THE BANK JOB

Reviewed by Sam Hatch

As I mentioned in my review of the bonkers 2006 action orgy Crank, British actor Jason Statham has brought a new level of cool to the average 'guy' movie. He's got the athletic skills of a Van Damme or a Seagal, but he also sports that one little thing they had but little of – charisma.

I've been a fan of his work since the old Guy Ritchie films (Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch), but it was his work in the east-meets-west kung-fu driving film The Transporter that revealed to me that he could actually evolve into a cinema star. Since then his light output has been steadily building, and this lead role in Roger Donaldson's The Bank Job will do nothing but pour petrol on the fire of his career.

Statham is allowed to surprise us once again, since the early word on the picture had me imagining him portraying another wisecracking cog in the London underworld. But surprise, surprise - Statham's car dealer Terry Leather (how cool a name is that?) is a cog that's also a very human character who actually has something to lose. Indeed, this is one of the first times he's been able to play a guy with a real family and a wife (Keeley Hawes) who fears for his safety.

Terry's but one of a number of shady individuals wrangled into a sketchy ruse by Saffron Burrows' Martine. She's an old mate who suddenly appears with a hot tip regarding a bank with a security system that will soon be rendered off-line for a number of days. For a pack of mangy schemers, this is a score bigger than any they've ever encountered. Envisioning themselves as something greater than they probably are, they never take time to ponder if they're actually cut out for the job.

This titular mission is based on a little-known true story based in 1970s England. A group of unknown felons tunneled into a safety-deposit box room at a Baker Street bank and made off with a ton of loot. The story was big news for a short while (even getting mention on American broadcasts) before disappearing altogether.

The reason for the latter occurrence is sketched out here to reveal an embarrassing royal snafu as the motivating factor. Early in the film, a Malcolm X wannabe named Michael X (Peter de Jersey) obtains a set of photographs detailing wild child Princess Margaret in a series of compromising positions. The British secret service learns of this and conjures a covert operation to neutralize the threat.

There's some funny dialogue referencing the public's confusion over the difference between MI-5 and MI-6. For those not in the know, the former handles matters within the state (i.e. TV's Spooks), while the latter works with international issues (i.e. 007). Realizing that they can't utilize a 'James Bond' type for an operation that cannot be officially sanctioned, MI-5 bigwig Tim Everett (Richard Lintern) uses his street contacts to recruit a group of dodgy losers to perform the task unwittingly.

While these guys do routinely flirt with the criminal element, they're relatively nice guys who retain our sympathies. Filling out Terry and Martine's crew are Kevin (Stephen Campbell Moore), ex-amateur porn star Dave (Daniel Mays), reluctant lookout Eddie (Michael Jibson) and a falsely elitist con artist impersonating a shop proprietor. The filmmakers made a conscious effort of avoiding the bane of many a complex thriller by not casting too many similar 'types'. Their effort to collect a variety of actors with distinctive looks yields dividends, as we're not constantly confusing one guy for the other.

Most of these blokes are oblivious to the machinations behind their imminent score, but Terry remains acutely aware of Martine's repeated encounters with a mysterious gentleman contact. The job itself is a fun romp, reminiscent of a more serious (and smaller goaled) take on the Ocean's films. While we're never quite sure if these low-rent hoods can perform the task (especially after a near-disastrous demonstration of a concrete cutting blasting tool), we feel their exhilaration when they reach their destination. There's also a high amount of tension surrounding the fact that their walkie-talkie communications gain the attention of an amateur ham-radio operator who promptly informs the fuzz.

Like any good heist film, this is when things start to go awry. Certain parties suss out the ruse, and soon we learn that Michael X wasn't the only person to stash incriminating materials in a Lloyd's safe deposit box. We soon realize that 'the bank job' itself is of secondary concern to the script (by George McIndoe, Aaron Shuster, Ian LaFresnais and Dick Clement), which subsequently focuses on the complicated aftermath of said event.

There are a slew of secondary characters, from a mole within Michael X's organization and the sleazy porn merchant Lew Vogel (David Suchet), to a madam specializing in sado-masochism and her numerous high-profile clients. There's also the police inspector looking into the case, who may be one of the few guys in town who doesn't have ties to seedy business.

The remainder of the screen-time is a tautly constructed mess (the good kind) that challenges our protagonists in increasingly drastic measures. Considering that they're up against the best of the best (or the worst of the worst in terms of character), we hardly expect them to make it out of this fiasco alive. This tension gives Statham plenty of meat to chew on, and he delivers a surprisingly heartfelt and genuine performance when he returns home briefly to let his family know that they are all in grave danger.

Since the real bank robbers are officially 'unknown' to this day, we have to take the filmmakers' word that what happens on screen is gospel. Supposedly the 'real' Terry Leather was on-set for a short while, and that he looked so much like Jason Statham that people confused him for the actor's father. The writers in particular swear that much of the material is grounded in reality.

This makes sense, considering the primary scribes are known primarily for their wit. This was indeed to be a cheeky, humor-laden affair until their ever-increasing research uncovered more and more amazing facts. The end result is a great throwback to hard-nosed 70s crime dramas. Donaldson does a stunning job at recreating the era without tossing in too many pop-culture elements and cheeky references. He makes 70s London real, and not just a cinematic parody.

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