Italian Job, The
A highly skilled band of thieves pulls off a monumental heist in Venice, Italy, carrying off millions in gold bullion. Unfortunately, one of the team decides to take it all leaving the rest for dead somewhere in the Alps. All of them survive except for one, the father of a beautiful woman who inherited his skills at safe cracking. When reclamation of the gold and revenge drive a new plan, she opts in with the survivors. Smart scheming, fast driving, and a massive traffic jam bring them closer to their goal and the gold.
- Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Charlize Theron, Edward Norton, Donald Sutherland, Mos Def, Seth Green and Jason Statham
- Director(s): F. Gary Gray
- Producer(s): Avery Pic, Inc.
- Screenwriter(s): Troy Kennedy-Martin, Donna Powers
- Distributor: Paramount Pictures
- Release Date: Friday, May 30, 2003
Featured Animal Action
Italian Ambiance Since the Italian job begins with the heist in Venice, the famous pigeons of Piazza St. Marco appear in the opening scenes. The birds naturally are seen scattering into the sky of Venice as the thieves lead the police on a high-speed boat chase through the canals. Guarding the Gold The action moves to Los Angeles and the expensive mansion of the double-cr ossing thief. Two guard dogs patrol the fence line and are a menacing welcome to anyone driving onto the property. The dogs were played by French Mastiffs (official breed name: Dogue de Bordeaux) Leo and Angel. Trainers obtained the animals from a private party and specifically trained them for this film. On cues from their trainers, the dogs jumped at the cable van and commenced barking. For this cameo performance the dogs were rewarded with food treats.