den of Thieves (2018)
20 Plays2 days ago
This week on the Everything Actioncast, Zach and Chris assemble their heist crew and talk Den of Thieves as Den of Thieves 2: Pantera hits theaters this weekend.
Starring Gerard Butler, Pablo Schreiber, and O'Shea Jackson Jr., Butler is Big Nick, the head of the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department Major Crimes Unit, who is after Ray Merrimen (Schreiber) whose crew of ex-Marines are looking to rob millions from the LA branch of the Federal Reserve. Behind the scenes, though, Donnie Wilson (Jackson Jr.) is the heist's true mastermind. Zach and Chris talk about the various mind games and dick measuring between Big Nick and Merrimen, if Donnie's plan involved him getting kidnapped and beaten multiple times, the ways it tries to emulate Heat, how to build an EMP device, and more.
You can watch Den of Thieves on Max. Next week, we're discussing the first Tales from the Crypt movie, Demon Knight, as it celebrates its 30th anniversary.
We want to hear your comments and feedback. Send them all to contact@everythingaction.com. Also, let us know your suggestions for movies for us to discuss.
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Transcript
Introduction to Everything Action Cast
00:00:03
Speaker
Welcome to the Everything Action Cast, the official podcast of EverythingAction.com.
00:00:18
Speaker
Hello and welcome to the Everything Action Cast podcast week of January 6, 2025. I'm your host Zach. I'm your co-host Chris.
Den of Thieves 2 Pantera Release Discussion
00:00:27
Speaker
Yeah, this week we are assembling our heist crew and talking about Den of Thieves, ah because if you're hearing this, Den of Thieves 2 Pantera is out in theaters, the long long-anticipated sequel to Den of Thieves. um Yeah, these I think it's been set it's been seven years since Den of Thieves, because Den of Thieves was 2018. And I think there's a whole bunch of like you know i guess i think budget issues. And I think the company that put out the ah the first Den of Thieves like went bankrupt, so they had to find like a new distributor and scheduling stuff. but
00:00:57
Speaker
It all finally came together. We're getting to the sequel to
Den of Thieves: Intensity and Fan Base
00:01:00
Speaker
Dead of Thieves. Big Nick is back. Downie's back.
00:01:07
Speaker
But the first one, I think, Chris, this is your first time seeing Dead of Thieves, right? Oh, yeah. This is something that and it was like a must watch for years, just because it's very intense and very action packed.
00:01:21
Speaker
and ah like People kind of had doubts in the beginning, but like it grew such a big fandom on it. And like yeah, just we never like I never had the chance to sit down and just commit to just being a big crime movie, because this is not like an easy watch.
Comparing Den of Thieves to Heat
00:01:41
Speaker
It's two hours and 20 minutes of just like ah like intensity. Yeah, I think The Right Time is part of its attempt to kind of be the new heat.
00:01:53
Speaker
Like yeah like that's like it's its ambition is it wants to be heat. Yeah, yeah. I didn't really know that at the beginning. But I'm a fan of heat. But that's because like I've seen it a couple of times. And you don't need to watch all of heat. You can watch parts of it. And like so the performance is really great just because everyone's like super like aggressive.
00:02:19
Speaker
you know And Dennith Theves, though, has that moment. But there's a lot of, like, kind of like the human side of everyone or like they what they really care about as their family. That's sort of like the other message in this movie because it's like three movies in one. Well it's also like Data Thieves is also like dumber like a lot dumber. Like like all care like everyone in the heat is like this like very cool collected uh you know the professional like Robin heroes is like in and he is so like like yeah he's got the whole thing you're like i will only i can leave it within 30 seconds and then his whole crew is like very professional then Dennothy is just like a bunch of like gym bros like fighting each other like it's just like they're like just like like you know like uh
00:03:08
Speaker
Basically, going up to each other and saying, oh, do you lift, bro? like what it but why You want to go to the gym, we'll have a lift-off, bro? like
00:03:19
Speaker
I love that the whole the whole middle of part of this movie is just Gerard Butler and Pablo Schreiber just like having like a like like pissing contest with each other and playing these like bro mind games.
00:03:32
Speaker
Yeah, it's just like Jim Bros, like you said, just having like a dick measuring contest. And then everyone here is like everyone, if they're not doing crimes or solving crimes, they're like working out, working out or working out and like sleeve the shirts or sitting around drinking.
Character Analysis of Big Nick
00:03:53
Speaker
Like this is just a ah guy move.
00:03:56
Speaker
Yeah, especially Dreadbrawler just, I mean, he like he looks like he just constantly smells like about like cigarettes and sweat and whiskey. like This is like, this picnic is like the scummiest Dreadbrawler character I think he's ever played. He's scummy looking, but and also like there's certain tactics that are like, ooh, that if you told me he secretly was the the villain at the end where they like speak for deal, you know, like it wouldn't be shocking because he just looks like dirty. Yeah. around
00:04:27
Speaker
But the thing about it, though, they give him like, I think halfway point in the movie, there's that or maybe even before that, where there's like a touching scene about like this kid and then it's just like the soft side. You're like, what? they had It's like we got to get this guy like some scene. So he's not like an absolute scumbag, like get make him make him care about his daughters like he like he'll like.
00:04:48
Speaker
have a scene with his daughter and then he cries in his car. And then that's it. Oh yeah. And the thing is, it's not like, okay, he's got the one young girl. It's like, they were like, I already had double down. We got him two daughters and then they all soften him up.
Plot Twists and Character Dynamics
00:05:01
Speaker
But isn it isn't the scene where he goes to visit his daughter at school? Like, isn't that right after he like, like has sex with Maryman's girl, like stripper girlfriend? Yeah. Like he just as a like he just left that out like her house and then goes to visit his daughter without like, I wonder if he washed his hands. Like, you know, it doesn't seem like he would.
