This small gem will steal your heart, not your money, jewelry, or phones.

“The Only Living Pickpocket in New York” is a crime drama, but a small one. It’s not the kind that goes overblown on the case or goes for the obligatory guns and shootouts or arrests. It rather uses small crimes like pickpocketing to help represent the genre. It’s a masterpiece on that level, and promises you a lot of things in less than 90 minutes.

There have been many love letters to New York City, which also acts like a character. “Manhattan,” “Annie Hall,” the “Spider-Man” movies, “25th Hour,” “Gangs of New York,” “Taxi Driver,” “Annie Hall,” “Uncut Gems,” You’ve Got Mail,” “Elf,” and “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” and “The Devil Wears Prada.” The list goes on and on, and “The Only Pickpocket in New York” does share a grounded passion about the NYC subways, the prices for a drink at a stand, and the environment surrounding them.

But the city is not without its people residing in it. John Turturro gives another great performance-one of the best of the year-as an aging pickpocket named Harry Lehman, who lives in the Bronx, taking care of his catatonic wife Rosie (Karina Arroyave), and snatching some phones, wallets, and watches occasionally. He has a pawn shop owner (Steve Buscemi) handling his stolen goods like a professional fence, and transferring him to another fence (Kelvin Han Yee) in Chinatown for items he can’t handle.

One day, Harry steals from Dylan (Will Price), a young man he didn’t know was an heir to a crime organization. He pawns his stolen items, which includes cell phones, his watch, and USB crypto wallet. But Dylan comes into his life, threatens him to get his stuff back, and uses Rosie as his bargaining chip.

There are a few characters he crosses paths with on his dangerous trek, like his estranged daughter Kelly (Tatiana Maslany) and his detective companion Allan Warren (Giancarlo Esposito). One is distraught by how terrible of a father Harry was, and the other needs to read “Moby Dick.”

“The Only Living Pickpocket in New York” was written and directed by Noah Segan, who previously directing credits were “Blood Relatives” and a segment in “Scare Package,” and played different characters in the “Knives Out” series (remember, he was one of the two detectives in the first entry). His third directing job wants less clichés and more authenticity, as it not only shows NYC for its features, but also for what consequences a small crime like pickpocketing can bring. We should get a little more into the story, but it still speaks with the right convictions.

To bring out the style of Harry’s thieving life, the score is composed by Gary Lionelli (“O.J.: Made in America,” “The Trial of Alec Baldwin”), and he adds a certain Henry Mancini charm. It’s jazzy, fast-paced, and stylish that reminds older audiences of the best crime films of the 60s or 70s. A score like that should fit a character like Harry, and Turturro is perfect in the role. He makes bad choices, but he also has a good side to him that he tries to keep in tact. And the actor eases into quite well.

We also get terrific supporting work from Maslaney, Esposito, Buscemi, and even a cameo from Jamie Lee Curtis. All of whom connect with the lead with truth and perspective. And it’s hard to find an exhausting formula within them, because they’re all committed to their roles.

“The Only Living Pickpocket in New York” has that Steven Soderbergh feel with its set-up and execution. And Segan plays the game like a good sport, not a thief trying to be like the greats.