HTF BLU-RAY REVIEW: The Bank Job - Recommended

Kevin EK · 07-19-2008, 01:48 AM

Blu-ray Disc REVIEW

THE BANK JOB
BLU-RAY 2-DISC SPECIAL EDITION

Studio: Lionsgate
Film Year: 2008
Film Length: 1 hour 50 minutes
Genre: Heist Thriller

Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1

BD Resolution: 1080p
BD Video Codec: AVC @ over 25 mbps (on average)
Color/B&W: Color

Audio:

English 7.1 DTS HD Master Audio (@ over 2.5 mbps on average)

French Dolby Digital

Subtitles: English, English SDH, Spanish

Film Rating: R (Sexuality, Violence, Language)

Release Date: July 15, 2008

Film Rating: 4/5

Starring: Jason Statham, Saffron Burrows, Stephen Campbell Moore, Daniel Mays and David Suchet

Written by Dick Clement & Ian La Frenais
Directed by: Roger Donaldson

The Bank Job is a thrilling take on a 1971 bank vault heist in England. Directed by Roger Donaldson (Smash Palace and Thirteen Days) in top form, and starring a relatively quiet Jason Statham, the film puts the viewer in the midst of a group of very low level criminals who are handed the job of breaking into the safe deposit vault of a temporarily unsecured bank (the motion sensors are off). The first half of the film is an exhilarating ride, as the excitement of the heist builds and the proceedings are appropriately upbeat. The second half of the film ratchets up the tension as the little group realizes who it is on both sides of the law they are stealing from. Without spoiling any details, I can safely say it’s a thoroughly entertaining film, with solid performances and a tight rock-oriented score. Fans of Jason Statham get to see his most layered performance to date, although I should note no film of his is complete without at least one good head-breaking scene, and this movie does not disappoint on that count.

The Bank Job was released on standard definition DVD and Blu-ray on the same day. The special features are identical between the releases, but the Blu-ray release has a superior 1080p AVC transfer with 7.1 DTS HD sound, with deleted scenes presented in 1080i HD. If you have the choice between the two editions, I absolutely recommend going with the Blu-ray for the picture and sound. And I’m delighted to recommend this film for anyone looking for a great diversion and a solid thriller.

VIDEO QUALITY: 4/5

The Bank Job is presented in a 1080p AVC transfer that averages over 25 mbps and shows an impressive depth of detail and texture. The 70’s setting allows the HD cameras to focus on everything from an assortment of paisley outfits and heavy coats to the bucketfuls of dirt and concrete that the robbers pile up as they tunnel into the vault. At the same time, the various makeups and hairpieces blend well enough that they don’t call attention to themselves, even under the higher definition of detail.

AUDIO QUALITY: 4/5

The Bank Job is presented in a 2.5 mbps 7.1 DTS HD Master Audio mix in English and a 5.1 Dolby Digital mix in French. Between the music and the heavy machinery at work in the heist, this is a full-throated mix, with plenty of surround effects and a fairly good workout for the subwoofer. This mix is a genuine pleasure to hear. The one issue here is that some of the dialogue can be a bit hard to understand, given the British dialects – but I have to be fair and account that to my own inability to discern the accents rather than to a problem with the mix.

SPECIAL FEATURES: 3 ½/5 ½

The Blu-Ray presentation of The Bank Job includes all the special features from the standard definition release, but with the added bonus that the deleted scenes are presented in 1080i and the various trailers are presented in 1080p.

Commentary with Roger Donaldson, Saffron Burrows and composer J. Peter Robinson – This scene-specific group commentary feels like a group of friends sitting in the room next to the viewers. The discussion ranges from the actual bank heist on which the film is based to the various fashions on display to the choices of scoring. It’s an interesting track, but I’d recommend being very familiar with the film and the real events before turning it on – it feels a bit more helpful once you already have a grasp on the facts at hand.

Inside The Bank Job (16:44) (480p, Anamorphic) – This is a light but informative piece about the making of the film, using the usual combination of interviews, film clips, and on set video. The cast, director and producers discuss the origin of the story and how they set out to make a Jason Statham film that gave him something with a bit more range to it. There’s a brief discussion of the HD aspect of the shoot, namely that it made the makeup work a bit trickier. Roger Donaldson discusses how he worked on the casting and the story revisions, and pretty much every cast member has something complimentary to say about Donaldson or the project in general.

The Baker Street Raid (14:53) (480p, Anamorphic) – This featurette focuses on the actual 1971 raid, including interviews with a former MI5 agent, a reporter, and the real person who recorded the robbers’ real walkie-talkie conversations through his ham radio. There’s some fun stuff here, particularly the reporter dismissing the whole idea of the film’s plot while the MI5 agent is admitting that the plot is indeed possible.

