66. Thief (1981)

Show Notes

A highly skilled jewel thief, Frank (James Caan) longs to leave his dangerous trade and settle down with his girlfriend, Jessie (Tuesday Weld). Eager to make one last big score in order to begin living a legitimate life, Frank reluctantly associates with Leo (Robert Prosky), a powerful gangster. Unfortunately for Frank, Leo wants to keep him in his employ, resulting in a tense showdown when he finally tries to give up his criminal activities once and for all.  On this episode of Full Cast and Crew, Jason is joined by his good friend and fellow Michael Mann and 'Thief' fanboy, James Kittle.  Leavening the testosterone inherent in any Michael Mann film, Jason and James also get into James' long-time love for the music of Natalie Merchant and The Indigo Girls.  Also: the path not taken with James not becoming a New Your City Police Department cop in the early 90's, his collection of Polo towels, and mail as a foreign concept to millennials.  Skating at Yale's Beinecke Plaza and being townies in and around Yale in New Haven (47:30), New Haven childhoods and high school scenes (49:00), Tuesday Weld's incredible performance in 'Thief' and particularly her car and diner scenes with James Caan (50:00), Latch Key TV with 'Miami Vice', and 'Hill Street Blues' (61:30), the iconic Phill Collins "In The Air Tonight" scene from Miami Vice (63:30), the opening scene of the very first episode of 'Hill Street Blues' (64:00) and how well it holds up today, the 'Hill Street Blues' theme (68:30).