00:05:20
Speaker
but yeah, what a weird plan. I'm going to visit this guy's girlfriend. This is part of like, everyone's got plans and and conspiracies against each other. And then one of them was like, all right, you have to seduce like this top. And then it's like, his thing is just like, I need to get evidence. And yeah, I don't even know how you need to submit that later for like court and be like, I got this from an informant that we didn't do things with. It's like, what? That that is that's one of my favorite parts of this movie. It's just like, that like, like Game of Thrones, but like bros, Game of Thrones, where it's like, like, Oh, I'm going to go, I'm going to show you Mary, man. I'm going to go sleep with your girlfriend. But then it's like, Oh, well, haha, Gerard Butler. I wanted to sleep with my girlfriend so she could give you fake information. So I win. You know what the thing is? You could have done that without the sleeping part and it's still been fine. Yeah. like
00:06:14
Speaker
ah So OJ Jackson Jr. plays Donny, who, like, they beat him up for information and they could have just continued that method. But for some whatever reason, when it came to that trip or girlfriend, it's just like, I guess I have to sleep with you.
00:06:30
Speaker
i want I kind of wanted to figure out like where she works and stuff too because his only interaction before that is at the sushi restaurant or the hibachi restaurant where they had their bro off. But then he just like figures out where she works and goes there and then it's like, and then the whole thing happens. I guess maybe like he looked up like police files and maybe she was in- No associates. No associates or something.
00:06:57
Speaker
i I could see that, but that sucks if it's just like, oh, we're we're not like that. It's like, well, now you're in my police file.
00:07:08
Speaker
Yeah, and then then yeah yeah you also have to wonder, like, what parts of all this plan is like Donnie's mastermind plan? Because that's the big reveal at the end is that Donnie is the one who came up with this whole the whole heist or thing. So it's basically for just all this talking points.
00:07:24
Speaker
Yeah, because basically because the movies the movie's heat for pretty much the entire movie. But then the reveal at the end is, oh, also, there was like there's basically like a Danny Ocean type character who was like manipulating things. Oh, no, no. Let me let me draw interrupt you right there. It is that, but it also has a the usual suspects part. Yes. Just add it maybe 20 minutes in. As soon as they did a flashback, I was like, this ist like this is where it gets kind of like they couldn't add the subtlety this is for the bros who like watch this movie because they're amped up on like uh monster energy and vodka and like they never this is their first like crime drama and like intellectual crime drama it's not just a basic crime or a drama it's like that and then it's like oh let's add some um noir element to it like a neo noir about just like ha ha like we we have um
00:08:22
Speaker
you should have been paying attention to the subtlety of things. And if you didn't, here it is all like in a quick montage. and Even when we review it, it's like we're still left with just like the mental gymnastics of like, how did this work? Or like, why was this part of the plan? Yeah, I think we were talking before we started recording, but like, we definitely needed more, like there should have been a little bit more of, cause there's a big, there's a reveal at the end where you kind of see some of the steps that Danny did to set everything up and how it played out. But then,
00:08:51
Speaker
I feel like it should have been a little bit more like showing how hes he was like pulling strings the entire time because from that ending montage, the only thing that you get that he did really was to have um his friends kind of intercept the ah money. and then But then, it was part of his plan to getting the shit beat out of him constantly from like multiple sides. and um Like, was he, did he tell a merriment to have his girlfriend sleep with dried butler? And like, um that it's not really clear how much Donny, like, like how much of Donny's like influence was going on behind the scenes. They set him up, because they set him up to be like, oh, he is like this genius level mastermind that pulled this whole thing off. And like, yeah he not only fooled the cops, he fooled like his, this other crew. And like, they basically did the the work for him and they, that he removed the benefits.
00:09:42
Speaker
Yeah, it it it seems like he had to be there for at least a year minimum of just knowing the people, knowing the routines, knowing the um like, I guess collecting all the information from all these guards who were just like blabbering all about the Federal Reserve secrets.
00:10:02
Speaker
But you know what's crazy? Like as soon as Gerard Butler like steps out at the end where he sees the Federal Reserve maybe like two blocks away from the bar, it like never clicks about that. It's like, oh, the Federal Reserve, the one that do got robbed and then like- And he- Gerard Butler was looking there like a couple of days ago, like he was at the bar, like- He didn't notice like it was there. It's a big building. And yeah and the crazy thing is, he- He probably could have just went there a couple more times and heard the federal employees fucking just like, you know, I left that door unlocked or like, or just whatever information was like, you heard about that giant money gang shred. I should probably steal it. Ha ha ha ha. Like, here's how, yeah, it's here's how the money works. They bring in like $30 billion dollars and it just goes away. Like their $3 million dollars just disappears every day at the Federal Reserve. Isn't that crazy?
00:10:55
Speaker
Yeah, that's a specific number to say out loud. so like And it's accurate to some degree, right? Because at the end, it's like they steal that much as just disappear from just the burning. so Or the shredding. So it's like, who's that asshole working there just saying that? And then there's no, like I wonder in the sequel, is there like a mention where all the people who go to that bar got fired or something? or like you know like just and the or or in the beginning when the guy that lost his pass yes like that can't be the first guy that's done it how bad is working at the federal reserve that as soon as it's like either lunch or like the evening they're getting shit face like at that bar well if you're a food delivery person you can just like you can just probably just wander it just gotta get
00:11:45
Speaker
Sign in. You're ah you're set to go. Well, I just want the trope. Yeah, the trope, though. And I like that it's not like an Uber Eats. It's not some third party food delivery independent thing. Like it's from that Chinese village place, like they hired him. Yeah. but I love it. I love it. Like one of Donnie's go to booze is he has to get hired at like a restaurant or a bar. That's like part of his highest. Well, he's a common man. That's the thing where it's like he is a also an ex marine, but he is also um just working just the the like blue collar shifts and all that. Like he's working, and if you think about it, he's working like the weekday shifts. He's not working a weekend thing. He's not like the the party scene. He's working basically just like gig hours. So yeah, like clever. But I saw it coming like a mile away. You know, as soon as I saw that, I was like, he's the Kevin Spacey in Usual Show Spec.
