History Film / TheBankJob

A 2008 British crime thriller directed by Roger Donaldson and VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory, namely the 1971 Baker Street [[BankRobbery bank robbery]]. It stars Creator/JasonStatham, Creator/SaffronBurrows, and Creator/KeeleyHawes, along with half the supporting actors in Britain.

[[quoteright:270:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/bankjob.jpg]]

A 2008 British movie, VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory, namely the 1971 Baker Street [[BankRobbery bank robbery]]. Set in 1971, it stars Creator/JasonStatham, Saffron Burrows and Creator/KeeleyHawes, along with half the supporting actors in Britain.

* BadassCrew: Subverted. At first it appears as if Terry is assembling one of these, as is typical in heist films, but as it turns out some of them aren't very good at their jobs at all.

%% ZeroContextExample entries are not allowed on wiki pages. All such entries have been commented out. Add context to the entries before uncommenting them.

** Michael X claims early on that he's a political activist struggling against racial oppression. He's later seen bullying a businessman with death threats, and acts very much the gangster [[spoiler:including the moment he kills people he thinks are spying on him.]] Not to mention that one of his henchmen takes up with a white woman, the vet people they supposedly despise.

* BuriedAlive: [[spoiler: Gale's autopsy found dirt in her lungs, indicating that despite her injuries, she was still alive when she was placed in her grave.]]

* ContrivedCoincidence: MI5 is stuck post-robbery with the realization that the whole caper could go public and could get very messy for the people they were trying to protect. As luck would have it, Terry's crew also robbed the blackmail materials of a local madam, who convinces one of her victims - a Member of Parliament - to request a security hold on the press, giving MI5 the political cover to hush it all up.

* DeathBySex: [[spoiler: Dave Shilling, who dabbles in pornography, is the first of the gang to die. [[JustifiedTrope Arguably justified]], in that the man who has him killed only recognises him because he had been the one producing said films.]]
** [[spoiler: Gale, the MI5 operative, sleeps with a member of Michael X's crew as part of her cover. After the heist is reported, Michael's paranoia drives him to kill them both.]]
%%* DirtyCop: Take your pick, but mainly Gerald Pyke.
%%* FanService: a lot of it, much explicit.

* {{Hypocrite}} - Several of the characters, but Vogel deserves special mention:
--> Vogel: "I think drugs are responsible for the moral decay of this country."
** Michael X claims early on he's a political activist struggling against racial oppression. He's later seen bullying a businessman with death threats, and acts very much the gangster [[spoiler:including the moment he kills people he thinks are spying on him.]] Not to mention that one of his henchmen takes up with a white woman, the vet people they supposedly despise.
%%* TheInfiltration: Gale Benson. [[spoiler:It doesn't end well]].

* MacGuffin: Several different ones - the two sets of embarrassing photos, and Vogel's ledger book.

* ManlyTears: [[spoiler: Tim gets choked up when he sees Gale has been buried alive, as he was close to her]].

* PayEvilUntoEvil: [[spoiler: Terry [[KickThemWhileTheyAreDown kicking the living crap out of]] sixty-year-old, kidney-stone-ridden Vogel.]] "This one's for Dave!"

* TheSeventies - With a heavy dose of lingering TheSixties mixed in (the movie takes place in 1971).

%%* TooDumbToLive: Oh, Dave.

** Michael X claims early on he's a political activist struggling against racial oppression. He's later seen bullying a businessman with death threats, and acts very much the gangster [[spoiler:including the moment he kills people he thinks are spying on him.]]

* TheCrimeJob

* DirtyCop: Take your pick, but mainly Gerald Pyke.
* FanService: a lot of it, much explicit.
** LingerieScene
** NaughtyNurseOutfit (the porn film)
* FemmeFatale: Martine.

* TheInfiltration: Gale Benson. [[spoiler:It doesn't end well]].
* JurisdictionFriction

* LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters
* LoanShark: [[OnlyKnownByTheirNickname Pinky and Perky]].

* MalcolmXerox: Michael X. Very much lampshaded.

* ReformedCriminal: Terry Leather, at first.

* ScrewTheRulesIHaveMoney: Lew Vogel.

* TooDumbToLive: Oh, Dave.

