History Film / TheArtOfTheSteal

* AllMusicalsAreAdaptations: While attempting to explain to the border guard why his wearing a false beard, Francie claims that he is in a play called ''Film/{{Witness}}!: The Musical''. (And, yes, he specifically mentions that it has an exclamation mark.)
* BadassBiker: After getting out of prison, former GetawayDriver Crunch Calhoun works as motorcycle daredevil who takes cash from event organisers to deliberately crash, because that's what the crowds have come out hoping to see.

* BadHabits: The middleman in the deal for the ''Gospel of St. James'' is called 'the Reverend' who dresses like a priest, including a clerical collar. However, there is no evidence that he is actually a minister of religion.
* BookEnds: Starts and ends with a character being a released from prison, accompanied by a voice-over narration that starts:

* BrickJoke: "You wouldn't recognize a pussy if it was three feet tall and staring you in the face!" Pays off hilariously at the end of the movie when Agent Bick is [[spoiler:looking at the modern sculpture of a vagina the gang used to smuggle the gospel out of the border station. He asks "What is it?"]]
-->'''Samuel Winter:''' Here's a hint. It's three feet tall and staring you in the face.

** Nicky: The Mastermind [[spoiler:and becomes the Fall Guy and the end of the movie]]

** Uncle Paddy: The Fixer. He is the guy who knows everybody and can get anything. Also acts as The Conman (posing as an art expert in Warsaw) and The Fence (usually has a buyer waiting for the team's loot).
** Guy: The Specialist. He is an expert forger who can create anything from a Matisse painting to a Guttenberg Bible.

* CarHoodSliding: The thief who originally stole the Gospel from the Amsterdam gallery slides across the bonnet on a parked car as he escapes from the pursuing policeman: surreptitiously tossing the book into the car as he does so.
* ChronicBackstabbingDisorder: Nicky seems genuinely unable to stop himself. He sells out his half-brother Crunch to the police after the job in Warsaw goes sour; knocks out Sunny and abandons him (leaving behind a mocking apology card) so he doesn't have to pay him the $30,000 his is owed for his part in TheHeist; and plans to double-cross the rest of the CaperCrew and abscond with the loot from TheCon. Nicky says he just doing what everyone else would do if they thought they could get away with it. Crunch says he doesn't blame Nicky for his behaviour, but he does hate him for it.
* TheCon: [[spoiler:The entire scheme to steal the ''Gospel of St. James'' and sell off forgies to multiple buyers who think they are buying the original is actually a con to take down Nicky, steal his money and and get him arrested as payback for betraying the CaperCrew during the Warsaw job. It relies on Nicky's ChronicBackstabbingDisorder in order to work.]]

* TheHeist: The plot centers around a plan to heist the Gospel of St. John from a secure Canadian border station.

* LemmingCops: The two motorcycle cops chasing Crunch in Warsaw follow in into the subway and onto a train: all while still on bikes.

* OneLastJob: The Warsaw job was intended to be this, but things went wrong. Seven years later, the theft of the Gospel of St. James becomes a new last job for the CaperCrew.
* PercussivePickpocket: While arguing with Crunch on the street, Nicky bumps into a pedestrian and lifts his wallet. When Crunch asks him why he is still doing that penny ante stuff, Nicky claims it is just to keep his eye in. A few seconds later, he does it to a 12-year old girl and Crunch loses it.

* PuttingTheBandBackTogether: When Crunch is released after spending seven years in a Polish prison, Uncle Paddy contacts about putting the CaperCrew who worked on the disastrous Warsaw job back together for a new job: including the one who sold Crunch out to the Polish police.

* AllMusicalsAreAdaptations: While attempting to explain to the border guard why his wearing a false beard, Francie claims that he is in a play called ''Film/{{Witness}}!: The Musical''. (And, yes, he specifically mentions that it has an [[ExcitedShowTitle exclamation mark]].)

* TheConWithinACon: [[spoiler:The entire scheme to steal the ''Gospel of St. James'' and sell off forgies to multiple buyers who think they are buying the original is actually a con to take down Nicky, steal his money and and get him arrested as payback for betraying the CaperCrew during the Warsaw job. It relies on Nicky's ChronicBackstabbingDisorder in order to work.]]

* BrickJoke: "You wouldn't recognize a pussy if it was three feet tall and staring you in the face!" Pays off hilariously at the end of the movie.

* TrueArtIsIncomprehensible: As part of TheCon, the crew legitimately purchase a modern art piece from a gallery: a 3 ft. high sculpture of a vagina. It keeps getting odd looks from everyone who sees it, and Francie can't stop staring at it despite it freaking him out.

* TapOnTheHead: Nicky knocks out Sunny by rapping him on the head with a lead (having first handed him an apology card reading "Sorry for hitting you on the head with a lead pipe"). Later Sunny knocks out Crunch by hitting him on the head with a lead pipe before he attempts to extract Nicky's location and/or $30,000 from him.

* PrisonRape: Agent Bick attempts to spook Francie with threats of this happening to him is he gets busted.

* PercussivePickpocket: While arguing with Crunch on the street, Nicky bumps into a pedestrian and lifts his wallet. When Crunch asks him why he is still doing that penny ante stuff, Nicky claims it is just to keep his later. A few seconds later, he does it to a 12-year old girl and Crunch loses it.

* {{Metaphorgotten}}: During an argument with Nicky, Crunch starts talking about how {{Con Artist}}s are supposed to have a code that makes them better than the thugs and gangsters of the world and how it may be horseshit:
-->'''Crunch:''' But I bought into that horeshit, Nicky! And you, you just trample al over that horsehsit. An you just, now you, you got shit all over your, your boots, you know. You, you just...you, you got shitty boots.\\

* {{Metaforgotten}}: During an argument with Nicky, Crunch starts talking about how {{Con Artist}}s are supposed to have a code that makes them better than the thugs and gangsters of the world and how it may be horseshit:

* PercussivePickpocket: While arguing with Crunch on the street, Nicky bumps into a pedestrian and lifts his wallet. When Crunch asks him why he is still doing that pennyante stuff, Nicky claims it is just to keep his later. A few seconds later, he does it to a 12-year old girl and Crunch loses it.