The Bank Job [Blu-ray] [2008] [US Import]

I really liked this film despite the poor reviews in the papers by some critics.

The film starts with 'Our hero' Terry (Second hand car lot owner) having his stock smashed up by some dodgy money lender monkeys. In desperation he goes along with his old school friend Ms Love's plan to rob a bank by the old 'dig a tunnel from the closed down shop opposite' method when the bank alarm system is down. All is far from what it seems to these likeable robbers and without spoiling the plot can say it involves Royalty, Dishonest Cops, Trinidadian Drug Barons and Porn kings as well as brothel owner Sonia - oh and some MPs and MI5!! It is all a true story and I thoroughly enjoyed it from begining to end. Lots of 70s period detail and the behind the scenes action by the Police that looks hilariously amateurish by todays standards- well I hope they have improved their detection skills since then. If you are old enough to remember the 1970's and a series called Budgie with Adam Faith you will love this.

Allegedly based on true events (the final credits mention the names have been changed to protect the guilty), The Bank Job is partly a homage to the traditional British robbery film and partly a tale of political and society intrigue. The main premise of the story is that a Black Power activist Michael X managed to obtain photographs of a prominent British royal (possibly Princess Margaret) enjoying a decidedly unregal menage-a-trois while on holiday in the Caribbean. On returning to England, Michael X uses the pictures to blackmail the authorities into turning a blind eye to his criminal activities.

The British Secret Service (MI5 or MI6) learns the location of the photographs in a Bank safety deposit box. Thus they set in motion the chain of events which convinces Terry (Jason Statham) and his cronies to tunnel into the safe and empty the deposit boxes thus retrieving the photographs to 1. Protect the Royal and, 2. Remove Michael X's "Get Out of Jail Free" card. Up until this point the film is an enjoyable, if somewhat risque, crime caper. However things take a darker turn when inevitably this is not the only secret held in the security vault, including some compromising photographs of Secret Service officials and a crime boss's ledger of payments to corrupt police officers. This leads to a classic four way stand-off between the various parties before the final denoument.

In general terms The Bank Job is an enjoyable and entertaining heist movie. The Blu-Ray picture and sound transfer are superb. There are a couple of downers - Jason Statham needs to start working on an act other than the grizzled Cockney "wide-boy", he is really, really, in danger of being permanently typecast. There are a few plot holes and transport enthusiasts will spot the tube trains in the scenes filmed on the Underground are not correct for the era, nor is the main line train at Paddington station.

To conclude, it's not quite as quirky as Lock Stock... or Snatch but if you want a good popcorn movie and a nostalgic glimpse of the early 70's you could do far worse.

This was one of the most enjoyable films I have seen in a long time. I loved that it was British and not the usual kind of film that we get. Seeing so many familar faces was great too. It reminded me very much of Snatch and that is my favourite film ever! We need more like this in my opinion.