00:12:47
Speaker
And you didn't, you didn't, you you didn't know that twist going, like you, you, you gone, you went seven years about knowing that O'Shea Jackson, you were just the mastermind. No. So that's what's hilarious about the the trailer for the dead of thieves too. And I was like, Oh, Donnie's back. Donnie's I guess him. I'm like, I guess the other guy died. So like he is the second guy. It makes sense. We're like,
00:13:08
Speaker
you know he's the one that survived the crew he's the cleverest yet like anyone says that if the other or your partner or your team is gone i thought he was the only guy who survived it like intentionally in a shootout not in a ah like mastermind i'll just sit in cars and get beat up way Because I thought ah as soon as I realized like Donnie was just the driver, like for most of the scenes or he's getting kidnapped or he is pulling like an Ocean's 11 scam at the end where ah he has to get in there and do it.
00:13:45
Speaker
Yeah, I just think he was doing it because he wasn't the most jacked guy in the crew because it'd be like red flags. If like your delivery guy was just some muscle bound dude, you're like, wait, what? Or, you know, like, so yeah so yeah I don't think don I don't think Donnie was a like Marine and the same level as like the other guys are Marines. I think like Pablo Schreiber and his and 50 Cent and all those guys are like split like spec ops like like like Special Forces Marines. Oh, they're like a strike team. Yeah, which you see that like the opening and like the opening shootout that like the donut shop where they're like you see them like calling out there like sides and doing like taking down like the cops coming in. That's the part of Donnie's plan was to let's rob just a truck so we can have
00:14:30
Speaker
ah truck ready. I guess they need a truck and then they, they
Heist Plans and Challenges
00:14:34
Speaker
hit a stadium. I think that's the same. It was before Donnie got there, but then they used the money from the stadium heist to fill it in the, like the boxes that go to the federal reserve. And then that's what they, cause that's their covered again. There's like, we're we're delivering this money to the federal reserve for this bank. Gotcha. I mean, it clever plan. I like the overall like complexity of it, that it looks simple when you say it out loud and like, you know, when they show you the, the crude layout especially at the end where it's like oh no we do this and this and this and this is how we do it and just like it actually goes according to plan for most of it well simplest like somehow they had like an EMP it's like oh we just bought an EMP like cool like yesterday just like so like disable it the cameras of the yeah counting room but that alone would have been its own subplot of like stealing that or making that
00:15:25
Speaker
Yeah, you have to like you have to like either make it or like go and like to like ah i don't like a research facility or something. I don't know where they have EMPs, but I mean, essentially you can take. um No, I think you can make one by accident. I think you have to take like an X-ray machine, but like a specific one and then like. Yeah. like what I don't know any any action movie I've seen that uses EMPs. It's not part of a nuke or some sort of hacker thing. It's always an X-ray machine. i always I always go to ah small soldiers.
00:15:53
Speaker
I think for the end where it's like, oh, you just, you jam a wrench between two transformers and that like creates a traumatic pulse. I don't think maybe. I mean, it was shoddy nineties, like, like, like city planning work, where it's like, Oh no, like every transformer is just a potential EMP. If you need one, if you like, yeah, if you jam metal, feed the, the.
00:16:15
Speaker
two poles or whatever. I don't know if that. Like, I guess those transformers are just like magnets spinning constantly. So if you inter overload, them yeah overload them. I don't know. All I know is like other times I've seen it. It's usually an X-ray machine because that makes sense. It's like magnetically scanning your body, but you shouldn't like disassemble. It's like opening a washing machine while it's still going like it it will like fuck up everything. So.
00:16:46
Speaker
Yeah, i can't believe like I can't wait for the next movie that uses an EMP and it's like, oh, we we like mess with this washer machine or dryer. It's like a pulse came out of that. Did you ever, ah and another side note, did you ever see that like shortcut ah videos of people who mentioned like EMP since like it was more popular in like 1997 to like 2005, like EMPs were everywhere? No, I don't think so.
00:17:14
Speaker
ah almost every movie from like, I actually think earlier, like 1996 to like 2008, I'm gonna say, EMP out of nowhere. And then not only not EMP, but always explaining what EMP stood for. I watched a super good video of like everyone dropping what EMPs are. And it's just like, wow. And they got replaced by nanobots. Nanobots, yeah. Because nanobots can do anything.
00:17:42
Speaker
Even EMPs. Yeah, they can make an EMP. Pretty sure they're counterintuitive, but I appreciate that, that replace like the McGuffin thing that they need. Well, it's crazy that these, that they had EMP, but then they also have to ah like make it look like a brownout. Like, cause like I guess the Federal Reserve is having like power issues that they figured out. And then so that they make it look like ah the power is having issues.
00:18:10
Speaker
Which I don't know why you couldn't just have like that, like take the cameras down. Like, I don't know, like EMP seems like a, like a hat on a hat, a little bit of like, we're going to, we're going to mess with the power plus an EMP. Yeah, it's a little overkill when, uh, part of that could have been fine, right? Like just, just mess with the power. And it's like, all right, we're going to do both. And it's like, that could have just fucked up the whole plan, I guess. It's like, you already got EMP'd. Oh no, they did the power, then the EMP, right?
00:18:40
Speaker
Yeah, well, they they fit like, Dany finds out that they've been having power issues, like, up leading up to the heist. Like, they's they've been like, they go on, like, a brownout, and then it causes, like, certain systems to go down for a little bit. So that's how they can get like get in and, on like, unnoticed. It's like, there's all kinds of, like, sensors and stuff in the room. And then, like, the ah guard like the guards are going to, like, lose, like, camera feed if the brownout happens.
