The Only Living Pickpocket in New York Review

October 4, 2026 at 8:33pm
By Jason Stettner

Being effortlessly cool we follow an aging pickpocket that’s dealing with changing times and a rather exhausting life in the hustle. Harry (John Turturro) spends his days going across the city of New York looking for the quickest way to make a buck. He’s done this for a long time, he knows people and he’s caused problems for folks.

There’s a long term pal in the form of a detective, Warren (Giancarlo Esposito) and then a local pawn shop pal Ben (Steve Buscemi). Harry has certainly lived, whilst dealing with an ailing wife and alienated family. It’s a steady life however and it looks smooth in motion to see him gather valuables in various ways. That is of course until things take a turn for the worse as he’s stolen from the wrong youthful guy Dylan (Will Price) who’s a bit more resourceful than others.

As per usual there’s a specific special item and now Harry has to cleverly find out where it’s gone after he’s thrown it aside. It’s an interesting journey to see how this all goes, but it’s also somewhat predictable and fairly straight forward. It’s really the performances, atmosphere and presentation that help elevate this one.

The cinematography in this film is simply gorgeous to take in. It’s got this roughened sort of aesthetic that adds grime to New York while still providing a slick upbeat presentation. That’s backed by some unique musical inspirations and of course led by the performances.

This really is a standout offering from John Turturro as he absolutely carries and commands viewing despite there being some other great performers in here. It’s a fun adventure to go on with charm, some laughs and tense moments. Some spots feel a tad disconnected or not entirely in place and it is relatively straight forward yet it still just sort of works.

Those cool moments of theft, despite being horrible to be folks being stolen from of course and then a sleekness to how the tasks are tackled. It works as I’ve said. They could have however dialed back slightly on the whole being out of time sort of thing technology wise, guy just straight up refused to get with things and complained about it at every corner.

The Conclusion

The Only Living Pickpocket in New York is elevated by excellent performances from its stellar cast and a general sleekness to how its theft is presented. The overall narrative was quite predictable and straight forward the whole way through.

It’s more about the journey that’s led strongly by Turturro that makes this feel special. The visual elements are handled well here and despite being simple in locales it does paint a grimy side of New York well. It feels lived in, expansive and fleeting.

It provides some good laughs, cool moments for slight of hand and a rather distinctive journey as one must face the music as to say. There are some folks you don’t steal from, and sometimes you just pick the wrong target.

The Only Living Pickpocket in New York Review at Theater with Standard Viewing
Screening Provided by Calgary Film

Rating Overall: 8.0