Deleted Scenes – (6:15 total) (1080i MPEG 2) – This is more of a collection of scene extensions than actual scenes, with an optional commentary track available with Donaldson, Burrows and Richardson pointing out that the extensions contain repeated or unnecessary information. (This collection is not complete – as Donaldson admits on the feature commentary.)

Trailer (2:31) (1080p MPEG 2) – The original theatrical trailer is presented here in full 1080p.

Previews – A series of trailers are presented in 1080p HD and can be accessed via this menu. They are, in order, Bangkok Dangerous, The Forbidden Kingdom, Rambo, War and Crank. These previews are also presented when the disc is first played, before the disc starts up the menu mode.

There are two additional features to be discussed. First, there is a second disc in the package, containing a digital copy of the film that can be offloaded onto a Mac or a PC. Second, there is a bookmarking feature available.

The usual pop-up menu bar is present and can be accessed during the film, although it is difficult to move out of the featurettes once they start. (I wound up just chaptering ahead to leave before the end.) There is a thorough chapter list. The film itself is subtitled in English and Spanish, but no subtitles are available for the special features.

IN THE END...

The Bank Job is a completely entertaining heist film, and the fun is certainly enhanced by the higher definition picture and sound available on this Blu-ray disc. I recommend it not only to fans of Jason Statham, but anyone that enjoys a good well-executed thriller.

Kevin Koster
July 18, 2007.

Paul Hillenbrand · 07-19-2008, 11:32 AM

Thanks for the review Kevin.

Viewed the movie "The Bank Job" (blu-ray) for the first time last Thursday and I have to say that what is lacking in action is made up for in the suspense and it kills you. You can't leave that movie without knowing what's going to happen.

I'm recommending it to my friends.

Paul

Paul Hillenbrand · 07-20-2008, 04:59 PM

Have to add - There are some similar details between "The Bank Job" and "The Dark Knight".

A much better movie than I expected, and it's about a true story that happened in the UK.

Paul

Ron-P · 07-20-2008, 05:16 PM

Bought it blind, and really enjoyed it. Highly recommended.

Edwin-S · 07-20-2008, 09:43 PM

Just as a note, under video you have youth with out youth rather than The Bank Job. Search and replace must have missed the titles. The rest looks fine.

Also, I agree with your assessment of the film. It was a pretty good period piece caper film. The kind that you don't see very often anymore. I don't think it got near enough love in its theatrical run. There is another thing that I liked about this film. It got its points across without having to resort to overly graphic violence. The director actually did something that few directors seem to do enough of nowadays. He allowed viewers to use their own imaginations to fill in some of the blanks.

**HTF Ads**

Kevin EK · 07-21-2008, 12:51 AM

Thanks Edwin. Sorry about that. I build my reviews on the templates of old ones, and rewrite all the relevant sections from within, rather than rebuilding the template from scratch each time. I missed one this time.

Everyone I've talked to that actually saw the movie really liked it. It's just hard to get people past the image of Jason Statham smacking people around. I've had to explain that he only does that briefly here, and that the movie is really about something totally different...

Edwin-S · 07-21-2008, 02:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kevin EK

Thanks Edwin. Sorry about that. I build my reviews on the templates of old ones, and rewrite all the relevant sections from within, rather than rebuilding the template from scratch each time. I missed one this time.

Everyone I've talked to that actually saw the movie really liked it. It's just hard to get people past the image of Jason Statham smacking people around. I've had to explain that he only does that briefly here, and that the movie is really about something totally different...

Yes, I figured that you must do something like that. I would think it would get pretty tedious for you to reformat everything from scratch, especially with the number of reviews that you produce.

In regards to Jason Statham. It is funny that people basically think of him as a headbreaker, especially considering that when he starred in Snatch he hardly laid a finger on anyone. In fact, he spent more time trying to avoid trouble, just unsuccessfully. He is capable of doing action and otherwise, but he seems to have become typecast in people's minds.

His character in this movie, in some ways, reminds me of his earlier turn in Snatch.

Ron Reda · 07-21-2008, 09:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Edwin-S

His character in this movie, in some ways, reminds me of his earlier turn in Snatch.

IMO, that can only be a good thing! Speaking of which, when is Snatch coming to BR? I would have Sony would have released that one already!

Mike Frezon · 07-21-2008, 10:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Edwin-S

In regards to Jason Statham. It is funny that people basically think of him as a headbreaker, especially considering that when he starred in Snatch he hardly laid a finger on anyone. In fact, he spent more time trying to avoid trouble, just unsuccessfully. He is capable of doing action and otherwise, but he seems to have become typecast in people's minds.

His character in this movie, in some ways, reminds me of his earlier turn in Snatch.

Count me as a Statham fan. I find him very charismatic on-screen and engaging. I certainly don't 'cast him solely as a head-banger. (In fact, a certain non-head-banging sequence in Crank comes to mind...

)

Missed this in the theater...so am looking forward to the disc. I figured this film to act as sort of an expansion of his Italian Job role.