In this gallery, we will go through the greatest bank robbery movies ever made. From the streets of London, to Los Angeles, we will go through the best heists that have taken place and who made these possible.
Point Break (1991)
One of The Hurt Locker director Kathryn Bigelow’s earlier titles, an absolutely fantastic spiritual journey of non-stop adrenaline with skydiving and surfing from beginning to end with some excellent bank robberies. It stars Keanu Reeves as special agent Johnny Utah of the FBI who is tasked with taking down a notorious gang of bank robbing surfers known as “The Ex Presidents” for their unique use of Presidential masks and quotes during their ninety second robberies. This is a fantastic film from beginning to end with use of great scenery and adrenaline sequences that capture your attention, along with an all star cast of Keanu Reeves, Patrick Swayze, Gary Busey, Lori Petty, and John C. Mcginley.
The Town (2010)
As usual, director Ben Affleck does not disappoint. Telling the story about four lifelong friends in Charlestown, Boston, who live their day to day lives as bank robbers. Everything was going fine during a routine bank robbery, until they took a hostage and decided to release her. Doug (Affleck) decides to see if the witness knows anything, but ultimately falls in love with her much to the dismay of his friend Jem (Renner). This is a must see for all lovers of bank robbery movies as it features excellent cinematography, as well as an excellent cast of Ben Affleck, Jeremy Renner, Blake Lively, and Pete Postlethwaite, Rebecca Hall, and Mad Men’s own Jon Hamm.
Dog-Day Afternoon (1975)
An absolute classic for avid fans of bank robbery movies, director Sidney Lumet successfully captures the essence of hostage negotiation and crisis management through an all out battle of the minds. Al Pacino stars as Sonny Wortzik alongside John Cazale starring as Sal Naturale as they portray one of the longest hostage standoffs in American history. With a simple plan in mind that goes awry, Sonny and Sal must survive against the wits of the police department and the employees of the bank. Lumet is excellent at capturing the emotions experienced by every individual, it is a non-stop encapsulating tale of good v.s. evil from start to finish.
Public Enemies (2009)
Michael Mann sets the scene in 1930’s America during the rise and fall of public enemy number one, John Dillinger played by Johnny Depp. Through this good v.s. evil all out battle through a series of bank robberies and the glamorous lifestyle of America’s most wanted man. With this comes an excellent supporting cast of Christian Bale, Marion Cotillard, Channing Tatum, Stephen Lang, Jason Clarke, and Stephen Graham. Mann successfully tells the story through excellent plot twists and a series of phenomenal action packed bank robbery scenes .
The Bank Job (2008)
Director Roger Donaldson tells the epic tail of one of the most notorious heists in British history through a pile of political scandals and gang enforcement. We see and feel the emotions of protagonist Terry (Jason Statham), a struggling car salesman who is coerced by an old friend to perpetrate the heist of a series of safety deposit boxes in London. With this Donaldson is excellent in showing the chaos that ensues when Terry is forced to either run or face his new fate. An excellent film for all lovers of bank robbery movies. Check out the trailer!
Hard Rain (1998)
One of the greatest crime-disaster films out there. This film tells the story of an armoured truck driver named Tom (Christian Slater) who with his uncle Charlie (Edward Asner) is tasked with transferring the last amount of money from the local town’s bank after severe flooding. Upon getting stuck, they are met by a gang of criminals led by the ruthless Jim (Morgan Freeman) who wants to rob them of the money, after an ensuing struggle in which Tom gains the upper hand and takes the money, it turns into a game of cat and mouse…who will survive? this movie is not only great because of the cast including Randy Quaid, Minnie Driver, and Betty White, but also because of the non-stop action and cliff-hanger scenes.
Heat (1995)
As usual, Michael Mann doesn’t disappoint. Giving us one of the greatest stories ever about a gang of ex-cons led Neil McCauley (Robert Deniro), who rob banks and armoured trucks before selling them to their contact played by the legendary Jon Voight. Problems arise for the group when they are being investigated by veteran LAPD detective Vincent Hanna played by the immortal Al Pacino as well as having one of their former members, Waingro waging a war against them. Mann is excellent at showing the dynamic between the two characters who come to understand one another as well as excellent bank robbery scenes that show both sides battling it out.
Inside Man (2006)
Director Spike Lee directs this masterpiece telling the story in Media Res from the point of the main protagonist and burglar Dalton Russell (Clive Owen) who plans to execute the perfect bank robbery by robbing a series of safety deposit boxes in a Manhattan Bank. Things go awry when the police show up with Detective Frazier (Denzel Washington) taking lead on negotiations along with fixer Madeline White (Jodie Foster). With plenty of action sequences and a wealthy villain, how can you go wrong?
Swordfish (2001)
Dominic Sena directs this adrenaline packed adventure with an all star cast of Hugh Jackman, John Travolta, Vinnie Jones, Don Cheadle, and Halle Berry. Jackman stars as Stanley Jobson, a disgraced hacker who has been separated from his daughter, thinking all is lost until he is approached by Ginger (Berry) who has an offer from her boss Gabriel (Travolta). What begins as simple slowly turns into anarchy with all of Los Angeles in fear. With this comes a series of great action scenes and slow motion explosion scenes .
The Italian Job (2003)
A remake of the 1969 classic with the immortal Michael Caine. This remake starring Mark Wahlberg as protagonist Charlie, avenging his friend and mentor John’s (Donald Sutherland) death from an old crew member who left them for dead and took thirty five million dollars worth of gold from them. With this he teams up with a star-studded crew consisting of Jason Statham, Charlize Theron, Mos Def, and Seth Green for some excellent car chase sequences and action scenes. A must see for all lovers of bank robbery movies.
What is your favourite?
