SERIOUSLY. This is what the crap Hollywood still puts out?

A Brilliant Conflict

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

Bandits (2001) is a movie of many genres. It's got some comedic material, action, romance, and some drama too. It's about 2 infamous bank robbers and a woman who they meet along the way. It stars Bruce Willis, Billy Bob Thornton, and Cate Blanchett. The film is done very well overall. Good writing, very good performances all around, and good chemistry between the three leads. The romance comes into play as a sort of love triangle between Blanchett, Willis, and Thornton. It's interesting because the characters are developed well, they have a certain depth to them. If you think this movie will be all action because it's about bank robbers and centers on crime, then you've got it wrong. The action aspect of the movie doesn't make up a lot of time, it's mostly a character based movie, it focuses on these pretty damaged people and tells their story as robbers and what all they go through. The film is very entertaining and it definitely keeps your attention the entire way through. If you want a film that focuses on well developed characters, has a little romance, and crime mixed in as well... then you'll probably like this one. 8/10 for Bandits.

Joe Blake (Bruce Willis) and Terry Lee Collins (Billy Bob Thornton) are a bank robbing team. They break out of prison and come up with a different scheme. This time around they kidnap the bank managers and rob the bank before it opens. They become known as The Sleepover Bandits. Everything is going well until bored housewife Kate Wheeler (Cate Blanchett) runs over Terry.This should be much better than it actually is. It has veteran director Barry Levinson, and great actors. But something is missing. There is a lack of energy. There is action but they're shot weakly. There are jokes but they lack the punch. Maybe they needed a real comedian in one of three lead roles. The three leads are great actors who sometimes do a few jokes in their roles. They aren't actually comedians.

Two convicts escape prison during a dastardly spontaneous break. Joe Blake (Bruce Willis), with charm and sex-appeal to spare, leads the duo into a series of bank robberies, however the brains behind the operation is Terry Lee Collins (Billy Bob Thronton), a hypochondriac with a subversive knack for stealing. After conceptualising the ploy to kidnap bank managers at their home the day before a heist, thus giving them access to the bank vault prior to its opening, the enter into a highly successful spree which gives them country-wide prominence. Blake cousin Harvey Pollard (Troy Garity) completes the team of robbers, functioning as the heist middleman and getaway driver. The situation however complicates itself when an dissatisfied housewife Kate Wheeler (Cate Blanchett), suicidally saddened by her husband's lack of interest, ends up a willing hostage of the three robbers, soon becoming a lover of both Joe and Terry...Hilarious, often through subtlety, not straight forward humour, "Bandits" turns several premises on its head, offering a well-conceived robbery ploy which simultaneously functions as a great instrument for comedic content. Although Willis is invariably himself the show is truly stolen by Billy Bob Thornton, whose quirky nervous character is revelatory offering apt space for him to present his comedic attributes. At times keeping the story simple and close to the audience, it nonetheless manages to bring about twists that are both ingenious and uncontrived. Features several absolutely charming scenes, including the most peculiar dance in memory.

I enjoyed it epically the first time I saw and, I still haven't gotten tired of all its charms. Bandits is almost adorable. It takes us on a breezy ride of crime and comedy, up and down the US west coast with killer one liners, witty dialogue, in addition to soundtrack which features more great hits than any five movies combined, including some Bob Dylan, some Bonnie Tyler, some Robert Plant, some U2 and many others. But seriously, don't get the soundtrack, get the movie.When the curtain rises, The 'Sleepover Bandits' Joe Blake and Terry Collins, have screwed up a major bank robbery and are now trapped inside surrounded by the LAPD, the Swat and hundred of press. We then flash back several months to when the two break out of prison in Oregon. Once on the loose they form a plan to escape into Mexico and run a hotel. But first, they have to rob a lot of banks. Thinks are going well at first until a big bump in the road appears. Kate Wheeler is running away from her miserable life, she runs into the Bandits, who make her a hostage, but both fall in love with her, and while she is having the time of her life on the run with these guys, she may also be the straw that breaks the camels back and ends Joe and Terry's friendship.From the first scene it is established that Kate was the one who tipped of the cops, and is the reason why the two are trapped in the bank. The Journey towards this particular moment however, is wild. The romantic element is funny, the crime element is funny, and the comedic element is especially funny. These Bandits turn out to be likable guys, We end up rooting for them, even though they may occasionally get childish and immature. Bruce Willis is not a funny guy, but here he plays almost a satire of himself. We are used to seeing him as a ruffian. Billy Bob Thornton is very funny, and because of his character's hypochodria, he gets to deliver some of the best lines in the movie. Bandits also offers what may Cate Blanchett's most adorable role. This must've been a fun movie to act in.There is a lot more worth saying about Bandits, but I don't wanna over sell it. You really have to see it for yourselves.