Bandits is a fun film high on average laughs and low on most other things, although I thought Cate Blanchett's performance was pretty good, and actually Billy Bob Thornton was hilarious. Bruce Willis does his usual cool act. The story isn't too deep, so don't watch this if you want something thats going to make you think, but it is definitely an amusing premise, and the odd clever moments serve well enough to raise extra smiles. The direction from Barry Levinson is interesting, but really it's just average stuff, no bounderies are pushed, nothing too daring is attempted. Overall there isn't really much to this, but who cares? It's just for fun. Kick back after a hard days work and just enjoy this entertaining flick.
Bandits
2001
Action / Comedy / Crime / Drama / Romance
Bandits
2001
Action / Comedy / Crime / Drama / Romance
Plot summary
After escaping from prison, Joe and Terry go on a crime spree, robbing banks through Oregon and California in order to finance their scheme for a new life south of the border. Unfortunately, things get more complicated when they meet Kate, who runs into them with her car. She joins the bandits on their cross-country spree, and eventually she steals something, too: their hearts.
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
March 17, 2016 at 03:52 AM
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Fun, just to relax to.
Very entertaining and quite original
I must admit, when I sat down to watch this film, I didn't expect much; I had seen a few trailers, maybe a TV-spot or two, but that's it. The only thing I knew about it was that it was a crime-comedy, and that Bruce Willis and Billy Bob Thornton portrayed the leads. I didn't think it would be so funny and thoroughly entertaining. The idea is somewhat original, though slightly derivative of movies like Bonnie and Clyde. The plot is very good; it details the various bank-robberies of two very different partners in crime. The pace is very good too, though I found parts of the last half hour of film somewhat dragging. The acting is great; Bruce Willis is great as the aggressive and determined robber, Billy Bob Thornton does a great job as the hypochondriac and very nervous robber, and Cate Blanchett gives a great performance as the slightly neurotic hostage who eventually falls in love with both robbers. The characters are well-written and credible. The comedy, crime and drama was well-integrated, and well-done. I didn't care too much for the romance angle, though, but, for what it's worth, it's not a bad one, and definitely not the worst I've seen. The actors have great on-screen chemistry, and they are well-casted. I liked the way the story was told; it left you thinking that you were merely following the events leading up to the end, but then, during the last few minutes, there is an excellent twist, which took me entirely by surprise, and made a great ending for a great film. Considering that the film is a PG-13 rated, two-hour long comedy which deals with crime, and has some drama integrated in it, it's really good. It's very funny, entertaining, and original. The humor is well-done, rarely falls flat, and mostly works great in the film. I liked that they mostly dodged stereotypes and cliches, instead of wallowing in them, like many other comedies nowadays do. I recommend it to fans of comedies, crime related films and dramas. To a lesser extent, it's also recommendable to fans of romance. Most general movie fans should also enjoy this, at least to some extent. 7/10
"In the history of bad ideas, this is a humdinger".
You would expect the team up of Bruce Willis, Billy Bob Thonton and Cate Blanchett to be pretty good, and "Bandits" has it's moments, but you sure have to disengage from some of the less plausible elements of the story to make it work. Like the character of Joe Blake's (Willis) cousin Harvey (Troy Garrity). Didn't he quit the bank robbery business at some point along the way as he tried to pick up his dream girl hitchhiker? But there he was in the thick of things at the finale. So did he quit just to fool the audience, with Joe and Terry (Thornton) in on the ruse? I didn't get that, and I'm not going back to try and figure it out.
But I generally liked the chemistry between Willis and Billy Bob. I don't know if throwing Blanchett into the mix was all that valuable or necessary. The other two palookas could have managed their bank heist without her being around. The love triangle really didn't work for me, once again referring to those less plausible elements I referenced earlier.
The twist ending following the opening set up was pretty clever though. Not really buying it, but it did manage to extend a bit of misdirection offered by 'Criminals At Large'. If I can get my hands on a better quality print of the flick than the one I watched, I just might be up for a second viewing. In the meantime, I'll come away reasonably satisfied with the first pass, but without a glowing recommendation.