Top 10 Best Heist Movies of All Time

A crew with specialized skills. A plan that's either genius or completely insane. A vault, a target, or maybe something a little more abstract. And of course, something always goes wrong. That's what makes heist movies so addictive. They're puzzles wrapped in high-stakes action and slick dialogue, with just enough moral gray area to make you question who you're really rooting for.

This list is all about the best of the best when it comes to cinematic heists. Some of these films are stylish and suave, with everything timed down to the second. Others are messy and chaotic, where things spiral faster than a getaway car on bald tires. But all of them know how to keep you hooked from the first whispered plan to the final escape.

So take a look, think about which ones pulled it off better than the rest, and vote for the ones you think deserve to sit at the top.

The Top Ten

  1. Ocean's Eleven

  2. Heat

    This is the crème de la crème of heist movies. What Michael Mann crafted with the likes of "Thief", he perfected with "Heat". This movie has everything from top to bottom: an intricate story that has many layers, top tier acting from the lead actors as well as the supporting cast, style and beautiful cinematography, and a level of realism not often seen in this genre of movie.

    I fell off my chair when I saw Ocean's Eleven at number one. It has a very commercial feel to it and has no class.

    Heat, on the other hand, is a masterpiece.

  3. Inception

    Though I think Inception is the best movie of all time (and coming from a professional movie critic that's saying a lot), even if I liked other movies more like Heat (which is good though nowhere near Inception), I would have to grudgingly admit that Inception is better.

    The team Cobb assembles is so amazing and interesting. The job itself is the hardest but so cool to see them try to pull off.

    It isn't just a heist movie, where most of the other movies on here have no depth or other attributes that make them more interesting than the boring plot that is: Assemble team, team pull off heist, the end. Inception is so much more than that, so of course it gets my vote for number one.

  4. Reservoir Dogs

    This was the best damn good film I had ever seen at all. I liked it because I thought it described how the criminal ways of life actually are and how their daily activities in gang. Laugh out loud.

    What is Reservoir Dogs doing at 11? An absolute masterpiece. The cinematography, the screenwriting, the actors. And who can forget the ear scene.

  5. The Real McCoy

    A bit unrealistic but still my favorite heist movie ever. Kim Basinger was gorgeous in it. I love the storyline and the acting was decent.

  6. The Usual Suspects

  7. Heartbreakers

    Funny and very entertaining. Sigourney Weaver's performance was fantastic, but the whole cast did a great job!

    God, I love this movie! Sad I didn't find it in many genres, but at least here and then it's #5, great! Watch it! It's funny and simply awesome!

    Hilarious, especially Sigourney Weaver as the Russian woman and the scene in the Russian restaurant was absolutely worth the watch.

  8. The Town

    This movie was really good, and I enjoyed every second of it.

    This is my second favorite heist film, with Firestorm and Avenged in first and third place.

  9. The Thomas Crown Affair

    Tight plot, superb camera work, excellent acting. A shoddy script begets a shoddy heist and shoddy this is not. Extra point for the soundtrack.

    Rene Russo and Pierce Brosnan have great chemistry, and the heist scene is really good.

    I love this movie. My all-time favorite.

  10. The Italian Job

    Really a worth watching heist movie. I have seen it around five times so far. The way they plan to rob the place and the tactics they use there are really the most awesome scenes in the movie.

    Heist lovers. Check it out yourselves.

    11. The Newcomers
  11. ?

    The Anderson Tapes

    This Sean Connery movie about a heist in high-class apartments is one of the greatest movies I have ever seen in that genre.

    Look also for a young Christopher Walken in this film.

  12. ?

    Baby Driver

    13. The Contenders

  13. Confidence

  14. Dog Day Afternoon

  15. The Sting

  16. Drive

  17. Snatch

    Such a great cast of characters, cinematography, and some great plot twists.

  18. Entrapment

  19. Ocean's Thirteen

  20. Ronin

  21. Rififi

  22. The Killing

  23. Scorched

  24. Charade

  25. Ocean's Twelve

  26. Out of Sight

  27. Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels

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