* WhereDaWhiteWomenAt: Gale and Hakim Jamal.
* XanatosSpeedChess: Terry Leather is an expert at this.

A 2008 British movie, VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory, namely the 1971 Baker Street [[BankRobbery bank robbery]]. Set in 1971, it stars Creator/JasonStatham, Saffron Burrows and Creator/KeeleyHawes, along with half the HeyItsThatGuy actors in Britain.

* UsefulNotes/TheLondonUnderground

* FiveManBand: The crew that Terry recruits more-or-less fits the pattern:
** TheHero - Terry
** TheLancer - Kev
** TheBigGuy - Dave
** TheSmartGuy - Bambas/Guy
** TheChick - Martine
** TheSixthRanger - Eddie

* BuriedAlive: [[spoiler: Gale's autopsy found dirt in her lungs, indicating that despite her injuries, she was still alive when she was placed in her grave.

* HeyItsThatGuy: A ''lot''.
** A few from ''Series/AshesToAshes'': [[Creator/KeeleyHawes Alex Drake]] is Terry's wife Wendy, Jim Keats is Dave, and Evan White is Kevin.
** [[Series/LawAndOrderCriminalIntent Detective Serena Stevens]] is Martine.
** Elinor Dashwood from the '08 remake of ''Film/SenseAndSensibility'' is Gale Benson.
** Reverend Whistler from ''Sharpe's Honour'' is Lord Mountbatton.
** [[Series/{{Blackpool}} Shyanne Holden]] / [[Theatre/TheHistoryBoys Fiona]] is Ingrid.
** [[Series/{{Poirot}} Hercule Poirot]] is Soho porn king Vogel.
** Charisma from ''Series/LondonsBurning'' is Roy Given.
** Dan Sullivan of ''{{Eastenders}}'' is Nick.

[[quoteright:328:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/bankjob.jpg]]

* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: The movie goes out of the way to avoid naming specific RealLife figures especially among the Royals, who wouldn't be amused to be depicted in this movie given the theories it promotes about the reasons behind the bank robbery (and subsequent government hush-up). The only named Royal relative who makes a direct appearance in the movie is Lord Mountbatten, cousin to the Queen, most likely because his being dead since 1979 avoids any libel issues for the film-makers. Mountbatten is still shown in a bemused and benign light.

* VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory: Make that very, very loosely. It's true that there was a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baker_Street_robbery robbery at the Baker Street branch]] of Lloyds in 1971, there was a security hold placed on the story silencing the media, and several of the characters were real people (or at least clear fictionalizations of real people). But a lot of the plot elements (and a few major characters) are just conjecture/invention on the part of the filmmakers.

* VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory: Make that very, very loosely. It's true that there was a robbery at the Baker Street branch of Lloyds in 1971, there was a security hold placed on the story silencing the media, and several of the characters were real people (or at least clear fictionalizations of real people). But a lot of the plot elements (and a few major characters) are just conjecture/invention on the part of the filmmakers.

A 2008 British movie, VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory, namely the 1971 Baker Street [[BankRobbery bank robbery]]. Set in 1971, it stars Creator/JasonStatham, Saffron Burrows and KeeleyHawes, along with half the HeyItsThatGuy actors in Britain.

** A few from ''AshesToAshes'': [[KeeleyHawes Alex Drake]] is Terry's wife Wendy, Jim Keats is Dave, and Evan White is Kevin.
** [[LawAndOrderCriminalIntent Detective Serena Stevens]] is Martine.

** [[{{Blackpool}} Shyanne Holden]] / [[Theatre/TheHistoryBoys Fiona]] is Ingrid.

http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/bankjob.jpg

2008 British movie, VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory, namely the 1971 Baker Street [[BankRobbery bank robbery]]. Set in 1971, it stars Creator/JasonStatham, Saffron Burrows and KeeleyHawes, along with half the HeyItsThatGuy actors in Britain.

2008 British movie, VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory, namely the 1971 Baker Street [[BankRobbery bank robbery]]. Set in 1971, it stars JasonStatham, Saffron Burrows and KeeleyHawes, along with half the HeyItsThatGuy actors in Britain.

[[redirect:Main/TheBankJob]]