Thief is a raw portrait of the erosion of the American dream centred on Frank (James Caan), a professional thief who longs for a "normal" life and plans to leave the world of crime after one last robbery. But the corrupt and ruthless system shows that escaping isn't so simple and, between neon and steel, a marginal existence unfolds, with every choice seeming like a dead end. Caan's intense performance and Tangerine Dream's hypnotic soundtrack mark out this independent neo-noir that established Mann as a singular voice in American cinema.