The Bank Job

Introduction

London, 1971 and the establishment is desperate to bring Michael X, a gangster from Trinidad to justice - the only problem is that he has photos of a Princess in flagrante delicto that he is using to keep himself out of court. MI5 come up with a plan to get the pictures which are in a safe deposit box in a London bank: recruit a gang to rob the bank and steal the photos without working out who they're working for. The key to this is Martine Love (Saffron Burrows) who approaches her old flame Terry (Jason Statham) with a proposition to end his money worries.

Terry gathers a group of small time crooks who, with the help of Martine, plan and execute the robbery. The only problem is that they have managed to annoy an East-end porn baron (David Suchet) who has most of the Met on his payroll and soon find themselves over their heads.

This is purportedly based on a true story, though the fact that MI5 apparently slapped a D-notice on it means this is a little hard to prove or disprove. The release of the film coincided with a criminal prosecution surrounding the blackmail of a member of the Royal Family, so plus ça change!

Video

As with every DVD of a recent release, this has an excellent transfer. A lot of work obviously went into recreating the look of 1971, with cars, haircuts, costumes and all other visual aspects that place you firmly in that year.

Audio

A clear Dolby Digital 5.1 track with good use of music that, like the costumes and props, add to the period setting.

Extra Features

The main menu is preceded by non-skippable trailers for War, Good Luck Chuck and Cleaner and commercials for Snickers and Pot Noodle, though I don't know whether this will be the case on the retail version.

The press release says the DVD has the following extras, but the review disc didn't have any.

Audio commentary with Director Roger Donaldson and Jason Statham
Inside The Bank Job
The Baker Street Bank Raid
The Bank Job: World Premiere Part 1 - Red carpet Interviews
The Bank Job: World Premiere Part 2 - A One to One with Jason Statham
Extended Scenes
Introducing the Storys

Conclusion

This is one of those films you go into with very low expectations but find yourself surprisingly happy with the film. I'm no fan of Jason Statham - a one trick pony in terms of acting ability - and he does exactly what he does in every other film: plays a gruff voiced cockney with a hint of menace and a few witty remarks. This suits the character of Terry perfectly so it was a case of typecasting paying off! The rest of the cast are mostly forgettable, with no awards for thespian talent heading their way.

As seen in Porridge, The Likely Lads and Auf Weidersehen Pet, Ian La Frenais and Dick Clement know how to write dialogue for working class men and the same is true here, with a decent script that zips along.

The Bank Job is the kind of enjoyable romp that Ealing Studios were making at the time the film was set but just as you think you have it figured out, the film erupts into violence, wrong footing you, but in a good way as you're not sure what to expect next.

Despite all my expectations to the contrary, I enjoyed this and you could do worse than give it a look.