The Bank Job (2008)

Director:

Roger Donaldson

Writers (WGA):

Dick Clement (written by) &
Ian La Frenais (written by)

Release Date:

7 March 2008 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

The true story of a heist gone wrong... in all the right ways.

Plot:

Martine offers Terry a lead on a foolproof bank hit on London's Baker Street. She targets a roomful of safe deposit boxes worth millions in cash and jewelry. But Terry and his crew don't realize the boxes also contain a treasure trove of dirty secrets - secrets that will thrust them into a deadly web of corruption and illicit scandal.

Plot Keywords:

Bank | Safe Deposit | Murder | Pornographer | Extortion

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Jason Statham	...	Terry Leather
Saffron Burrows	...	Martine Love
Stephen Campbell Moore	...	Kevin Swain
Daniel Mays	...	Dave Shilling
James Faulkner	...	Guy Singer
Alki David	...	Bambas
Michael Jibson	...	Eddie Burton
Georgia Taylor	...	Ingrid Burton
Richard Lintern	...	Tim Everett
Peter Bowles	...	Miles Urquart
Alistair Petrie	...	Philip Lisle
Hattie Morahan	...	Gale Benson
Julian Lewis Jones	...	Snow
Andrew Brooke	...	Quinn
Rupert Frazer	...	Lord Drysdale

Also Known As:

Baker Street (UK) (working title)
D-Notice (UK) (working title)
The Bank Job (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

111 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

Ireland:15A | UK:15 | USA:R (certificate #43693) | Portugal:M/16 | Canada:13+ (Québec) | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia/Ontario) | Finland:K-15 | Norway:15 | Malaysia:18PL (cut) | Singapore:R21 | Germany:12 | Brazil:16 | Philippines:R-13 (MTRCB) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Australia:MA | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R16 | South Korea:15 | Argentina:13 | Japan:PG-12 | Denmark:11 | Austria:16 | South Africa:16LV | Singapore:M18 (edited version) | Iceland:16 | Mexico:B15 | Peru:14

Filming Locations:

Aldwych Underground Station, Aldwych, Holborn, London, England, UK

Company:

Mosaic Media Group

Trivia:

Roger Donaldson said one of the most difficult days of filming was when he filmed the brothel scene. The scene called for the women to be walking around wearing only garters. However, Donaldson said that when he went to film the scene he discovered that most of the women shaved their genitals, which would have been anachronistic for 1971. So the actresses had to wear pubic wigs called "merkins." This caused a problem because the merkins were hard to secure in place and kept slipping, causing Donaldson much aggravation.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: Paddington station is shown as restored with new British Rail signs. In 1971, the station would have been rather dirty from the steam days and many of the main signs would have still been original. Also, the train carriage is of 1973 vintage.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Eddie Burton: [while drilling a mileage meter back] Another Terry Leather low mileage here.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Siskel & Ebert & the Movies: (2008-03-01)" (2008)

Soundtrack:

Save Me

The Best Heist Movie In Years

I expected this movie to be somewhat entertaining, and maybe a bit cheesy. After all, it's not difficult to muck up a heist movie. However, this film gets it all right. The acting is top notch, the story is not only engaging and clever but TRUE (!), and the experience of seeing it is thoroughly enjoyable.

The only complaints I have of the film are that the characters do get a little cheeky from time to time (but hey, they're British, so it's kind of expected), and there's a couple flashbacks/lapses in time that are initially confusing - although everything is clearly laid out about halfway through. Want to see a good movie? Check this one out!