Street Thief Preview: Interview with Director Malik Bader
When does a documentary go too far? When it chronicles a crime? How about the planning of a crime?
Filmmaker Malik Bader forces these questions with the controversial Street Thief, a gritty film that follows the life of a Chicago felon practicing his craft. After successful festival screenings — most notably at Tribeca in ‘06 — the movie hits A&E Thursday night at 10pm et.
TRAILER
So does the crime occur because of the crew’s presence? Or are they just tracking events that would happen anyway? With Street Thief, Bader questions the concept of reality… so on the eve of his TV premiere, we questioned him:
The Lobby: How did you decide on this subject matter?
Malik Bader: I wanted to capture a truly honest sense of what a successful criminal’s life is like. I realized after talking to a few burglars–some very accomplished–that it wasn’t the crimes that fascinated me. It was the characters behind them. In Kaspar Carr (the film’s subject), I found the prime example. He was sitting and observing society from the outside, never actually taking part. How do you live in a big city and not have any meaningful relationships, all for the sake of your profession?
The Lobby: You guys shot the film on the streets of Chicago — were there any times you felt you or the crew were in danger?
Bader: There were times when we actually were in danger. While filming in the South Water Market, two men attempted to steal our equipment truck — when they were approached, one of them took out a gun as they ran off. And the opening scene was shot in Chicago’s little village, a pretty crazy area where drive-by shootings are commonplace. At one point, a block from where we were filming on 26th, two cars loaded with rival gang members started flashing gang signs at each other. Then, suddenly, gunshots started ringing out.
The Lobby: The film successfully blurs the line between real life and reel life. Are there verite films or filmmakers you’d name as an influence?
Bader: For documentaries, The Maysles Brothers’ The Salesman, Martin Bell’s Streetwise and Man Bites Dog. Other film influences include early Scorsese, Michael Mann, Stanley Kubrick, Friedkin’s The French Connection, Jules Dassin’s Rififi and many others.
The Lobby: I would think the movie is unique enough — and certainly voyeuristic enough — to get theatrical distribution. After a string of film festival success, how did you end up with A&E?
Bader: I would have loved a theatrical run, but more and more, you see independent films getting lost in the shuffle. A&E Indiefilms approached us just after Tribeca. They have a great philosophy and they really champion the films that they acquire. Ultimately we knew with A&E we could reach that large audience.
The Lobby: How difficult is it to discuss the film without revealing more than you’d like?
Bader: It’s not difficult. I want people to experience the film fresh so they can judge what they are viewing on their own as it happens. It makes for much better discussion afterwards, as we learned at film festival Q&As.
The Lobby: Did you feel that spending so much time with a real thief would have an effect on you and the crew? Did it change the way you look at crime?
Bader: Yes it has affected me quite profoundly. If I need money to fund my next film, I could always turn to cracking a few safes…
My filmcritic.com colleagues said the following about Street Thief:
Director Malik Bader (an obvious fan of Mann’s Chicago-set Thief) brings an impressively fluid technique to their tale, filming from a distance as Carr smashes into supermarkets, nightclubs, and in one shocking profitable take, a suburban multiplex. An intense, dark-eyed, monomaniacal sort who imagines himself a steel-hearted professional with no particular love of crime per se (”If I wanted to be a plumber tomorrow, I’d be a plumber.”), Carr seems to love the set-up more than the actual job, casing places for months prior to a job … the film is astoundingly entertaining.
See for yourself Thursday night.
QUESTION: When does a film like Street Thief go too far? TELL US
Other Posts of Interest
- Movie Updates: “Street Thief” and “Live Free or Die Hard”
- Movie Poster Monday: THE ANDROMEDA STRAIN Remake
- Independent Film Fest Boston Preview: PING PONG PLAYA, CRAWFORD, TIMECRIMES
- Horror Preview: MIDNIGHT MOVIE
- Trailer Leak: Oliver Stone’s W.
28 Comments
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If National Geographic told the lions they were filming, would the lions still kill that zebra?
I wish this film used hidden cameras set up by police and not a regular film crew acquiring the images and interacting with the criminals. That would make this movie feel more real. OR, have the criminals film/video themselves and then submit the tapes for editing/titles.
