Bandits takes it to the bank
by Michael Kraft, entertainment editor

    Bank-robber films are getting stale. The best ones take place in the old West, and there have been very few good ones today.

    Bandits, a new movie starring Bruce Willis and Billy-Bob Thornton, combines the successful elements of these films with new inter-personal themes.

    The film is about Joe (Willis) and Terry (Thornton).

    They are two bank robbers trapped in a bank during a standoff with the police. They are arguing and Terry urges Joe to remember what really put them in this scrape: the woman, Kate (Cate Blanchett).

    The story is then revealed as a series of flashbacks starting with an amazing daylight prison break. Not 30 minutes after breaking out, the two have robbed a bank.

    That night, after inviting themselves into a home populated by two teens (the parents are away), they discuss their plans for the future. They agree to buy and run a resort, as partners, located in Mexico and decide to fund the operation by robbing banks.

    Terry tells Joe about his new plan for robbing banks. It involves taking the bank manager hostage the night before and then using him to open the safe before anybody else gets there. No cops, no tellers, no customers, just clean and fast.

    Then, after bringing Joe’s cousin, Harvey, played by Troy Gari-ty, aboard as frontman and driver, the duo assume a variety of bi-zarre disguises and begin a crime spree from Oregon through California.

    All is going well, but then with a crash, Kate enters the picture. Her entrance is more of a thud, really, as she nearly kills Terry when she hits him with her car.

    He tries to carjack her after he comes to, but she is so distraught and emotionally volatile over her life that she refuses to give in to him.

    Joe is not happy about her, but since he doesn’t want her to run to the cops, he figures she can stay for a little while. Of course, she winds up tagging along with the crew after she and Joe have a short fling and he falls for her.

    Terry is not happy, but after a car crash and close call with the police, he is forced to escape with her as Joe and Harvey escape with the money.

    Inevitably, Terry and Kate have an encounter, and he falls for her too.

    At the rendezvous, Terry and Joe get into many conflicts over Kate. They fight, they shout, they do things because they each want her and can’t share.

    She refuses to choose because she sees them differently. Joe is headstrong, decisive and handsome while Terry is brilliant, sensitive and funny. She says they make the perfect man when they’re together.

    She leaves because she hates to see them fight. They get in contact with her and promise it will all be over after “one last, big score.”

    I won’t spoil the ending, but suffice to say, it was great.

    The movie introduced a new dynamic into the genre because it was not just about the action of robbing banks. It was more about the interpersonal relationships and the troubles thereof.

    Bandits is a very good film. The only rub was that the film seemed to bog after Terry and Kate reunite with Joe and Harvey.

    The romantic conflict seemed real, but it didn’t have the quick pace of the rest of the film, so it felt slower. It quickly picks up though and the ending is absolutely incredible.

    It definitely is a feel-good movie and will leave audiences satisfied.