Looting pleasure

The phrase “based on true events” can apply to just about anything in Hollywood, from the Disney-fied “Pocahontas” to the esoteric romp “Across the Universe.” But if “The Bank Job” is any indication, British filmmakers take the claim a little more seriously.

The film features Jason Statham reprising the same role he’s played for the past decade: himself. Only this time he has to rob a London bank and get away before the mob, crooked cops and the British Secret Service catch up with him, all while enduring ’70s English pop. You may cringe, but remember we were championing disco here in the states.

The performances are what you’d expect from a caper ensemble cast; some solid, some lackluster, and the writing is tight enough to keep you from losing interest.

I got the feeling as the film played out that the creative team held the real thieves in high regard, and I worry that this may have kept them from telling real stories with the characters.

The ancillary members of the group who make it out end up rich and happy with their loved ones, with only a surface level marriage struggle between Statham’s character and his wife.

The other plotlines surrounding the heist are more about setting up obstacles for our ragtag band of outlaws than about creating a tangible world inhabited by complex people; so, the resolution wasn’t much more than a smug jeer at the bad guys getting what’s coming to them, while our heroes make away with their rightfully stolen goods.
   
What’s more interesting than the film is exploring the special features, which, while protecting the identities of the actual crooks, reveal how the writers and producers met with them to learn their story and plan the film.

If even half of what they claim is true, the British government will go to any lengths to protect the integrity of their royal family. The conflict between royalty as a symbol and the elected government as corruptly trying to preserve its station is interesting and I wish they’d done more with that subtext.

The film left me wishing they’d taken the same budget and made a History Channel documentary about the actual robbery. Jason Statham could narrate.