Hey Nathan-
I like your second idea — have the theives shoot themselves. Talk about a real point-of-view. Although after seeing the movie, I get the feeling they have enough to plan and work out.
And, by the way, if National Geographic told the tree in the forest it would fall and no one would be around to hear it, would it fall anyway? Huh? What?
-Norm S.
Sir Malik ive watched the documentary it is fenomenal ive fallen in love with the character and all that is showen i belive it is a great film.althought im left empty in the end .what really happens to kasper is their any news of him is he alive .
im sorry let me tell you about me .i am a 21 year old california girl
that has traveled around the world i am a beautifull girl .i am into writing,
art,poetry,and
the documentaries .Nothing
seems to amaze me .but this ,it defently crawled under my skin .and so im defently intersted in knowing more about this case and the conclusion of this documentary .it was hard to reach you and so i belive it will be much harder
to get
a response from you but i will be looking forward to it .
Thank You for your time in reading my lovely letter .
you have a great day >
Sincerly
Yessenia Lizette Iiribe
Hi Yessenia-
We only conducted an interview with Malik, but I’ll be sure to forward your comment over to him via email. Thanks!
-Norm S.
i saw that movie it was great but at the end i was confused about wthat happend to casper karr did everything happen or it was everything not real
Hey T-
A great question that Malik and the filmmakers love to hear. I don’t want to spoil this for anyone that may not have seen the movie, so if you want details, go here: http://www.filmcritic.com/misc/emporium.nsf/reviews/More-New-York-Stories-The-2006-Tribeca-Film-Festival and scroll down to the Street Thief review (it’s the first one with a photo).
-Norm S.
Great movie! Er, documentary. I thought it was real, until I used google just a while ago.
I figured Kaspar faked his own death and had moved on to another city. The blood pattern in the car and no body led me to speculate further.
BTW, I think I’ll let my Brother-I-L believe it’s real, and watch how far he spreads the word, snicker, snicker…
Hey Terry-
I guess part of the fun can be seeing how people react — although anyone that reads your post will know what’s going on…
Oddly enough, the on-screen summary for Comcast Cable gave it away. I urged my wife to exit the summary quickly so it wouldn’t spoil the movie for her. But, no matter what you know, it’s still an intriguing movie, in my opinion.
Thanks for joining us.
-Norm S.
Malik Bader and “Street Thief” are incredible. I suspected it wasn’t real, BUT how do you know. It captivated me from start to finish and caused me to discuss and think about it later, the true sign of a worthy film. I hope to see more work along this line.
Carter
Hi Carter-
This film has stirred up lots of “real or fake?” discussion, of course. But I’m most interested in the gray area — if there’s an actor involved, is he still commiting a crime somewhere along the line? We interviewed Malik, sure, but I won’t give away whatever we may know…
Thanks for visiting.
-Norm S.
I loved the film, I was on the edge of my seat from start to finish. I had alot of unanswered questions in the end, hence my morning Google searches on this film. Now that i know what I know, I wish I wouldn’t have peaked. I fell in love with Kasper and was very sad for him and part of me wanted to save him. But yet I was cheering for him to get away with it. Truly loved the film!
Malik is a punk trying to make a buck.
A “Documentary”??? What a laugh.
If it’s a documentary Malik should be arrested for the breakins.
A documentary is a REAL story, not one made up.
– Amy — Glad we could help with your search. You were cheering for Kaspar? Hmm…
— Drew — I think your last comment is up for grabs. Many, if not all, documentaries have some level of artifical control to them. So how much is okay? I’m not defending or judging, just throwing it out there.
Thanks for joining us, guys.
-Norm S.
In regards to the comment about the hidden cameras–I highly disagree. The film was genius just the way it was filmed. It was raw and real. Uniquely keen! Hidden cameras would of been more like “cops” or something…I like that the show was not about catching burglers or what have you.–It was a REAL in DEPTH expirience of a person’s life and choices. It was interesting to look into another human beings world and their views on life and waht they do. I like when he diesn’t talk about what he’d be doing if he wasn’t a burgler…that was my favorite scene!
