Really Surprised!

Don't listen to the Hype. It's awful

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

Brilliant cast with Emory Cohen, John Leguizamo, Mike Epps, William H. Macy, Felicity Huffman, and Heather Lind, who all play key roles in bringing Stealing Cars to life. The plot follows Billy an underrated intelligent teenage boy and his life at the Bernville Camp For Boys. Throughout the film, Billy is faced with a series of challenges such as his ability to lead and his accept his past and himself. The film illuminates the lifestyle that teenagers are exposed to when living in a corrupt juvenile prison system and how support networks can be very crucial. Although Stealing Cars does not have much to do with the title, the film illustrates something deeper and more meaningful that is powerfully illustrated and beautifully portrayed through the sophistication of Billy's mind. The production itself is outstanding as each location contributes to setting the mood for the audience. In addition the chemistry between Cohen and his fellow co-stars demonstrate passion and intensity that is very present throughout the film.

Not the space it plays in, but the script that is. It's a really decent effort into crime territory, though mostly played in a "restricted" area (to put it mildly). If you know more about the story, than you know what I mean, otherwise be surprised if you want to, where this is going (with or without stolen cars).This is definitely not another Gone in 60 seconds, it's much more of a drama and the stellar cast gives it more than a bit of gravitas. I'd argue they were drawn into the project by a very neat script. If all translated onto the screen, is something you have to decide for yourself. Does it have faults and flaws? The answer is yes, so do the characters in it, but that's what could be described as the extra something that keeps this ... driving

This is one of those films which didn't have too much cash to splash but tries to counter that with meaningful story and perhaps a little more alternative approach. Stealing Cars focuses around a teenage boy who basically has emotionally fallen apart, but rather than being sad and isolated starts to "rebel" and does some no good.And the film does quite a few things right, actually. It keeps the viewers guessing what's going on until the very end and has some fine twists there. But it is almost good and really misses hardly making the experience feel logical and gives the overall impression of cutting too many corners.Let's start with the title - it has almost nothing to do with car stealing, so anyone hoping to see some sort of Gone in 60 Seconds style movie will be vastly disappointed. Sometimes, of course, this kind of title with hidden meaning is completely fine, but on this certain instance, this almost feels like lying. Instead, this is essentially a prison movie, which takes place in the juvy. We see our main character Billy gaining the trust and respect of others thanks to his rather charismatic behavior and finally revealing us the key problem of his mindset. The problem there is that the writing really doesn't support that. Billy is made so incredibly obnoxious and stupid (in many ways) that it gets almost impossible to take him seriously. He often gives some really weird speeches, disobeys the orders and gets the whole collective in trouble. Still none of his comrades seemed to care and started to look him up, if anything else. The good side of the character was that he really didn't care what would come to him. He was literally fearless and this gave him a little credibility, but all in all was still rather unbelievable.Even though it seemingly was more of an alternative film, it still contains many clichés - the outcast, the sick kid, who befriends Billy, hot nurse who became a love interest for Billy and finally - surprise, surprise - a rather cruel warden. OK, he wasn't too mean, like wardens in many similar movies, but the sense of this heavily clichéd character was definitely present. And Billy himself was also a good talented kid with exceptional memory gone bad. The film used some non linear storytelling, but it only focused around the key point and could have told us a little more background.All the supporting characters were somehow dull and didn't have much depth. It was almost as if they just were there and even if they seemed to have a purpose, most of them never really opened up and didn't add much to the plot.Ultimately Stealing Cars is not a great film. On a positive note this is somewhat psychological trip which dwells into a confused mind, has few nice twists and isn't all that predictable. I understand what the producers wanted to show us, but the way it was constructed wasn't particularly convincing. Main problems are dull side characters and a monotonous plot which is hard to take seriously because of the oddly acting Billy.And one last time - that title....

Winner of the new Zeitgeist Award at the L.A. Film Festival, Stealing Cars feels like if Starred Up wanted to be Cool Hand Luke featuring Antoine-Olivier Pilon from Mommy. Both Stealing Cars and Mommy think their lead is hilarious, tragic and charming, and many of the latter's fans agree, but I found Pilon unbearable. Not to reel Xavier Dolan's film into this criticism, but both these films hinge on their protagonists. Swap Pilon for Emory Cohen for Stealing Cars and it's a very quick reminder why most consider The Place Beyond The Pines troublesome in its third act. I'm concerned that Cohen may be too good at playing an irritating young criminal. I just like seeing him get punched.The film opens with a clear homage to Cool Hand. Emory Cohen's Billy steals a car, and the next scene we're in a Burnville Camp For Boys, an analogy for life's hardships. The film details his relationships with his fellow inmates, the guards, various staff, warden, police, a female nurse at the facility, and his parents in any jumbled order that resembles a plot towards his potential rehabilitation. He makes enemies, earns sympathies, leads teams, impresses at the least likely times, and so on. It's a script that's been gestating since the mid-90s and it's hard to ignore that it may have grown too kind to its protagonist. Billy mouths off to every authority figure and escapes three times without serious repercussions.Set aside its clumsy character study and Stealing Cars does have good intentions in its portrayal of problematic detention facilities. Punishment only breeds deeper resentment and a desire to escape. It'd hit harder if its logic was as gritty as its style, though it's not quite as rough as Starred Up. In one scene, Billy has memorized an entire passage of Fahrenheit 451 because of his photographic memory, and while characters are just as surprised as us, it feels like a step into the extraordinary that's just tacked on. The warden makes cleaning his car a dream job for the inmates, as if that's not asking for trouble. He's then also astonished Billy knows Johnny Cash. Fortunately, these unconvincing examples are executed with such earnestness by director Bradley Kaplan that it doesn't toe the line into nausea, and instead establishes this as merely the tone of the film.It's assisted by a set of familiar faces in the supporting adult cast. Paul Sparks is barely recognizable compared to his sniggering Boardwalk Empire role and a bright spark in the film as a drill sergeant-esque guard. William H. Macy shows his face briefly as Billy's father and adds his screen presence to the film's production value. Felicity Huffman has an emotional one-scene wonder as his mother that absolutely begs for more time with her character. Mike Epps also shines in his brief screen time. John Leguizamo is solid, but suffers the most from the aforementioned flaws in the writing. It's hard to deny that Emory Cohen has the confidence for this role and his charisma isn't necessarily misguided, he does contribute to the spirit of the film, it's perhaps just a matter of taste. Stealing Cars probably wasn't the wisest choice for L.A. Film Festival's award, but I'm sure there were worse on the slate.6/10Read more @ The Awards Circuit (http://www.awardscircuit.com/)