Thieves Like Us (1974)

When two men break out of prison, they join up with another and restart their criminal ways, robbing banks across the South.

Director:

Robert Altman

Writers:

Calder Willingham (screenplay), Joan Tewkesbury (screenplay)

Stars:

Keith Carradine, Shelley Duvall, John Schuck

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Keith Carradine	...	Bowie
Shelley Duvall	...	Keechie
John Schuck	...	Chicamaw
Bert Remsen	...	T-Dub
Louise Fletcher	...	Mattie
Ann Latham	...	Lula
Tom Skerritt	...	Dee Mobley
Al Scott	...	Capt. Stammers
John Roper	...	Jasbo
Mary Waits	...	Noel Joy
Rodney Lee	...	James Mattingly (as Rodney Lee Jr.)
Arch Hall Sr.	...	Alvin (as William Watters)
Joan Tewkesbury	...	Lady in Train Station (as Joan Maguire)
Eleanor Matthews	...	Mrs. Stammers
Pam Warner	...	Woman in Accident

Storyline

Two convicts break out of Mississippi State Penitentiary in 1936 to join a third on a long spree of bank robbing, their special talent and claim to fame. The youngest of the three falls in love along the way with a girl met at their hideout, the older man is a happy professional criminal with a romance of his own, the third is a fast lover and hard drinker fond of his work. The young lovers begin to move out of the sphere in which they have met, a last robbery in Yazoo City goes badly and puts paid to the gang once and for all as a profitable venture, but isn't the end of the story quite yet, as all three are wanted and notorious men with altogether different points of view on the situation they are faced with.

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Plot Keywords:

criminal | mississippi | southern u.s. | great depression | escaped convict | 

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Taglines:

Robbing 36 banks was easy. Watch what happens when they hit the 37th.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

3 June 1974 (Denmark)

Also Known As:

Bizim gibi hirsizlar

Filming Locations:

Canton, Mississippi, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,125,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

George Litto Productions,Jerry Bick

Technical Specs

Runtime:

123 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Robert Altman decided to adapt Edward Anderson's book, Altman was not at all aware that Nicholas Ray had previously adapted the book as the cult classic They Live by Night (1948).

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Goofs

In one of the old radio clips early in the film, the announcer talks about Seabiscuit winning the $25,000 Butler Handicap at Empire City Race Track. The actual date of Seabiscuit winning that race is July 10, 1937, which would place it after the end of the movie which concludes in the Spring of 1937.

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Quotes

Chicamaw: I can tell he sells marijuana just by how he drives.

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Connections

Referenced in Ebert Presents: At the Movies: Classics from the Vault: Great Performances That Oscar Ignored (2011)

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Soundtracks

In Old New York
(uncredited)
Written by Victor Herbert and Henry Martyn Blossom

User Reviews

Small Diamond in a Coal Mine!

Another under-valued R. Altman flick (compared to Bonnie and Clyde), but more similar to Gun Crazy crossed with They Live By Night, has yet to achieve ANY kind of respect, critically or "financially".

In the 1970's Altman was cranking out quirky, Americana, hopeful, black comedies and satires, that this one slipped under the radar, just like California Split did. Keith Carradine and Shelley Duvall found themselves working with this old Cat and were never the same without him (any they knew it), but they got wonderful careers out of it, so pity the poor beggar as Dylan would say. Add in spunky, disturbing performances from John Schuck and Bert Remsen as ghoulish career small-time criminals, Louise Fletcher (just before Cuckoo's Nest), great cinematography as usual, and a simple story that scares some folks because it involves sacrifices, naivety, and hopelessness (almost).

A lot of people drank Cokes in those days like Shelley Duvall's character does (incessantly)...so what? What should she be drinking - Root Beer? An under-rated gem that will never be looked at for what it might be - a tale of survival with minimal options down the long highway of hope. An 8 out of 10.