User Reviews

This film was fantastic. the characters were two dimensional and there was no depth to the film whatsoever but other than that it was pretty much perfect.

The stunts were great, the plot was quite well done, the characters well realized - I can't really think of anything wrong with it.

the best thing (and the thing which has annoyed some people on here) is that this film treats people like adults, not the dribbling morons that most Hollywood films treat us like. When they are about to pull off a hiest THEY DON'T TELL US HOW TO DO IT BEFORE IT HAPPENS. It's so nice to see something like that.

I loved it, the five other people I've shown it to loved it. It's worth your attention.

In order to enjoy STEAL (As it's known in the UK ) there's several things you must do

1 ) Switch off your brain

2 ) Develop an interest in extreme sports

3 ) Be aged between twelve and seventeen

I have a problem with all of the above especially the third one which meant I couldn't enjoy this movie and I'm sure anyone not in the aforementioned age bracket will have a problem with this movie which can be best described as " MTV Xtreme Sports Meets THE A-TEAM "

Everything about this movie is geared towards the cool visuals which means the editing and cinematography and stunts are excellent to the detriment of everything else , it's almost like a recruiting advert for bank robbery done in a comic book manner with no characterisation , minimalist dialogue and some atrocious acting

The cast ? OMG the cast . You know when you watch a Hollywood movie and it's the Brits who give the best performances ? Well here it's the other way round with Bruce Payne and Steven Berkoff heads and shoulders below everybody else . Berkoff especially is stand out in his awfulness and considering the poor performances all round he should be ashamed of himself , it's amazing this guy is still allowed an Equity card

The whole screenplay is written around the spectacular set pieces and to be fair the editing and cinematography do make them spectacular but there's too much gaps in logic involved which makes an unlikely story even more dumb . Without giving too much away one heist involves a freelancer getting very naughty which means the team ( Who are portrayed as being self righteously opposed to killing ) leave this guy to his fate by escaping but they do so in a ridiculous manner which meant if the goon had behaved himself they would still have left him via this method . What sort of morality is this ? Did the writers think no one would have noticed ?

Not really worth your time watching except for the stunts or unless you're addicted to the MTV channels

The movie is really good looking with a great visual style, that makes this a great genre movie to watch. But the movie has such an incredibly bad story and storytelling that the movie still manages to almost become unwatchable at times.

Not only just the story is simple and formulaic, it also is told in about the worst way possible. The story never flows well, which is probably also due to some bad editing. Seems like director Gérard Pirès only concentrated on the style and action of the movie and not on its story at all. Definitely a case of style over substance.

The story features lots of clichés and some highly unlikely moments, even for action movie standards and the movie also doesn't exactly become much better as the movie develops. The movie even gets truly ridicules at times. Too bad because with its style and cast involved, the movie really showed some potential.

The movie really has a great cast. Stephen Dorff is a great actor and he also even shows that in this movie. Bruce Payne goes way too much over-the-top with his role, which causes him to be an unlikely and not likable enough villain. Steven Berkoff is way better, in an also over-the-top but very fun role, as a Southern villain, with an Elvis-wig. It's a role you normally wouldn't expect from him. And thank goodness that Natasha Henstridge's role is smaller than she is credited with.

The action is fair enough. Definitely no big-budget kind of stuff but obviously also way better than the average B-action movie. The movie provides a couple of thrills and kicks. Some of the special effects are a bit too fake looking at times unfortunately.

A fair enough enjoyable guilty-pleasure to watch but don't forget to switch off your brain first.

5/10

http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/

A gang of four thieves rob a bank and use roller blades to escape from the cops. This is the first of several daring robberies they have planned – the second involving an armoured car and an underwater escape. When they pull that off they find that, not only do they get the cash they wanted but they have also stolen millions worth of bonds. Things look good for everyone as they know they will at least be able to get half their value through a shifty broker; meanwhile though they not only have to cope with the cops but also some other groups that want the gang for other reasons.

