Caper

This caper film invariably involves a group of criminals pooling their resources together to perform a robbery or heist, usually with each member contributing a specified skill (the explosions expert, the marksman, the strong arm) crucial to the job, with the hope of a big payoff that will allow the criminals to fulfil their idea of the American Dream. The terse looks around a laid-out blueprint of a bank or jewelry store, the mastermind criminal assembling a motley crew of career felons, the co-ordinated wristwatches and perfected timing in executing "the job," the fatal flaw that brings the culprits to justice... these are all ingredients to the most viable of crime genres, the caper film. Often there is tension within the group dynamics, contributing to the difficulty of working in harmony to pull off the caper and usually resulting in double-crosses and/or the gang's downfall. The caper film flourished during the original film noir period of American cinema, with films like The Asphalt Jungle setting the standard for later works such as The Killing and Odds Against Tomorrow as well as inspiring the crime dramas of the French (Rififi, Bob Le Flambeur). Caper films can also be solely whimsical in nature (The Lavender Hill Mob, Big Deal On Madonna Street, Bottle Rocket), and some notable later entrees (Reservoir Dogs, The Usual Suspects) have blended black humor and suspense to good effect.

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