Please don't spend money on this.

I really wanted to like this movie. I feel terribly cynical trashing it, and that's why I'm giving it a middling 5. Actually, I'm giving it a 5 because there were some superb performances.

Worth seeing just to witness how winsome it is.

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

Thief Mike Daniels (Albert Finney) plans to break into the biggest bank in England for one last haul. His team sets up a false office in order to interview architects with the idea they can coax the suitable candidate into mapping out their underground digging job. Down-on-his-luck American Stephen Booker (Martin Sheen) seems to be the ideal candidate for the job, but he scoffs at the idea of being a criminal. That is until he finds out his wife (Susannah York) reallllly wants to start up her interior decorating business. OH NOES! So he descends (literally) into a life of crime in order to finance her dream. The "loophole" of the title refers to the fact they will break into the vault through the ground and set off a motion detector, but when the cops arrive they will see no one inside the bank and think it is glitch. I'm a sucker for bank heist pictures for some reason and this one definitely falls into that category. Unfortunately, while it has a great cast and is well made, it really takes no risks. There is some tension in the final third as rain starts to flood the sewer system and the men must rush to get out, but even that is handled rather mundanely. Sheen also sticks out like a sore thumb and it is easy to believe the role was written for a British fellow (his wife is a Brit after all) and then changed to an American to increase potential markets. Still, it is worth a look at least once if you loves you some men digging in confined spaces.

LOOPHOLE is one of those bank heist thrillers that were all the rage in the late '70s and early '80s. Other worthy additions to this sub-genre of filmmaking include SEWERS OF GOLD and A NIGHTINGALE SANG IN BERKELEY SQUARE. This one's a little slower-paced than those, a little grittier too; it's more of a character piece, with Martin Sheen's protagonist getting plenty of back story in particular. The heist itself doesn't occur until the climax, but it is very well portrayed with a maximum of suspense. Another highlight is the supporting cast, made up of familiar character actors, all of whom do their bit; watch out for Albert Finney and the likes of Jonathan Pryce in an early role.

"Loophole" is a disappointingly dull, visually unappealing caper movie. I can recommend it only to genre addicts. The characters are anonymous and cold; you don't connect with them, so you don't care what will happen to them. Still, this minor picture isn't really bad...until its really LOUSY finale. Without revealing it, I can say that the "solution" the screenwriter finds to the characters' problems shows offensive incompetence on his part. The ending (presented as a twist) is simply unacceptable and I can't believe that these respectable actors agreed to play in a film that ended is such a LOUSY way.

LOOPHOLE has a nifty concept that sounds too good to be true, yet impossible. The unemployed American architect (Sheen) comes to England to devise a plan on robbing the safe from under the city sewers at a British bank. It actually works until.... Along the line, it's more of an adventure than a crime film, but with stars such as Albert Finney and Martin Sheen, don't get too excited about it. This really isn't your typical "bad guy" movie, rather it is tame and subtle. Both actors in their time were known to perform in novelish dramatic roles that appealed mostly to the adult crowd, so there's no modern class here, but maybe Susannah York's towel dropping scene might grab your attention. The end is peculiar and uncertain, right after you've gone through seeing a successful heist well done. All in all, an interesting movie, but if early 80s dramatic acting performances isn't your cup of tea, then you will find LOOPHOLE to be pretty boring.