00:19:09
Speaker
So that mean that that seems like consider your your like all your stuff. You don't need an EMP as well. But I think i think it was similar to when I heard of the vengeance, where it's like the construction is causing like the ah like there' a construction going on. So all like the seismic sensors in the bank are like not being ah ah are turned off because it's like giving them false alarms. So that's how Simon and them were able to steal like the Federal Reserve gold. That makes sense.
00:19:39
Speaker
It's like, it's like, there's already this thing happening. So they just like took advantage of it, like make it like look like that's the same thing happening.
00:19:53
Speaker
And then there's like the, there's the fake out bank where they do like the, like the typical like bank robbery hostage situation, which is what, uh, which is what power driver tells his girlfriend to tell Gerard Butler is like, tell him we're gonna run this bank.
00:20:10
Speaker
Yeah, that was pretty ah interesting just because it was like like a test run, I guess for them. Well, it was it was a diversion. So they had so they had all like they had like Big Nick and his crew and FBI like all of them at at that bank. And then they tunneled out and went to like got the armored truck and and got went to like the actual heist, which is the Federal Reserve. Right. Right. But yeah, they were like. Was it a fake shooting execution? Yeah.
00:20:40
Speaker
So that that was interesting, because you think the movie's ramping up and the crooks are getting desperate. So that was a nice like diversion to even to us like as the viewer. He's like, OK, hey, they're escalating. you know They're getting the pressures on them. The heat's there. Yeah, the heat is on. Yeah. The heat's on. Yeah.
00:21:04
Speaker
yeah You get another, like, DeNiro Pacino moment where, like, Pablo Schreiber calls Dry Butler on the phone, and he's like, hey, you watching? He's like, yeah, and he's like, yeah, I'm out here. like
00:21:20
Speaker
And then, like, Dry Butler and his team are all like, so I love, like, the the dueling, like, suit-up montages. Like, everything is, like, getting suited up for, like, their, cop like like, tactical gear.
00:21:32
Speaker
Well, because at that point, they they are like the opposites of the law. And they really want to hammer in how how much they, I guess, are like alike, because they'll do anything they need to do.
00:21:55
Speaker
Yeah, cause because Big Nick and his team definitely yeah bend the law a little bit with like unlawful like like They basically kidnapped Donny and like put him in a hotel. like They hired a stripper, like hookers for some reason? like this is like If we're gonna hang out here, we might as well get some coke and some strippers. I guess we're coke and hookers. Well, I mean, okay, so I've learned that they do that, so if they ever says, like, to another cop, like, in a thing that says, like, okay, like, what happened if he goes to so like to to, like, say, hey, I want to file a complaint.
00:22:32
Speaker
If he goes, Oh, what was going on in that room? It was, well, there was like shippers and coke. And they're like, we don't believe you. It's like, it's so like outlandish that it's like, so it's like, they would question how, like, how real your first statement is. Even though that, that first part's true. And then the second part is just like insane. You're like, wait, the cops hired trippers to beat you up. You know, it's just like, they brought guests. Yeah.
00:23:02
Speaker
Yes, Andrew. yeah They gave me a beer and we were hanging out. I think I wet myself. but And then like, then yeah, that's part of the plan. And then um also like, Donnie keeps going to places getting questioned almost all the time. That's on like, it's like too many of those occurrences that it's the red flag, for me at least.
00:23:27
Speaker
when I received a crime drama and you have like the patsy guy or not even the patsy, just sort of like the weak chain in the gang. Right. You figure if anyone squeeze. Squeeze the Hawaiian guy. Mm hmm. Or squeeze the squeeze the bar owner Ziggy. They don't say his name, I think. Oh, no, they do. But. Or is there's like the one like There's also like the other guy in the crew. There's like, cause you have, you have Pablo Schreiber, you have 50 cent. And then you also have the other guy. I think it's Bosch, I think his name is Bosco. Who's like crazy. He's like, yeah, he's like, he's in the loose wire. Like he'd be the one that blows everything. Cause he's like a lunatic or whatever. Cause he's the one that like, I think start shooting in the opening shootout. Cause he's like, he fired shoot first and she kills that like a armored truck driver. Right. Right.
00:24:23
Speaker
Yeah, he would have been the guy to squeeze in any typical thing. I think I've seen that guy in other movies and he also is like always the, not the lead henchman, but he's also like the henchman's lackey. Like, you know, it definitely a actor that I've seen as just like, you need a, like a crazy guy in your crew. You hire that guy, but he's also there like electrical expert. Like he's like, like, cause he's the one that like disables like the power.
00:24:53
Speaker
Yeah, he's the one who somehow has like like a degree in engineering. Yeah. but yeah i think it was all I think it was all their specialties. I think they're using their they they're like marine specialties in their heisting. Because when your brother runs down the whole like the whole crew, and then like he has it the board, it's like, we saw them re-crime. We saw them re-robbery. It's this crew.
00:25:16
Speaker
Cause there's like the whole, it's like, Oh, there was this one heist, Mary, we got arrested and then there was no heist until, you know, two days ago or whatever. We were like a couple of days ago, we got out.
00:25:31
Speaker
Oh, I love, like the scene, they basically do like the scene from Bad Boys 2 for some reason, like when that kid shows up to like take 50 Cent's daughter to the prom, and then they like watch them, it's just like the gym, the garage gym, and just like a two minute stuff. You're this tough guy, yeah, man mugging.
00:25:53
Speaker
Yeah, that that's like interesting. but Again, there's like segments that don't quite flow in a and in what they were like showing how tough they are. And then there's moments where it's just like, oh, there's like human side to them where they just like do these silly things. That's a a lot of the middle part of the movie is just like these like random ass scenes. Like your brother going to like his now ex-wife's like friend's house and just like hassling everybody.
