Directing: A-
Acting: A-
Writing: B+
Cinematography: B+
Editing: A

People love to say “New York is a character,” or “It’s a love letter to New York,” both wildly overused phrases—but, in the case of The Only Living Pickpocket in New York, such claims are unusually and uniquely legit. Writer-director Noah Segan, a fourth-generation New Yorker, follows the pickpocket of the title, Harry Lehman (John Turturro), across all five boroughs in succession: the Bronx; Manhattan; Brooklyn; Queens; and a final scene in Staten Island. In all cases, the city environments are lovingly shot but with well-integrated characters. These are scenes deep in the neighborhoods, skipping the typical famous landmarks, until the final, extended shot panning from the Brooklyn to Manhattan skylines from across the water, holding the shot through the entirety of the end credits. I almost never sit through the end credits, but I was compelled to, even though nothing actually happens, except a memorably loving gaze on a city unlike any other.

For a movie largely about how America’s largest city has evolved over time, The Only Living Pickpocket is delightfully brief, clocking in at only 88 minutes. The script is well written, though; the editing is superb; and the film is visually compelling from the opening shots. Neither a moment nor a frame is wasted in this film, with a deceptively simple story: Harry has gotten by on pickpocketing for decades, but doesn’t see his own obsolescence coming. He makes a big mistake when he accidentally steals from a very powerful crime family, and the young man he stole from, Dylan (Will Price), sets a clock: get the USB crypto wallet back by 4:00, or his evidently paralyzed and mute wife, Rosie, will suffer the consequences.

The fate of Harry himself is set and stated early on, and Segan’s decision not to let Harry out of that is a refreshingly respectable narrative choice. Harry’s race against the clock is about Rosie rather than himself, and he must take a few moments to reckon with his own past. It must be said that Karina Arroyave is exceptional in the part of Rosie—perhaps more so than any other character never given a chance to move or speak onscreen. We never even watch her facial expressions change—but, they do change, from scene to scene, and you can feel her understanding of what’s going on around her, and the sadness and despair she must be feeling. Again: not for herself, but for her husband.

It’s been said that The Only Living Pickpocket in New York is a “small film,” and that is not inaccurate, but it’s also arguably misleading. This is a film more worthy of attention than most, with excellent performances—including from Steve Buscemi as Harry’s pawn shop owner associate, and Giancarlo Esposito as a detective long acquainted with Harry. Esposito is only in a couple of scenes, but you really feel the history between these two characters, and it’s always a nice change when this guy is not just another sneering villain.

I have only one complaint about this movie, really, and it’s a casting choice: we meet the mob boss of Dylan’s family in a final sequence that serves as the film’s coda. The actor who plays this boss is not something I will spoil, but I will say this actor has had such a late-career surge in fame and proliferation that the perfectly good writing gets wildly overshadowed by who the actor is, to the point of distraction. Turturro has had a long career as a character actor who easily disappears into his parts; this other person is very talented, but sticks out like a sore thumb in this part. For me, personally, it made the ending, otherwise very poignant, a slight bummer. I might very well have regarded this as a perfect movie otherwise.

On the upside, that sequence is followed by the aforementioned, lovingly held extended shot of the New York City skyline. If you have any history with New York at all, but probably especially if you are a New Yorker specifically, you’ll get it. I left the theater feeling real, nostalgic affection for a place with which I long had a love-hate relationship, and that is an impressive magic trick.

*Be careful what you sell for: John Turturro and Steve Buscemi do some business in New York.*

Overall: A-