AS A FORMER MULTI-MEDIA STUDENT, I KNOW FIRST HAND THAT THERE IS A LOT A REPORTER CAN GET AWAY WITH FOR THE SAKE OF ARCHIVING. I DON’T THINK IT WAS FAKE–I THINK IT WAS JUST TOO REAL FOR SOME PEOPLE!
– DAWA — Some could say the feel of “hidden” cameras could add to the tension and reality of watching the crimes. Look at it this way: the only way we see “real” crimes on TV or in the news is via single surveillance cameras. Perhaps a “hidden” camera would have provided that feeling.
And a lot of people love the scene where he talks about what he would or could be doing. A plumber?! Yeah, probably not.
Thanks for your feedback. See you again.
-Norm S.
This was a very interesting documentary. Once I started to watch it, I was unable to take my eyes off of it. Throughout the film you grow to feel for Casper. It’s almost as if you sympathize with him, I have never watched something and felt an attachment to a character. As for it being real or fake, I would be disappointed if it wasn’t true. Yet, either was it was still amazing.
- Nicole -
A lot of people have been commenting that they sympathize with Kaspar, and are actually rooting for him to succeed. As for the “real or fake” question, we’re not telling…
Hope you’ll join us again soon.
-Norm S.
[…] In addition to my interview with director Malik Bader, you can find information on the filmmaker courtesy A&E […]
I met someone from Chicago, and they say that he is well known in Chicago. And he has appeared on the WGN News… so there is some possibility this is all real.
- Nicole - Unless the news report was fake?…
-Norm S.
Excellent movie! I saw it like two months and here I just started to search to find out what happened to Kasper. Although it did cross my mind that this cat staged his own death. He showed in the movie how prepared he was for every concievable turn of events. I mean the guy even wore two sets of underwear just in case he got caught in the act. So him faking his own death could have been part of his get away plan. Kudos, to the man, he didn’t hurt a soul, he worked his ass off for every dime! Kind of reminds me of the Bank robbery in Forteleza, Brazil they deserve the CASH!
very clever.
my drama teacher once told me - if you get a positive or negative reaction with your body of work - you have succeeded.
I think the time put into creating this movie and the reality feel left me wondering
i RARELY go onto the net after watching a movie prising for more information
congratulations malik - good effort by you and your team
This so-called “documentary” is fake. A movie filmed in a documentary style. I’m not trying to devalue this movie because it was actually interesting, but it was pretty fake in my opinion. First of all no burgular in their right mind would allow someone to build up evidence against them for a stupid documentary. This guy pre-cleaned his tools for finger prints to be extra safe so he wouldnt jeopordize his criminal career so than ask yourself why would he allow someone to video tape his burglaries? Knowing it was going to be shown to other people. I smell bullshit.
- James -
I agree. When it comes to film, any reaction, be it positive or negative, means something.
And since you rarely go online after watching a movie, we’re honored you’d choose us. Thanks for visiting.
- iKnow -
As you can see from our comment list, we’ve been getting feedback as to whether the film is “fake” since it first aired this summer. For some people, it matters very much — others only judge the content of the movie.
Thanks for joining in.
-Norm S.
As a reporter and an ex-soldier, I am here to tell you that this movie could be all to real. A lot of people say its “fake” and that the director is an ass hole trying to get a quick buck. Even more people try to point out the fact that the people who filmed this documentary would face criminal charges. Well, what about the reporters that interviewed one of the most wanted men on earth (osama bin laden) and faced no criminal charge. Yet another case would be the reporters who documented the iraqi insurgents killing/attempting to kill american soldiers. as the constitution states, people have the freedom of press, and that is all this is… Just a part of the press, that nobody want’s to accept.
[…] tends to choose their movies carefully — Street Thief a prime example — so we’re intrigued by this two-part version of The Andromeda Strain, […]
this documentary is very real. yea it may not seem realistic to people that live in small towns but in the busy city of chicago theres a lot of crime activity that goes on that people never hear abt untill something tragic happens. i know many people such as mr. car. did he fake his death? who knows? did he commit the crimes and does shit like this always happen? ur damn skippy it does