00:26:21
Speaker
Like, you signed he signs the divorce papers like in them and makes a big show of it, and it's like, he's like, shove here, and we're around, and it's like, yeah bro, yeah you fucking with my wife? Like, what's going on here? Like, oh, the wine's good, like. Yeah, yeah, that that's him trying to be the Al Pacino part of Heat. Yeah, that was definitely like a, ah like, he's she's got a great ass. Oh, that's also seen in Heat, I think, when, like, Al Pacino tries to visit his daughter and his ex-wife's like, piss. Yeah.
00:26:52
Speaker
So that's that scene. That is like, okay, how do we ramp it up? It is. It is interesting that that thieves, they kind of, they saved like their big like heat shootout for the
Climactic Shootout Analysis
00:27:03
Speaker
end. Like, cause like in heat, it's in the middle. Like the big shoot. I remember this is in the like the middle of the movie. And then this one is like like the, then these like ends with that big, the met big shootout. I don't mind that that that's good pacing too. I mean, there's a couple of shootouts. Well, yes. Opening. And then there's like opening. Yeah.
00:27:22
Speaker
And there's like the there's like the middle, there's the robbery that like is the diversion robbery, which isn't really a shootout. But then, yeah, it's all all the big like the big action sequences at the end, where it's like the stuck traffic. And then, because Dribbelly frees out where they're where they're going, and then it's like in traffic together, and they start to bust out and start shooting each other.
00:27:46
Speaker
Which is pretty pretty ah pretty awesome actually, like pretty awesome. I don't know if it's as good as like the heats that shoot out, but it's it's pretty awesome to shoot out. Pablo Schreiber busts out that like the SAW, the giant machine gun. and that's mostly mount It should be mounted on like a Humvee. Yeah. Well, he's the master chief. He can just like you just hold it like a regular gun.
00:28:11
Speaker
Yeah. I mean, he's a big muscular dude in this. Yeah. I get why they're like, we're going to make a master chief. I was like, cool. And then it's like, now he's going to be talking and having all these feelings. Like what is going on here? I thought you, you, wait, side note, you saw the Halo TV show, right? Yep. And you gave up on it or you finished it. I finished all of it. Yeah. The second, the second season was better than the first season, but still none of it was really that great. like You know, the, the,
00:28:39
Speaker
I get it that they're trying to do something different, but the first part of your show is following how the character should behave. And they just went like off the rails with that. And I get it. Cause they want to show that, you know, publisher, he has, he has range and, and, and like, it's, it just, but it's like that, then you totally like miscast this, like it just shouldn't be what this was. Um, honestly, it's like, I want to see more in these kinds of roles. I want to see him be like,
00:29:10
Speaker
I don't know he's kind of like this crazy marine guy but in in reality like um having the like they almost look like a biker gang a little bit like the the aesthetic of this gang and it's like you don't blend or is this how um l LA gangs look like? i like I'm kind of surprised like that they're not all wearing like afflicted shirts or like head hardy or something. I don't know if that was, I don't know if it was still a thing in like 2018, but it feels like that kind of like, like. At the taping end, I think, I don't know. Did, did Denna thieves kill that, that like older than 20 something should wear and like tap out shirts and like, uh, uh, having like tribal tattoos with like, uh,
00:29:59
Speaker
I don't know, like Roman, not Roman. No, no, it's like Roman font. So it's like a hosh posh of like too many subcultures on the one person. and You're like, what is this? Even Bosch, Bosch had like a tattoo that was just like an N or like. possible possible Yeah. Yeah. mosco I think he had like an H or something like on his neck.
00:30:22
Speaker
Did it smell anything, or was just it was just like... It was just like one letter. Yeah. It's like, I'll finish it later. Yeah, I just kept staring at it every time. Like, I know he was supposed to look at the actor's face, but I kept staring at his neckline. I was like, what? i I'm trying to figure out what was, like, it smelling.
00:30:40
Speaker
I'm trying to think, does Big Nick have any tattoos? I can't remember, I wasn't really paying attention to that much. I don't think so. I don't know. It's like the one thing he doesn't have is he's like everything else. Yeah. Yeah, I don't think they had enough time to add him up for his scenes. He's not... I mean, he's still like... Drawerball is still like in...
00:31:05
Speaker
Like he's got like a dad bod, but he's like yeah athletic bad bod what's bigger than he normally was. They specifically had him like gain like 30 pounds to play for this. I mean, he just looks like a regular like detective guy. Like, you know, he didn't look at a shape. He, I think he's naturally like thinner. Yeah. And then he usually puts on weight to for muscular rolls, which he hasn't done in a bit. Like he never looks rip anymore, but.
00:31:32
Speaker
He's still functional, like, you know, in this movie. I think of like the guy showed he's like like, a you know, doubting a bunch of whiskey or like CD fucking like donuts from the crime scene. They're probably covered in blood. like Well, I think it would have been more hilarious where it's like at some point he's eating like a cheese steak, like in his car or something. It's just like, OK, I get it. Like he he drinks and he does things, but it's like you can't just drink and That's it. That's what's putting on the weight. Like you would have to eat terrible things to kind of like for his body, you know, he's be sitting in his car, like eating big Macs and you're like, whoa, that would a great like like curry thing. of just simply I just him just eating like horrible, horrific things constantly. Yeah. Like these like greasy sandwiches and stuff. And then they like wiping on his hair.
00:32:22
Speaker
<unk>s how That's how he gets his hair slicked back. Yep. See, that would make this interesting because you're like, wow, they really put in like this crazy cartoon of a man. And he's the lead detective in this thing. But, you know, I'm also surprised about he doesn't have that scene where like the mayor is on his ass or something or like, oh, yeah, his his team seems to just be able to function without any so any oversight whatsoever.
00:32:48
Speaker
There's like this, like, oh you guys wanna lock and load and like go up these guys? Like, go ahead, yeah, here's the armory. Like, take whatever you want. But it's like, okay, you're putting your badge on the line, blah blah blah. It's like, everyone understands how crazy of a situation this was. yo like The only person he goes up against is like the douchey FBI guy. Who's just like, you better step off, big dick. This is my territory, like. Yeah.