When this film started I immediately thought of a French short film called Argent Content which was a substanceless but enjoyable short about a bank robbery followed by a cool roller skate escape. That short was style over substance but the short running time saved it. However Riders moved past this copy and started to just lift lots of stuff from other films – Heat, Sneakers etc, all the genre clichés are forced into the movie but sadly nobody took the time to structure them into a worthwhile film that made any sense. So many things are thrown at the screen but they make no sense nor do they hang together. So we have stunts for the sake of stunts, characters that lack any motivation, a Heat-style relationship that appears as quickly as it disappears and a plot that is just all over the place. It isn't awful but it is just so inane you wonder how on earth anyone ever though it was a good idea.

The cast seem promising on paper but on film they are mostly confused and poor. Dorff is sexy and has good presence but he cannot make anything of his confused character – but he does look sexy nonetheless. Henstridge is also sexy but other than that you have to wonder how long she worked on the movie – all the rest of her scenes could have been done in a few days before getting sweaty with Dorff. The idea that their characters would have somehow had a Pacino/De Niro relationship is just laughable. Speaking of laughable, Bruce Payne is in this film and is terrible. However at least he is in the movie, which cannot be 100% said for Steven Berkoff who just appears to be in his entirely own, twisted little film. Bennett, Cliché and McCarthy are all reasonable in support but neither they nor anyone else can do anything with this shambles of a film.

The crazy style of Taxi might have worked once but Pires' attempts to do it again here just fall flat and it just falls flat on its face from the very start. Pointless and inane and will please only the very, very undemanding genre fan.

Wow,some reviewers are way too harsh for this movie. Riders doesn't pretend be to be anything more than it is. Honestly I sometimes really ask myself what people are expecting from a movie that clearly is only a setup for stunts and action. And the stunts that are presented in the movies are beautifully done. Of course the acting is bad and the story not surprising. But boy did I have fun watching this movie. And this fun factor is not something that should be overlooked so easily. The fact that this movie and the actors don't take matters so seriously should also count for something. Since there are a lot of similar themed movies that do take themselves serious and which aren't nearly as entertaining as Riders. People craving for french action themed movies a la Luc Besson (like Taxi,Yamaksi or Banlieu 13) will have a blast watching this movie.

Let's start with the action. The action sequences had touches of excitement and originality but not enough. Some of the action was so over the top you CAN'T take it seriously. The camera work in some sequences was top notch, while other parts were a little uninspired.

One thing I noticed was the music for this (I presume) low budget film was not bad at all. It seemed to work sometimes but there were times where more low key music would have fit better. So the action and music were done in a slightly above average manner which helped this film greatly.

Most of the characters were likable enough but somewhat annoying at the same time.I got a real kick out of the preacher character for some reason. (He got a lot of the best lines). Not a character to like but funny anyways. The plot was all over the place with to many holes and things not explained well enough. (That "seduction" scene has to be one of the most unbelievable love scenes I've ever seen.) Fast moving and clocking in at 1 hour 17 minutes without the credits helped it's cause as well.

This movie is a small guilty pleasure and one that I decided to keep in my collection.

A group of four young and daring thieves leaded by Slim (Stephen Dorff) commit heist against a bank and an armored truck without any shooting. Their problems begin when they steal some possessions that belonged to a bad guy and they are blackmailed by the dangerous bandit and by the dirty Lt. Macgruder (Bruce Payne). Karen (Natasha Henstridge) is a detective who has just been transferred to the jurisdiction and command of Lt. Macgruder and has an affair with Slim. After many plot points, the conclusion of this amoral story is very reasonable. This flick is almost a good action movie. There are many good elements, such as the action scenes themselves, the soundtrack (on DTS, it is great!), the beauty of Natasha Henstridge, who looks like wine and some funny situations. However, Bruce Payne is horrible and ridiculous as usual, the character of Steven Berkoff is boring and not funny, and the story, full of clichés, has many flaws. The `actress' who performs a policewoman in the scene on the bridge is showed a couple of minutes on the screen and has an amazingly bad short performance. Further, Natasha Henstridge is `too much sand for the truck' of Stephen Dorff, isn't she? This 1.78 m very good-looking and perfect body Canadian woman does not fit well with this 1.77 m evil face actor in a romantic couple. Anyway, a watchable and forgettable entertainment especially on DVD, recommended for killing time. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): `Steal – Fuga Alucinada' (`Steal – Crazy Getaway')

