The Thomas Crown Affair, stars Pierce Brosnan (Thomas Crown), Rene Russo (Catherine Banning) and Dennis Leary (Detective McCann), all caught up in an intricate plot centered around a $100 million Monet. Truth to be told, I've never seen the original Thomas Crown Affair so don't look for any clever comparisons, but rather just a straight up review. Straight up, I really enjoyed this movie. With a spectacular background score, which sometimes overpowers the movie, The Thomas Crown Affair is able to take a simple plot with no treachery or trickery and make it complex.

As the movie opens, we see four Romanians use a Trojan horse (literally) to break in to the NY Museum. While they create a diversion, Thomas Crown, a wealthy playboy, steals a priceless Monet. Catherine Banning is sent in to investigate by her insurance company before they shell out $100 million for the painting (if this plot sounds similar to another recent movie, you're correct - it does sound like Entrapment, but plot outline aside, these two films differ immensely). Quite early in the movie both the NYPD and Banning are on to Mr. Crown. Unlike the NYPD, because Banning is on her own, she doesn't have to abide by search warrants and all of the legality and she goes right after Crown, and falls right into his arms. Crown, a single man, is instantly drawn to the brash, straight-forward Banning and her to him. They fit together perfectly, but can Banning be trusted? Can Crown be trusted? This is essentially what the movie is about. Not finding the painting, not running from the cops, not twists and turns - left and right, but rather an intelligent, intellectual, and sharp movie as the two try and understand each other's motivations, background and current heading.

When you pair the discerning script with a spectacular score/soundtrack, this movie is a clear winner. Throughout the movie, I can hardly remember 10 minutes without some sort of music. It seems as if the music steals the show. Brosnan and Russo are both sensational throughout, but the music set the tone for the whole movie and enhanced the experience ten-fold.

Previously, I compared The Thomas Crown Affair to Entrapment, and the similarities seem to be unmistakable. A painting is stolen, the thief is known, an insurance agent is sent in to recover the painting, the thief and the agent fall in love, same old story. Or so it seems. Where Entrapment is more action, The Thomas Crown Affair plays on our intellectual side. Throughout The Thomas Crown Affair, the audience isn't presented with the running from the police that we've grown accustomed to in thief movies today, but rather an intellectual battle between two superior players in an intricate game of cat and mouse. A beautiful movie with a superb soundtrack, The Thomas Crown Affair is the most surprising movie of the summer and is definitely one to look forward to.

Genres: Thriller, Action, Romance
Rated: R - thomascrownaffair.jpg
Runtime: 120 minutes
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