The robbery goes ahead but not without its problems and they manage to get away. However things get nasty when it emerges that a Soho porn king/gangster also has incriminating evidence in the vault and things turn nasty as he tries to get it back.

The Good:

The script is based on a true story which always makes interesting viewing. It briefly made headlines and then disappeared due to a Government D notice, gagging the press for 30 years. This gives the film an air of mystery about it as we know we are watching things the Government and police would prefer us not to know about and a bit of scandal involving the Royal Family is always a winner and this (apart from Jason Statham) is what I think will mainly appeal to American audiences as they always seem interested in things to do with the British Monarchy.

The characters are fun and well liked. Jason Statham is in a role he seems very comfortable with. It is rather similar to the parts he had in Lock Stock and Snatch which had a down to earth realism about them. There are some rather heart warming scenes between him and his little girls including one where he is dancing with one at a friend's wedding. We do also get to see him in action as well and although his character is likable he still has that manly quality that appeals to both male and female audiences.

The other characters are also good, particularly the rather comedic Dave played by Daniel Mays and Saffron Burrows is well cast as a former model who gets caught up in scandal.

The film has a fun retro feel taking us back in time to 1970s London and its T-Rex theme tune will instantly catch you.

There are some pretty tense moments mixed in with some pretty good one liners that make the movie what it is. It isn't overly violent or over the top nor is it a comedy but what we do get is pretty well balanced.

The Bad:

As much as we love to see Jason Statham's fight scenes the one in this seemed a little silly as he was fighting someone a lot bigger than him and it was as if it was written in the film just because of who he is. There will be those on the other hand of cause who don't care who he was fighting, again because of who he is.

There was a sex scene between Jason Statham and Saffron Burrows cut from the film. This wouldn't have been a problem really if it hadn't been for a scene later on in the film when them having sex is referred to and the audience is meant to assume it happened after a kiss which we do see.

My View:

All in all The Bank Job is an enjoyable film which works well on many levels. It is pretty much a man's film but is not overly violent enough to put women off who will be attracted to the drama and scandal as it is a true story.

Running time: 2hr 2 mins.

Release Date: June 8, 2007

Also Staring:

• Ellen Barken
• Andy Garcia
• Don Cheadle
• Bernie Mac
• Eddie Jemison
• Shaobo Qin
• Casey Affleck
• Scott Caan
• Eddie Izzard

Go see “Ocean's 13” on matinee

This is an entertaining movie that won't waste your time or money. That being said, there is a ton of talent here and we could expect greater things from them. This movie falls victim to its own huge cast of great stars. They had to leave the women out of this film and keep Rubin (Gould's character) in bed for the whole film. Danny Ocean (Clooney) and Rusty Ryan (Pitt) are duplicates, not of each other, but they fill the same role in the film.

In order to have something to do they manufactured these little scenes that are supposed to be cute, like the crying at Opra thing, that really don't add much to the movie. Virgil and Turk Malloy are also duplicates but at least they have a couple funny scenes.

Carl Riener is still as solid as ever and though nothing really big hinges on his role he stands out amongst the others. Other noteworthy performances were by Ellen Barkin, Michael Mantell, (super) Dave Osborne and Ray Xifo-all small roles which the actors made stand out. My hat's off to them for shining amongst all the bright stars.

Enough about the Acting: What about the Plot?

Like the acting, the plot is good. Not amazing, just good. There isn't anything wrong with this film it just isn't fantastic. Seriously, go see it. You'll have fun.

What about the “PG-13” Rating?

There is nothing to worry about in this film. At its core, it's a movie about people who rip off a casino in Vegas. I don't think you could give it a G rating. Nothing really bad though.

The Larger Story:

It's touching that these guys pull together to defend a senior member of there group. They have always deferred to the two most senior members of their crew. As the baby boomers reach retirement and don't always retire I'm glad people are making movies like this.

The larger story issue is that of aging gracefully. What happens when Rocky gets old? What about the seniors that can't make it on their fixed income? What about industries like nursing where the median age of their workers is 55? What about the high rate of men who die within 2 years of retiring? Moving from the king of your ranch style tract home to sage of the Florida retirement village isn't an easy transition or even what God intends for us.

Aging is at the heart the Ocean movies. Ocean and Ryan are aging out of the role of King and into a Sage role. Linus is trying to earn his parents respect in a field they have excelled in.

In a sequel perhaps the best issue to deal with is this, “What do you do after you've won?” What does it look like to live happily ever after? These are issues close to home for many of us and this movie can stimulate some interesting conversations along these lines.