The Red Circle

[201]0 // 001: The Bank Job [2008] dir. Roger Donaldson

The first quarter of any given year brings a heavily mixed bag of film to us. Normally, January, February and March are the could-have-been-a-contender Oscar crowd’s consolation prize and the dumping ground for any assortment of terrible horror and sci-fi flicks that are meant to capitalize on people being sick of schmaltzy best picture flicks all month prior. But, often, that first quarter finds a few films that serve as the film industry’s misfit toys. They tend to be small films with a simple story that can tread the waters between action and drama. They tend to hav workingman directors and an ensemble cast of mostly nobodies. They also, if we’re fortunate, tend to be very well done flicks that simply aren’t heavy enough in scope to appeal to the fanboys of summer.

This is exactly where The Bank Job fits. It’s the kind of movie that people claim we don’t make anymore. It’s a tiny little heist flick set in the year 1970, that finds a small group of friends thrust into a theft that is way over their heads, both technically and politically. You see, they have to break into a bank’s vault to steal incriminating photos of a royal family member taken by a black power luminariy from a safe deposit box. Not that they know this – they just assume they’re there to grab as much cash and valuables as possible.

Roger Donaldson has made a ton of these kinds of movies, and he is indispensable at managing the three disparate arcs (the robbers, the politicians, and the black power camp) and combining them into is a well-paced, well-told simple story. Jason Statham gives what is possibly his best, and undoubtedly his most subdued performance as Terry, a husband and father in a working class home who is talked into the biggest score of his life by a seductive old flame (Saffron Burrows) who is working hand-in-hand with MI-5 to bring down Michael X, the black power magnate.

The other bit of genius in this movie is the casting and the set-slash-costume design. The flick is shot in very subdued tones, and all of the gang of friends look definitely like they walked out of the 70s. The supporting cast is not deep, but they are all performed with detail and precision by their actors. This flick is very much a working class picture. There is little fanfare or flair in the proceedings, but everyone from the focus puller to the Porn King of London are all paying their roles like honest to god human beings.

The Bank Job is a film that will certainly never gain a huge audience. It is a good story told well, but without any adornments or flashy actor and director moments. It is simply a movie about working class men told by working class filmmakers, and the synergy is completely wonderful. Watching Jason Statham play a dad is worth it. Watching a murderous old man with kidney stones get kicked in the guts often is worth it. Seeing Colin Salmon in a beard is worth it.

It’s an obvious Hollywood film, but the focus is entirely on the plot and the characters. And hey, it’s actually watchable and compelling throughout. There is no reason for the average person to go rush out to see this film, but if it’s on the television or you just need a nice little flick to pass the time one night, there’s no harm in checking out The Bank Job. I am happy that men like Roger Donaldson exist, and can make films like this with the support of the studios.

I really hope that this is the kind of film that we never stop making.

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