Film

Blood and Wine

Name: Blood and Wine
Genre: Crime, Thriller
Released: 1996
Cast: Jack Nicholson, Stephen Dorff, Jennifer Lopez, Judy Davis, Michael Caine

Heist

A middle-aged Miami businessman and failed family man plots a diamond heist with an old friend, hoping to save his sinking wine business and repair his life. Director Bob Rafelson crafts a crime thriller that's less about the job than the moral rot underneath—a portrait of masculine desperation where the real theft is of second chances already squandered.

TMDb rating

2.9

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you enjoy slippery, character-driven crime stories where the moral mess is the real pleasure, and a veteran star circling his own weaknesses with relish.

Skip it if you want a tight, plot-driven caper; this one is more interested in a rotten marriage and a man's self-deceit, and it moves at a loose, unhurried pace.

What it asks of you: Settle in for a leisurely hundred-odd minutes, with long scenes of talk and sulking, and a darkness that builds slowly rather than arriving with a jolt.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Out of Sight1998

Steven Soderbergh's clever heist film with George Clooney and Jennifer Lopez—stylish, smart, and genuinely funny about criminals who are better people than they should be. Electric chemistry throughout.

But It's more interested in flirtation and banter than high stakes or tension. If you want a taut robbery procedural, you'll find it scattered here rather than focused.

Body Heat1981

A sleek erotic thriller where desire drives the plot as much as greed. William Hurt and Kathleen Turner sizzle, and the twists land with real sting. Pure eighties sophistication.

But The pacing is slow-burn deliberate. Modern viewers often find it tedious rather than atmospheric. Nudity and sexual content throughout.

Miller's Crossing1990

Coen Brothers' gem about loyalty and betrayal during Prohibition. Gabriel Byrne is superb, the dialogue crackles, and the story builds to something genuinely tragic. Criminally underseen.

But It's talky and stylized; some find it mannered. The plot can feel circular. Not a movie that rushes anywhere.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Blood and Wine

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Sexy Beast2001

Both track the corruption of a man's life by criminal ambition—but Sexy Beast asks what happens when the criminal life comes looking for you, and you've tried to escape.

Ray Winstone as a retired criminal in Spain whose peace is shattered by Ben Kingsley's terrifying arrival. The real heist is secondary to psychological menace and the tyranny of proximity to evil. Hypnotic and deeply unsettling.

But It's slow, abstract, and more interested in dread than plot. The villain barely appears until halfway through. Some find it pretentious; others find it a masterpiece.

Glengarry Glen Ross1992

Jack Lemmon, Harris, Arkin, and Pacino in a pressure-cooker about men failing at work and taking it home. Based on Mamet's play but adapted brilliantly for screen. Savage and true.

But It's men in an office yelling for two hours. No action, minimal plot movement. If dialogue-heavy character studies exhaust you, skip it.

Thief1981

Michael Mann's hypnotic crime drama with James Caan as a professional thief plotting one last job. Stylish, deeply lonely, and weirdly romantic about the criminal life. Tangerine Dream score is unforgettable.

But Pacing is glacial and meditative. Some sequences feel repetitive. It's about mood and alienation, not plot momentum.

The Killing1956

Kubrick's debut is a racetrack heist told in fragments—sharp, economical, and clever about how a simple plan collapses under reality and human weakness. Astonishing for 1956.

But Black and white, fifty-eight minutes, minimal dialogue. The fragmented structure can feel choppy. Very much of its era.

Killing Zoe1993

Roger Avary's debut: an American in Paris, a bank heist, and everything falling apart in real time. Raw, visceral, and genuinely unpredictable. Uncompromising.

But Violence is graphic and unsettling rather than thrilling. The second half abandons heist logic entirely. Not for viewers who want a clean narrative arc.

The Grifters1990

Stephen Frears' dark character study of con artists—Huston, Buscemi, and Dillon—caught in schemes that reveal their emptiness. Nasty, smart, and perfectly cast.

But Bleakness without redemption. The protagonist is contemptible. No one learns anything or grows; despair is the whole point.

In Good Company2004

Topher Grace and Dennis Quaid in a workplace drama about ambition and failure in business. Smart about what men want and lie about. Warm without being sentimental.

But It's a quiet office movie, not a thriller. Romantic subplot dilutes focus. Feels slight compared to harder crime dramas.

Made2001

Two ordinary men bungling their way through a criminal underworld—but where Blood and Wine is desperate tragedy, Made finds humor in incompetence and grace in friendship.

Jon Favreau's overlooked comedy about two nobodies sent on a mob errand in Europe. It's funny, weird, and genuinely touching about friendship and failure. Vince Vaughn is hilarious.

But It's a comedy-thriller hybrid that mixes tones aggressively. If you want either genre pure, this will feel uncertain. Some scenes drag.

Rififi1955

The template for all modern heist films—but stripped of plot mechanics to focus on mood, masculinity, and the wages of the criminal life. Where others add complexity, Rififi removes it.

Jules Dassin's French heist masterpiece: a nearly silent twenty-minute robbery, moral complexity, and noir atmosphere that influenced every heist film after. In French but utterly clear. Breathtaking.

But Black and white, 1955, minimal dialogue, subtitles. The pacing is not modern. Some scenes feel static. Period detail is not everyone's appetite.