00:33:16
Speaker
that dick-measuring contest, because the FBI guy is the cliche, like clean cut, wears a tie, doesn't have, you know, ah like grease stains in his hair.
00:33:34
Speaker
But then they have weird, like, they just like, they could squash their beef at the end. It was like, oh, hey, sorry but you do sorry about your Nick. Like, but we're cooled out, right?
00:33:49
Speaker
Cause I think, cause I think, is it, is it like, well, I guess all the entire high street gets killed and then like, just and one of the detectives gets killed in the big shoot out the end.
00:34:02
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. I mean, it, it's the, like, I guess the balance in this movie where like even, it couldn't be just like this awesome, like major crime squad, you know, like going in high risk and they're just like,
00:34:17
Speaker
yeah fuck yeah cops like you know they they kind of show you the more of the like sad parts because even in heat they had that like the all those other like agents that joined al Pacino like they you know they did sort of like humane them so it wasn't just this like oppressing force um thinking like Uh, the scene where 50 cents get shot and then it's like, there's a moment of just like, Oh, Hey, you know, this is the life. This is just what it is. And it's like, there's forgiveness, I guess. And, you know, that was a nice touching moment.
Character Moments and Human Side
00:34:58
Speaker
we yeah we we care We care about him because because if said because he saw that he has a wife and a daughter. yeah but like you see it't they'd been out of contact he's like He's the only person in that crew that we see any sort of like outside life with. like go earlier I guess we know that Pilot Shriver has a girlfriend that he uses as like a chess game. We don't see any other ah you know people on his crew that have any sort of outside life.
00:35:23
Speaker
I think the movie would have been different if we found out that Bosch or Bosco is like a volunteer. He's got like five kids. Very devoted father. Everyone in this movie is devoted father. That's like a default.
00:35:39
Speaker
that's that's ah It's like, hey, they're they're not all scumbags. They love their daughters or sons or whatever they happen to have. Well, say daughters. Yeah.
00:35:51
Speaker
Because ah but ah I don't think we, I don't think we see any, like, no one under our brother's, like, team. I don't think we see any sort of, like, I think one of the mentions, like, they they got divorced, and then, like, one of the, like, at the end of the commission, I was like, are you gonna call, it like, his wife because hes because he's dead now? That's like the only mention, so, like, any sort of, like, other family members are, like, outside, outside the office, like, life for, like, big mix team.
00:36:13
Speaker
Yeah, Big Nick needs to go to more bars together and all those like things. The thieves, they have barbecues, they yeah they hang out, they they like ah do fun activities.
00:36:26
Speaker
They hang out at docks. But Big Nick, it's just the office, the hotels, the gym, drug raid. Does he go to the gym or is he just made that up?
00:36:38
Speaker
There's one part where like one of them is drinking like a protein shake randomly like in the office Yes, I think yeah one of his one of his dudes. Yeah, so I'm like I'm assuming he worked out or that's his lunch I have no idea. Yes, but I don't know I don't think big Nick like goes to the gym He's just saying I think I think he just like says that was like in the suit the hibachi restaurant that was just like it's like Cover or like try to make it like these guys go to the gym. I'm making all I got playoff play up the gym stuff and
00:37:10
Speaker
da see It's I'll see you at the gym. And then he just like picks a fight with them about like their football team.
00:37:21
Speaker
um that that the The point from like from the hibachi restaurant fight to when the reveal of like ah that Polish driver had his girlfriend sleep with Jared Butler on purpose, is this like that such it's just like such ridiculous. Like you said, the Game of Bros. Them just like trying to like manipulate each other.
00:37:41
Speaker
There could have been a scene where like there was like a legal thing. There could have been a scene where a marriage, you know and another typical thing you see in a Game of Thrones scenario.
00:37:57
Speaker
to There could have been a, I mean, randomly there could have been a scene where they somehow have like a legal duel.
00:38:08
Speaker
That would have been a Game of Bros. game of Bros. move. I mean, I mean, they could have got like a a warrant or something like search like their apartment or something or like they're like 2D sense house or something. And be like, oh, that would have been a good like mess with you guys. we're Yeah. Yeah. Like, but yeah like I said, this is a movie that um sneaks in a little bit of clever, I guess, like intrigue that a lot of the typical bro action movie people don't really seek out. So this is like a high gear vegetables among the meat kind of thing where there's a little this movie is smart in like dumb ways. Yes. Because it explains everything like it's a nice movie where I don't feel that
00:39:03
Speaker
there wasn't much to um question, except for like the plan. But that's the point. like It's supposed to be super convoluted and complex. Otherwise, I totally get Gerard Butler's motives. I totally get Pablo's. I totally get O'Shea Jackson's by the end. um And then everyone minor is just not important. So the stripper doesn't really count. The daughters don't count. You can cut all of the family parts of the movie, and the movie still works.
00:39:35
Speaker
You can also even cut the end montage where it's just sort of like Gerard Bartlett just looks at the ah the things and goes, oh God. And the movie just cuts to black. And then it's like, you know, he notices the photos and then it's like, Kaisa Sosa, bullshit. He sees, yeah it's like the photo, people from the Federal Reserve walk in. ah Yeah, like. Just like a shredder right next to. yeah um And then like EMP salesman.
00:40:03
Speaker
yeah I'll go to this bar. There's like a book, there's like a book on the shelf, like how to build an EMP. Uh, there's also like, uh, like the stripper comes in the bar, just like, Oh, I have to sleep with this fire guy. You know, just, just everything that the guy that Donny needed was all there. Like he says, he's the master of his environment. So yeah.