Gerard Pires is a living legend in France since Taxi. But even "legends" are making mistakes. In Riders (in Holland known as Steal) is a B-movie in every way. It has a lot of car chases and action but that's the only positive thing about this product! The rest of the movie is as interesting as watching paint dry!

And did I mention acting? Oh my God, this is even worse, the guy who played the detective (I don't even want to know his name!!!!) must be forbidden playing a role ever again! This is the worst acting I have ever seen!!!!!

it was a late Friday night as i was flicking through the TV listings of various channels when this film caught my eye, especially after reading the synopsis. Steal (as it was labelled here in the UK) is one of the best films i've seen in a long time. Original storyline, fast paced, and full of comedy and high flying action.

And when i mean fast paced...if you so much as blink for the first 30 minutes you will not know what is going on. Definitely a film worth paying attention to as the minute by minute scenes get ever more head spinning. I haven't seen Stephen Dorff in a leading role since watching Blade a couple years ago, brilliant casting. The soundtrack is truly amazing, every track seems hand picked to suit the play by play action in accordance with the song lyrics in an almost symbolic execution.

Extreme Sports meets Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels. LOVED IT!

This is by far the worst movie I have ever seen. Honestly the only reason I watched the entire movie is because I was forced to by friends, in fact I only registered with IMDb to protest my disgust of this movie. I know that I personally can't make a better movie, but the only reason being I do not have the funding to do so. This movie has no real plot and the dialog is the worst I have ever heard. See this movie at your own risk. I am completely disgusted that movies as bad as this gets shown in theaters. I would rather stab myself multiple times in the chest than watch this movie again. Please stay away, very AWFUL movie, 1 star, and that's only because I did not have the option of choosing 0 stars.

I thought the acting by the guy playing the detective was the best thing about the movie. Sure, there's no award for him but he makes the movie funny!

The action was cool, and one of the actors reminded me of Tom Green. I had a great time watching this with my friends, and if you want some action without having to think about the plot, RENT THIS MOVIE.

"Riders" is that rare thing - a bad movie that has nothing at all to recommend it. Oh sure, there are some neat (but unoriginal) stunts, and the people are cute to look at. But that's all. Really.

The film's French tagline - "Bank robbery is an extreme sport" - says where the film is coming from: it's the equivalent of that endless sports channel footage of skaters and snowboarders, but done as a heist movie. Unfortunately, it has about the same attention to character and scenario development as the sports channel footage.

The attraction of heist movies is watching the clever plot unfold, unravel, and then either work or fall apart. "Riders" doesn't offer any of that. No tension, no development, nada. Just another implausible heist, another burst of extreme sports footage, then back to the clubhouse for the cool young dudes to plan their next coup.

Except that they don't plan. Or rehearse much. Everything seems to 'just happen'. "Oh look, we just pulled off another perfectly- executed heist. How about that?"

This goes for the inevitable entanglements as well - the bad guys who want their share of the loot just seem to surge out of the woodwork on cue. Despite all the masks and disguises and extreme sports getaways, no one - police or thieves - actually seems to have any difficulty working out who these people are and where to find them. Did they leave flyers at the scene of the crime? Put up a website or something? The director doesn't tell, but telling a coherent story is apparently not one of his priorities.

