This movie treats a rather unusual subject for a noir / crime thriller, to wit shoplifting. It's not a bad movie, but it takes itself very seriously - in my humble opinion too seriously. The gang of shoplifters is a nasty one, but still : watching the immense police resources being deployed, one cannot but wonder if there weren't more urgent criminal matters to be dealt with, such as murder, mass poisoning or arson. (While we're at it, one also wonders about the criminal business model involved, especially on the fencing side. At this rate, the shoplifters might just as well organize a garage sale next to a lemonade stand.) However, the 1950's look at the department store environment is not without interest.
In "I was a shoplifter" one of the main characters is a young librarian whose thieving instincts land her in a world of trouble. Sad, ignorant, vulnerable and immature, this poor soul seems to have been raised by fairies in a forest, or perhaps by poodles on an uninhabited island. Eventually the square-jawed hero asks for her hand in marriage, which is supposed to represent a happy end. A few years of kind-hearted but intensive therapy plus re-education might have been more appropriate.
For the rest, there's the appearance of a very very young Tony Curtis, who plays an unappealing punk called Pepe. (Perhaps a hint of racism here ?) It's remarkable how Curtis already projects more star quality than the rest of the cast combined.
In "I was a shoplifter" one of the main characters is a young librarian whose thieving instincts land her in a world of trouble. Sad, ignorant, vulnerable and immature, this poor soul seems to have been raised by fairies in a forest, or perhaps by poodles on an uninhabited island. Eventually the square-jawed hero asks for her hand in marriage, which is supposed to represent a happy end. A few years of kind-hearted but intensive therapy plus re-education might have been more appropriate.
For the rest, there's the appearance of a very very young Tony Curtis, who plays an unappealing punk called Pepe. (Perhaps a hint of racism here ?) It's remarkable how Curtis already projects more star quality than the rest of the cast combined.