00:40:28
Speaker
I mean, yeah does the Chinese restaurant want to know what happened to their, uniform you like, and then like they get to complain about the, from the woman about like, Oh, there's like this, uh, like three day old Chinese food that's been sitting in the ceiling. Oh yeah. It just been like, eventually they're going to be like, Oh, what's that smell?
00:40:52
Speaker
Yeah, just unrefrigerated Chinese food has been sitting like next to like a like a like a fluorescent light for how many days spent? Slowly cooking. Yeah. Yeah, a few days. Let me tell you, Chinese food, besides white rice, everything else goes bad really quick. It's not meant to be unrefrigerated.
00:41:17
Speaker
Oh, speaking of the Chinese food, like the scene and stuff, did you notice who like the guard was at the Federal Reserve? Lewis Tan. Yeah, which is so I didn't notice the first time I saw this movie and then I just rewatched it, I'm like, oh man, it's Lewis Tan. And I guess it's one of his like earlier roles? It's gotta be, because he's he's he's just like guard one. like Well, I think he did Deadpool in 2016. And even, I don't know, actually, this is around Deadpool 2. He was in Deadpool 2 the same year as this, yeah. so Yeah, yeah. He was just like random guard in this. And then he was in, yeah, he was in 10 of Thieves and Shadowstar in Deadpool 2.
00:41:59
Speaker
didn't yeah i think I think he did like a bunch of like his, like he was in Into the Badlands and Assassins. ah Mortal Kombat, obviously, the year after. Well, he was cast the year after, and then that came out like in 2021, but... Yeah, such a random, such a random, just like, oh, hey. Loosed Hand is not doing anything, just thinking about a desk. You probably could have single-handedly stopped everything, like if he had been unleashed with his martial arts.
00:42:30
Speaker
I want to see another movie, another version of Den of Thieves versus his perspective where he's just like a guard and then this happens and then he he tries to diehard it, but then he gets there and there's nothing going on. He used to show up at Pantera and they'd be like, I found you. You're paying for that Chinese food. like
00:42:49
Speaker
And then, like, has a crazy, like, martial arts fight. Well, I'm also wondering, did he also go to the bar? Like, do he is he one of the leaks in that Federal Reserve building? I mean, that would that would blow the entire plan, because he would probably recognize Dottie as, like, the bartender. I guess not. Yeah. Because, like, because they all it all hinged on, like, people didn't know who Dottie was. And then ah and then he was i mean he was hiding from, like, those those two guys in the accounting room that, like, would have probably recognized him, because they they came in the bar.
00:43:17
Speaker
but He was in like the the money box.
00:43:25
Speaker
Yeah, that makes sense.
Den of Thieves 2 Setup
00:43:29
Speaker
And I do like i do like at the like so the the end, they they they set they specifically set up like the plot of Pantera, where it's like they're goingnna they mentioned the diamond exchange, which is what they're going to rob in Death East 2.
00:43:43
Speaker
And I think Michael Bisping is coming back as his character from the end, like the end, ah like the final scene of this movie. Now, I'm wondering like, because O'Shea Jackson, like his character is more of the thinker and the the like con man. So does he also get another crew of like local thieves to work with him?
00:44:07
Speaker
I think he, I think, I think, I think he has, I don't think it's the same crew from this one. I think it's, it's, somehow it's funny. He's the fun, different crew in London, but then also obviously in the trailer for death, he has to, there's the whole reveal of like, Oh, big Nick is going to want in on the heist now because he's fed up being a cop. Like he wants to like get the money. But the thing is, I guess they also think big Nick is super crooked. So he's got no money. Yeah. Cause he wastes it all on like, you know, whiskey and cheese sticks.
00:44:35
Speaker
But is that all a ploy by Big Nick to finally catch Dottie? We'll find hold to fightify out two.
00:44:43
Speaker
I do wonder if you think Daniel's going to keep up his like, I don't think he's going to keep up his British accent for these two. I don't think he had a British accent in this one. I think at the end, he kind of has a British accent. Like he's just like, oh, mate, like, oh, mate, you look at the time exchange across the street. I got to watch it again. But yeah, it was the accent.
00:45:03
Speaker
He's trying to blend in with his environments.
00:45:13
Speaker
But yeah, Dead of Thieves, a super fun heist movie. um you know It inspires me. It's not not quite at at the level of heat, but still, like as far as like recent heist movies, it's pretty it's pretty great. I'm trying think i try to think of what are some other like recent heist movies.
00:45:33
Speaker
they ah kind of like this this style where it's like, you know, we both fake robbery, like, i yeah, I guess maybe. And then there was the three bridges. No, four bridges. The one where New York is under like a manhunt.
00:46:01
Speaker
Oh, with, uh, which had Bozeman's. Yep. Yeah. I think that was two bridges. Maybe it was not two bridges. Okay. It's more than two bridges that that would that' the that's not a problem for like 12, like 12, 21 bridges, 21. I think it was 21 bridges. Yeah. Cause there's like, apparently 21 bridges in New York. yeah I mean, the town was also the big one. Probably the town. Yeah. That's what started it. I think.
00:46:28
Speaker
was it 2010 was 10 10 Jesus I thought it was later but yeah 2010 was the beginning because the town also has that like midpoint movie where it's like it tangents away from the Tyson it's just more like Ben Affleck's dating experience which I do like that in this move that and then the thieves it doesn't even dwell on like love besides like any time and stuff if there's no subplot where it's like for a girl or like yeah he's not trying to do it for like a girl or like how much fiber does like how much fiber does he give a shit about his girlfriend he's just like uses her like it's like it's a tool like we said that like Jerry Butler just like divorces his wife right his way towards him and just like all right fine whatever like
00:47:16
Speaker
I'm gonna make a big scene.
00:47:21
Speaker
I'm gonna, I'm gonna like, uh, bro off against this like fake Zachary Levi guy. Did you notice that? Like the, like one of the bros at like the X-Wipes party is like, he looks like Zachary Levi, but like a fake Zachary Levi. Yeah, like a bootleg. I think he was also like British, maybe? Or like in accents?