There's lots more not to like. The dialogue is clunky, the performances are mediocre at best. The four hip young things and Natasha Henstridge are merely lacklustre; it's left to the veteran actors to really drag the movie down to the depths where it belongs. Bruce Payne is bad by any standard, but the prize has to go to Steven Berkoff, whose unwatchable scenery-chewing (complete with gratingly-false Southern accent) breaks new ground in the history of bad acting. If they'd digitally replaced him with Jar-Jar Binks it would have been more convincing and less painful to watch.

To describe this as "Straight to video" material would be too kind. It's not even that good.

This movie is more like "The Getaway", only it's like "The Next Generation" of it. The plot is very typical, only with younger people. Unlike "The Getaway" there was a plot quite similar to "Out of Sight". I've enjoyed McQueen in the movie, but Brad Doriff is more intense. Natasha Henstridge plays a sexy police officer who investigates the robbery, but she also has to investigate the department as well. Bank robberies are planned by the mastermind of the group, but when a inside man get involved, it's the robbers turn to flush him out. It all resolve to just three people when Alex gets killed during a heist, and a greedy reverend wants a piece of the action as well. I liked the jump scene where the other robber jumped without a parachute, and he was the reverend's partner as well. Lots of action, lots of stunts, and a whole lot of explosions to go along with the movie. I liked it pretty much, even though some of it was pretty obvious. Rating 2 out of 5 stars.

The plot: A group of attractive, young daredevils rob some banks, while dodging cops and gangsters.

I've always liked Stephen Dorff, so I figured that I'd take a chance on this movie. It looked like a shallow ripoff of Point Break, but I figured it couldn't be all bad. This is one of the most shallow, superficial, and derivative action movies that I've ever seen. It's a pastiche of much better movies, and the fact that they ripped off Heat just pisses me off even more. It's one thing to rip off Point Break, which wasn't all that amazing to start with, but to rip off Heat... it's insulting. Michael Mann couldn't make a movie this bad, even if he tried.

Luc Besson could have made this movie in his sleep, and it would have been infinitely better. It's difficult for me to believe that this director has worked with Besson, because Besson's talent seems not to have rubbed off on him.

Even for junkies like me who love low budget action movies, this movie borders on near-unwatchable. I'm slowly beginning to understand why Stephen Dorff's career started to die.

I can't imagine the budget was anything to write home about. And that's why I enjoyed it. It kept me watching. So bad it made me smile, but enough, with loads of potential from most of the cast. Even in "great" films people can forget they are wounded fifty example, not in this film. It's the small attentions to detail as well as the rest. Pros way outweigh the cons. It'll pass some time and I'd watch this lot again, theny can only get better, and the gimmicks and one liners in places will improve too. Come on writers, get with it! I've not managed to sit through a lot worse. Seriously, better than a lot of lower budget films. Give people a chance.

One of the cheesiest movies I've seen in a long time. Overacting, no real plot, extremely bad script and directing, excessive use of special effects that have no purpose/don't make sense, the dialogue is hilariously unrealistic and not even clever.

This movie is trying to be "cool", and fails. It tries to be "Snatch", but ends looking pathetic and contrived.

The few plot twists there are, are predictable.

I liked "Taxi" (the original french one)...this is a parody of that excellent movie. I'm sure the people involved making this hopes everyone forgets about it real quick. And they will.

Gérard Pirès opens his 2003 film Steal with a strange sequence involving extreme sports; police cars and the evading of capture following a robbery. The sequence, as well as Steal itself, predates the second Taxi sequel by a couple of months; itself a film that sets its stall out relatively early with a string of extreme sports altercations featuring Sylvestor Stallone evading capture and inserting a few neat stunts in the process for the Hell of it. Taxi 3's opening turned out to be purely in jest, a dream sequence appearing to send up your more typified dunderheaded action opening. Pirés' opening here is played straight, a brash and carelessly chaotic way to open what ends up being a stupefying dull; dumbo and ill conceived heist film-come-thriller more often than not resembling a more typical, more idiotic direct to video cut-and-thrust thriller you might find at the bottom of a DVD bin in a petrol station forecourt.

