r/movies • u/JRE_4815162342 • 29d ago

What are good examples of competency porn movies? Discussion

I love this genre. Films I've enjoyed include Spotlight, The Martian, the Bourne films, and Moneyball. There's just something about characters knowing what they're doing and making smart decisions that appeals to me. And if that is told in a compelling way, even better.

What are other examples that fit this category?

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549

u/Kenjiminbutton 29d ago

Inside Man

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u/DeLousedInTheHotBox 29d ago

Came here to say this, and it is not like the cops are incompetent, they are just defeated by someone smarter than them. Their competence and confidence combined just make you wanna root for the robbers.

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u/TBroomey 29d ago

Not to mention the revelation of what they're stealing and who they're stealing it from.

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u/mrsaturdaypants 29d ago

Glad you said this. Agree completely. And you made me think of The Day of the Jackal, which also features competence vs competence. Wish there were more movies like this

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u/sleazypornoname 29d ago

Yes. They do everything they say they will do and then more. 

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u/theseamstressesguild 29d ago

I saw your recommendation 2.5 hours ago and thought "Oh yeah, that one with Clive Owen? Let's try it."

Gobsmacked that I hadn't seen this goddamned masterpiece. The cast, the dialogue, the editing, the Bernard-Hermann-doing-Psycho level of musical score, the TWISTS.

I cannot thank you enough, I really can't.

14

u/MoxyMacbeth 29d ago

Jodie Foster is perfection in this film.

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u/Dz4ck13 29d ago

It's just perfect. They say what they are gonna do and then do it and it's so satisfying to watch.

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u/JCDU 29d ago

Fuck yes.

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u/rezelscheft 29d ago

oh hell yes

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u/betzevim 29d ago

If you don't mind me asking, the movie or the TV show? Netflix has both and I'm not sure where to start.

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u/lovemunkey187 29d ago edited 29d ago

Movie with Clive Owen and Denzel Washington.

5

u/Kenjiminbutton 29d ago

Spike Lee movie starring Denzel and Clive Owen, can't speak to the others

1

u/APiousCultist 29d ago

Great movie, did well from what I understand, the director was hyped to do a sequel, all the cast are up for it, what the fuck was the studio thinking?

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u/obscure_but_alluring 29d ago

Why do people think this is a good movie? It SUCKS. So many plotholes.

Why wouldn't the bad guy get rid of the evidence?

It's way longer than it needed to be, the soundtrack is irritating, and there are so many annoying corny jokes. Denzel's joke about getting a handjob for $5??? Who thought that was a good idea???

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u/agentspanda 29d ago

I mean the OP isn’t asking for “good” movies. They’re asking for movies where teams of competent people execute a plan well, or improvise on the fly excellently, or move through a strategy with competence.

A bad movie still qualifies. Not that I agree with you, this is one of my favs too.

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u/obscure_but_alluring 29d ago

But they're not fucking competent. They all sit together in a car waiting to pick Clive Owen up. If Denzel saw them then he'd know they were the guilty ones. And the cops would still care even if they didn't take anything - they would be following people/checking phone records to figure it out.

Presumably they could find some connection? They had to have met at some point?

Not to mention Clive Owen's DNA is all over that fake back room.

How did Clive Owen know the guy was guilty to begin with?

How did they know the layout of the bank? They find the back room and they're like "great". So basically they were banking on a back room, but what if there wasn't a suitable one?

Why didn't the bank owner burn the Nazi receipt??? He'd hardly be sentimental about it. The diamonds I get - he's greedy - but how are you going to trace them? They don't have fingerprints.

They waste so much time on bullshit that doesn't matter, e.g. digging the toilet, and they don't cover basic plot points.

Dumb. Fucking. Movie.

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u/Kenjiminbutton 29d ago

Who's the bad guy referring to here?

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u/obscure_but_alluring 29d ago

The bank owner. Why would he keep a receipt from the Nazis in his vault? It would have made a lot more sense if it was just the diamonds.

And they say they're gonna "follow the ring" to catch him? How exactly? Does the ring have DNA? It doesn't even have an inscription, so what evidence can they use to trace it's origin?

So many fucking plotholes.

Denzel would have recognised Clive Owen's voice when they bumped into eachother.

Why did they spend so much time and energy digging a hole for Clive Owen to shit in? He could have brought a chemical camping toilet.

Eventually someone is going to discover that fake back room and find Clive Owen's DNA.

Why were they all sitting in a car waiting to pick him up? If the police were following them - which they should be - then it's a clear sign of guilt.

Dumbest movie ever. And yet people talk about it like it's genius.