Jason Statham Stars in an Entertaining Crime Drama
Inspired by a true story, The Bank Job (2008) is an enjoyable diversion for viewers who like intricate plots, clear storytelling and good acting. There are several engaging supporting actors in the film, and the lead is played by Jason Statham, who brings an appealing masculinity. Although there is little action or comedy, the movie is generally upbeat.
The complicated story is set in 1971 London, where MI5, the UK's internal security agency, instigates a bank robbery to recover compromising photos of a member of the royal family. The heist is carried out by a likable group of lowlifes led by used car dealer Terry Leather (Statham). This all turns out to involve widespread police corruption, a brothel that offers S & M, a porn king and a black-power activist. Along the way, family man Terry is drawn to alluring femme fatale Martine Love (Saffron Burrows). The satisfying denouement takes place when all the major participants end up at bustling Paddington Station.
The Bank Job is not particularly arresting visually, and the soundtrack music is workaday. Also, the dialogue doesn't sparkle. Still, this is an intelligent film that is solidly entertaining.
DVD Supplementary Materials
The most interesting DVD extra is the 15-minute "The Baker Street Bank Raid," in which a couple of historians, a former commander of the Metropolitan Police and a former MI5 official talk about the real-life crime. The Lloyds Bank at the corner of Baker Street and Marylebone Road was robbed in 1971 as depicted in the movie, but the story details seem to be mostly speculation.
The DVD also contains a little over six minutes of deleted and extended scenes which can optionally be watched with audio commentary. There's a convincing love scene by Statham and Burrows, but director Roger Donaldson says he cut it because for the audience to actually see Terry in the act of committing adultery makes him a less sympathetic character.
Another extra on the DVD is a serviceable making-of featurette titled "Inside The Bank Job," which is 17 minutes long. This covers casting, costuming, production design and so on. The screenwriters say their initial script was more of a black comedy, but the director eventually shaped it into more of a thriller. That may help explain why the finished film doesn't fit neatly into any genre.
Finally, the DVD provides a feature-length audio commentary by director Roger Donaldson, lead actress Saffron Burrows and composer J. Peter Robinson. Alas, listening to it is not very rewarding, although Donaldson does occasionally say something interesting. He describes a funny problem he encountered in shooting the brothel scene: to look like 1971 women, the actresses playing prostitutes had to wear merkins, but they kept falling off.
Digital Copy Is Included
Disc 1 of the 2-Disc Special Edition of The Bank Job is in ordinary DVD format and contains the feature film plus all the bonus materials. Disc 2 contains only a Digital Copy of the feature film in a format that can be used only in an Apple Macintosh or Windows PC DVD drive. If desired, the Digital Copy can be transferred to an iPod or other portable device.
DVD Details
Both picture and sound quality are excellent for the feature film on Disc 1 of the 2-Disc Special Edition of The Bank Job. Listed below are all the DVD details.
Release Date: July 15, 2008
Feature Film Runtime: 1 hour 52 minutes
MPAA Rating: R for Sexual Content, Nudity, Violence and Language
Widescreen (2.35:1), Color
English 5.1 Dolby Digital EX
English 2.0 Dolby Digital
English Subtitles
Spanish Subtitles
Audio Commentary by Director, Lead Actress and Composer
Inside The Bank Job (17 min.)
The Baker Street Bank Raid (15 min.)
Deleted and Extended Scenes (6 min.)
Theatrical Trailer
Digital Copy of Feature Film
