The heist genre has plenty of nail-biting thrillers, but it’s also fertile ground for hilarious crime capers. Not all heist movies have to be tense, violent thrillers like Heat and The Town. In fact, many of the best heist movies are the ones which use the genre as a vehicle for comedy.

Heist comedies are often rather dark, like many crime comedies, but this isn’t always the case. Some crime capers can be fast-paced and breezy, incorporating elements of romance or mystery to lighten the mood. The best heist comedies manage to strike the right balance between humor and exciting narratives.

9

Logan Lucky (2017)

Steven Soderbergh Returns To Familiar Territory

Steven Soderbergh brought the heist genre back into fashion with his Ocean’s trilogy in the 2000s, and he returned with another hilarious heist comedy 10 years later. Logan Lucky leaves the glitz and glamour of Las Vegas behind to focus on a working-class family robbing a speedway in Virginia.

Logan Lucky has a great cast, with Channing Tatum and Adam Driver striking up a great comedic dynamic as two brothers with nothing to lose. Although there are a lot of laughs in the build-up and execution of the heist, Logan Lucky also has the confidence to play out as a tense thriller when Soderbergh chooses.

8

Gambit (1966)

Michael Caine And Shirley MacLaine Star In An Offbeat Rom-Com

Michael Caine appeared in heist movies throughout his career, starting with early hits like Gambit. Just like The Italian Job, Gambit makes good use of Caine’s rough cockney charms, as he plays a suave criminal mastermind with an elaborate plan to steal a priceless statue.

Gambit deconstructs the heist genre by showing how cunning and ingenious plans never play out in real life, since there’s always something or someone to get in the way. In this case, it’s Shirley MacLaine’s mouthy showgirl who doesn’t fit with the fantasy that’s projected onto her. Gambit‘s big conceit is frequently hilarious, and it’s punctuated by plenty of witty banter.

7

The Sting (1973)

The Oscar-Winner Is An Uplifting Caper

The Sting won seven Oscars, including Best Picture, and it still has the capacity to entertain audiences just as it did over 50 years ago. While it may not count as a heist movie in the strictest sense, The Sting follows two con men who team up to get revenge against a dangerous Chicago mob boss by pulling an elaborate ruse.

Paul Newman and Robert Redford rekindle their wonderful chemistry from Butch Cᴀssidy and the Sundance Kid, giving their scenes together a vibrant energy, even without any action. They create two characters who are easy to root for, and this helps give the ending a boundless sense of euphoria, like many classic heist movies.

6

30 Minutes Or Less (2011)

Jesse Eisenberg Leads A Stranger-Than-Fiction Crime Story

Officially, 30 Minutes or Less is an original story, but it’s clear to see how it might have been inspired by a real-life case in which a delivery driver was forced to rob a bank with a bomb locked to his neck. 30 Minutes or Less puts a darkly comedic spin on this grizzly tale, with Jesse Eisenberg and Danny McBride both on top form.

30 Minutes or Less derives a lot of its humor from the huge chasm between the suave heist movie archetypes and its own bumbling, neurotic, unprepared robbers. This suits Eisenberg’s comedic persona perfectly, and his awkward physicality also lends itself to some uproarious slapstick.

5

The Duke (2022)

Jim Broadbent Plays The Most Unlikely Art Thief Of All Time

The Duke is another heist movie based on real life, with Jim Broadbent playing Kempton Bunton, a retiree who made headlines in the 1960s after stealing an expensive Goya from the National Portrait Gallery in London. The real-life context adds an extra layer to the absurdity of The Duke.

Broadbent is charismatic as Bunton, and it helps that his character is a peculiar, unique individual. While The Duke gets a lot of laughs from Bunton’s chaotic home life, his appearance in court is another highlight, as his quaint moral philosophy comes up against the might of the British legal system.

4

How To Steal A Million (1966)

William Wyler’s Stylish Rom-Com Has A Story To Back Up Its Glorious Aesthetic

How to Steal a Million embodies the sumptuous style of heist movies from the 1960s, as the genre left behind the violence of film noir in favor of intelligent, debonair thieves with righteous morals. William Wyler’s breezy rom-com is a sight to behold, with Audrey Hepburn and Peter O’Toole spending time together in Paris while hatching a brilliant heist.

By the 1960s, Hepburn was a true fashion icon, and her wardrobe for How to Steal a Million was supplied by Givenchy. This complements the beauty of Paris and the orchestral score to create a feast for the senses. Luckily, the script is also up to scratch, giving Hepburn and O’Toole plenty of witty jokes.

3

Baby Driver (2017)

Edgar Wright’s Thriller Has A Unique Rhythm

From the electrifying car chase in its opening scene, Baby Driver sets off at a rapid pace and doesn’t let up. Edgar Wright had already established himself as one of the funniest comedy movie directors around with the Cornetto trilogy and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World by the time he made Baby Driver, and he maintains his sense of humor even though his heist thriller also tells a gripping story.

Baby Driver‘s stylish soundtrack highlights the movie’s charming sense of confidence, and this spills over into the comedy. While Wright always has plenty of great quips in his scripts, a lot of his funniest jokes come from visuals, whether he’s letting his cast have some fun or getting a laugh from his punchy, idiosyncratic command of the camera.

2

The Lavender Hill Mob (1951)

Alec Guinness Stars In A Classic Ealing Comedy

For some people, Alec Guinness is only known as Ben Kenobi in the original Star Wars trilogy, but he was also one of Britain’s funniest comedic actors of his generation. He starred in many classic Ealing comedies, including The Lavender Hill Mob, which has influenced crime capers for decades.

The Lavender Hill Mob, like Guinness’ other classic heist comedy The Ladykillers, follows some inept robbers trying desperately to cover their tracks. In both films, this involves an elaborate ruse that’s even more complex and time-consuming than the actual robbery itself.

1

A Fish Called Wanda (1988)

John Cleese And Michael Palin Team Up After Their Monty Python Movies

After the Monty Python movies, TV series and radio show, the members of the British comedy troop continued to collaborate with one another on various projects. A Fish Called Wanda sees John Cleese and Michael Palin teaming up once again for an elaborate comedic farce set in the aftermath of a violent jewel heist.

A Fish Called Wanda also benefits from Jamie Lee Curtis and Kevin Kline, whose presence as two brash Americans brings an element of social satire to the crime caper. There are several hilarious subplots tangled together throughout A Fish Called Wanda, and they all come together to create a timeless dark comedy.