NEW Bank Job (2008) (DVD)

Set in London in the early 1970s, THE BANK JOB is based on real life events. A group of would be criminals is set up by MI5 (or 6, no one can keep them straight) to rob a bank and regain compromising photos of a royal personage. Unfortunately for our gang, not only were the photos in question (which were the "property" of corrupt revolutionary Michael X) kept in a safe deposit box at this bank, but so were the secrets and lies of many famous and infamous people, including the payola ledgers of a porn kingpin and the photo files of a well-placed local madam. Everybody who was anybody, from the cops on the beat up to the Lords of the Realm, was implicated in some scandal by the evidence from this notorious bank robbery.

THE BANK JOB is a fun, exciting, tension-filled romp. These amateur crooks catch more breaks and have more close calls than you would imagine possible. While the film does slightly bog down on occasion, for the most part the pacing builds just the right amount of suspense with these twists and turns of fate. In several places, my heart was actually racing. By the end, our villains are the heroes, and everyone gets what they truly deserve.

I really liked the cinematography of this film. THE BANK JOB actually looks like it was filmed in the 1970s. At one point, I double-checked with my husband to confirm that it was a recent movie. The effect used is very convincing, producing a very authentic look. The ensemble cast was quite good, performing as a cohesive unit, but no individual really standing out.

THE BANK JOB is a great movie for an entertaining evening at home. My husband and I really had a lot of fun. And we got to learn a little history from the 1970s as well.

I wasn't really interested in The Bank Job until I caught Ebert and Roeper on the tube and heard mucho praise from Richard Roeper, as well as, the guest critic at the time. I wouldn't put this on my top ten of the year list, but it was suspenseful and downright entertaining from start to finish. I'm not the biggest Jason Statham fan, mainly because he always looks and sounds the same in every role, but here he shows a little more range and is quite likeable. Overall, this is a worthy rental that got overlooked by many during it's theatrical run.

THE BANK JOB is first class entertainment - a well-written script (Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais) with many twists and turns, face paced direction (Roger Donaldson), and a reliable cast of actors who know this genre well. AND it is all based on a true event from 1970 when a bank heist in London resulted in a number of falls of the heads of government who were locking away their 'dirty underwear' in the safety deposit boxes of a quiet bank on Baker Street. A great, unique movie this is not, but it is one that provides close to two hours of complex but highly suspenseful antics that keep the viewer glued to the screen.

Terry Leather (Jason Statham) isn't making it as a car salesman and has debts to pay to the crime world. He meets an old sweetheart Martine Love (Saffron Burrows) who proposes that Terry and his friends rob a bank that is due for security repairs and a fairly surefire safe means to instant wealth. Martine just happens to be working with a fellow who wants some rasty photographs of Princess Margaret in questionable sexual liaisons and has Martine setup the 'easy heist'. Terry and friends agree to the too-good-to-be-true venture and begin to burrow into the bank vault under cover of night and clever means. Once the 'keystone cops' of London arrive on the scene the comedy portion begins, but when Terry, Martine and friends successfully achieve their goal, all manner of complications occur and the ways in which police and governmental corruption color the picture makes for a solid ending. As a fine addendum, the true facts of this actual heist and resulting events are flashed on the screen before the closing credits.

The cast (including such fine actors as Stephen Campbell Moore, Daniel Mays, Alki David, James Faulkner et al) seems to have a great time with the caper and there is just the right balance between suspense and comedy to make the movie work. And oh the secrets about naughty England we discover! Grady Harp, July 08