00:47:43
Speaker
I was distracted by, like, just how insane that scene keeps going. Like, he, like, he just drinks. I love, like, like, when he's just like, takes a sip of the wine, just like, oh, fuck, that's good. Like, like, ah seems like an actual, like, dry-butler reaction. It's like, oh, man, we've got some good wine for the scene.
Upcoming Review Announcement
00:48:06
Speaker
But yeah, I mean, I'm excited for Denthys, too. I'll probably, I'm probably gonna see it ah soon, and I'll probably have review up on the on everythingx.com. Are you going to check out that these two in theaters, Chris, or wait? Oh, wait, I waited seven years to watch yeah one. So I'll probably wait less as soon as it hit streaming. I'll see it. I feel like and there's so many other backlog movies I need to see first before I'm like into Timothy's because this movie was fine. It was like. Just like the twist, I think that's what like sucked the air out once I realized like, oh, OK, like.
00:48:42
Speaker
I didn't get that sense from like the but trailer when I saw it in 2017. That it was like a like noir story. Yeah, the thewi twist about Donny's masterminding, rewatching it knowing that he's the mastermind, still doesn't really like you still don't get a lot of that like sense of it. You don't get a sense of it, but you get it from just how much they linger on him. And then the yeah weird, like, OK, let's do some exposition. Let's do a flashback. Let's do, like, he gets kidnapped again. Come on.
00:49:17
Speaker
And then when you realize like, oh, this was all some sort of like Joker esque plan of like, this happens and this, and then if this happens and this, then we can do this. And, and then when you're like, figure out the other parts of the plan where it's like, okay, we need to do.
00:49:33
Speaker
like a truck heist, then a arena heist, then we need to do- I need two garbage truck i eat two garage trucks. what I need one garbage truck for like the fake heist, and then my other guy's gonna drive the real garbage truck. Yeah, the real transportation. And then we also need an EMP. And then I also, I need to get into the ah Federal Reserve so to get to throw the money down a chute. Yeah.
00:50:00
Speaker
oh what And then it's like, isn't, um why couldn't one of the delivery guys do it? Like why, you know, like I couldn't understand why one of them could just sneak back while they were being distracted by the money and instead of letting the delivery guy come in and just not, like being a guard in the back room sort of makes sense. Probably gonna get questioned.
00:50:26
Speaker
Being a delivery guy in the back room, you're going to get escorted out. There's no way in the front of the reserve they're like that casual where it's like, yeah, yeah, whatever. Just bring the food. I got lost. like
00:50:37
Speaker
you think You think it was Danny's plan to like have everyone get killed too? My plan is that they're going to have a shootout with ah the major crimes unit and then they're all going to be dead and then I don't know if they're sure. I don't think that was the double cross. I feel like you don't want to do a double cross with the crew just because.
00:50:58
Speaker
uh those guys are gonna come back like super pissed so so just like so that was just like lucky on his part that they all were like all got themselves killed basically i think so i think because the point was to do the thing and then i think it makes sense where if you said hey i hid the money because like if they did the trick of it because isn't it like the next day when they're moving the money or something like that
00:51:27
Speaker
they, like Donnie's crew brings, brings the garbage truck and then they get the money and they put it in the tires and they ship it to Panama. And then, and then they, then they and dying leave, they all leave to like go to London, I guess. They flee, flee, go to London. So like, it makes sense later on that, like, I don't know if Donnie see that, I'm still questioning where like, if they live, do they just get a cut? And then it's like, all right. And then,
00:51:54
Speaker
Was Donnie's plan going, okay, plan B, in case they all die, then we all do this. But if they live, it's like, we'll do this. Yeah. I don't, yeah. I think, I think Donnie's plan was always like, cut them up completely and like screw them over. But then wouldn't, wouldn't that make sense then to call them early in the, the plan, like in that part, not just like waiting until I got on the highway and then, you know, like to drive around to downtown. Yeah.
00:52:21
Speaker
I don't know. It seemed it seemed like it didn't matter because in the end, like he still got away with it. And that's the brilliance of the plan. But there's a thing where what if a few of them like made it and then. Yeah. Now are super mad. We could have got the team up like, oh, uh, Paula Schreiber driver both got screwed over by both after him. Like the team up the enemies team up to find their true enemy. Well, triple threat.
00:52:50
Speaker
three, I mean not triple dot three. Den of Thieves three, um like one of them, one of them comes back as a robot or whatever. Yeah. we'll driver' back And he's gets he's got a ah cybernetic upgrade. I mean, he got shot a ton of times. Hey, if those guys were able to get an EMP, what to say that they were able to get like cybernetics?
00:53:18
Speaker
Maybe we'll get to, like, Death Thieves, like, four or five, though, to get that ridiculous. We'll have to see how Death Thieves 2 does.
00:53:28
Speaker
But yes, I think they'll do it for this week's episode. Head over to the site. We got all of our usual news, reviews, trailers, all kinds of stuff. Next, we got the podcast. We're going to be talking about Demon Knights, the Tales from the Crypt movie, because that's celebrating its, I believe, its 30th anniversary?
00:53:46
Speaker
30th or 35th, I believe. ah
00:53:51
Speaker
30th, yeah. So we we dive into all that, py maybe talk a little bit more about like, tell us what's in general. But come back for that, and have a site check out all the other stuff. And I guess for Chris, I'm Zach, and we will see you next time.
Where to Find Everything Action Content
00:54:06
Speaker
For more for Everything Action, head to www.everythingaction.com. You can also find us on Facebook, at facebook dot.com slash everything dot.action and follow us on X at Evie action. We're also on Instagram and threads at everything.action. Find more episodes of the podcast on Apple podcasts, Spotify, or your at podcast epic choice and be sure to rate and subscribe.