The irony is in that Pirés directed the first Taxi film, from 1998; the man, essentially a second unit director posing as a filmmaker, here responsible for churning out this piece of junk. Steal, or to give it its international release title in Riders, tells the tale of four young thieves dragged deeper into the world of crime when powerful men coerce them into working for them. The film is a mess and a half, with whatever Pirés picked up from working within that stable marked 'Luc Besson: the writer/producer' annoyingly resonating throughout in that the cops are unglamourous; the thieves-come-lowlifes quite the opposite; action and spectacle are granted gleaming and frustrating priority over story and character and all characters of a law enforcement nature are suitably corrupt or just ill-minded. The team of four is headed up by Stephen Dorff's Slim, he's the white male in a quartet additionally consisting of black male Otis (Bennett); attractive white female Alex (Cliche) and dopey hippie Frank, whom drives around in a (what else?) VW camper van, and he's played by Steven McCarthy.

The four of them are predominantly young, glamorous and good looking; their opening job seeing them rob a bank before escaping from many-a squad car by way of Rollerblade during which we're supposed to believe such things can outrun an automobile. The haul from the score is three hundred thousand dollars, but we must believe that they would carry on despite this sum; hell, if it's this easy - why not? Within the forces of law and order stands Bruce Payne's leering; chauvinistic; piggish police Lieutenant named Macgruder, consequently in charge of a room full of other droll; suited; unattractive officers out to catch Slim and his team of extreme sports indulging/bank robbing go-getters. New to the precinct is Natasha Henstridge's Karen, their initial meeting of which sees MacGruder actually pause his speech in front of everyone so as to make light of Henstridge's photogenic qualities as a low camera angle uncomfortably extenuates her lower figure.

The narrative sees Slim and his team forced into doing a job headed up by a scociopathic preacher from the Deep South named Surtayne (Berkoff, quite clearly playing the material for grins as those around him do so for grimaces) and with one of his own guys. If they refuse to do so, the preacher will somehow track them down; overwhelm them again and then turn them into human ice-lollies. Meanwhile, MacGruder is already using the crew for his own ill gain and Karen herself ends up getting romantically involved with Slim. The set up is purely an excuse to blow things up; have things crash into other things and just play out somewhat eccentric and alienating content that nobody with an I.Q. of double figures upwards ought to particularly take to. The film is dismissible nonsense; a really rather stupid exercise in second unit stuff which Pirés is clearly more interested in over anything else whatsoever, bar perhaps Henstridge's exterior qualities. Some highlights include: armoured vans crashing through meshed fences in slow motion; police cars landing already upturned onto the roofs of other police cars; people parachuting off of high bridges, upon which numerous action set pieces have already played out; as well as large, 18-wheeler trucks kicking up onto their sides riding along on half their wheels. I don't think Richard Stark, across the broad course of many of his heist orientated novels, ever inserted a scene in which his anti-heroic brainchild Parker ever rode a skateboard out of dodge.

Like many of Besson's films that he has both written and had a hand in funding, namely the Taxi franchise; the Transporter films and the first District 13 film; the piece is solely an exploration in style over all else, a vacuous exercise not in Parkour or the celebration of Jason Statham's manliness, but in extreme sports. Here, he has had little to do with the overall piece but his presence is in Pirés' ill-advised glamorisation of crime and criminals as well as his childish trivialisation of the sorts of dangers behind what the characters are involved in. On a closing note, and as many others have pointed out, the film's runtime in bolstered to the gargantuan length of 83 or so minutes by a few minutes of end credits informing us on who's to blame. Additionally, the extended use of slow motion throughout begs the question further still as to whether it was, indeed, a creative decision or whether it was one that spawned from a horror reaction in the edit room when the initial runtime was realised. Spritely; leering; repetitive and spasmodic nonsense, Steal is a film which will do exactly that to a designated length of time from your life.