Wonderful character development!

brilliant actors, brilliant editing

A Brilliant Conflict

There's a more than satisfactory amount of boom-boom in the movie's trim running time.

I found this film a lot of fun and very enjoyable. I've again read reviews and there are some people who pan this fim. I also read that even Will Poulter who starred in the film regretted doing it though I don't know why, I've seen many far worse films than this one. If you like action/crime films, this shouldn't disappoint ... if it does then you're hard to please. It's even based on a true story apparently.

A group of white collar college student criminals led by the charismatic Sam (smoothly played by Ed Speleers) live high on the hog by stealing credit cards and identities from rich folks. The group find themselves in a serious bind after they inadvertently cross sadistic crime boss Marcel (a nicely ruthless portrayal by Thomas Kretschmann), who forces them to come up with a payment of two million dollars in two weeks time or else. While director/co-writer Julian Gilbey keeps the reasonably enjoyable story moving along at a brisk pace, brings a cool slick style to the proceedings, and stages an exciting climatic shootout with flair and skill, he nonetheless crucially fails to generate much in the way of tension and lets the plot become more increasingly preposterous as it unfolds. Moreover, the spoiled and arrogant thief protagonists are decidedly less than likeable and appealing due to the lack of any essential deep characterization. On the plus side, foxy blonde Emma Rigby looks absolutely smashing in a bikini, Alfie Allen smarms it up well as shifty rotten apple Yatesey, and Graham McTavish amuses as a horny diamond broker. Both Chad Hobson's pulsating score and Peter Wignall's glossy widescreen cinematography are up to speed. An okay diversion.

Reel Score: 4.3-4.6/10 Not really a bad film but the reviews here are 5.9/10 which must be a joke. So giving a 4/10 lowers it. But on a given day, I could even give it a 5/10 which is still below average (5-6) for me. Given it's a film from UK, that's not good news since there are plenty of solid films coming from the British Isles lately.It's hard to find something really likable about this film other than Frankie played by Emma Rigby. Alfie Allen who plays Yatesey is a bright spot. The extra nuts in the private jet was actually a bit funny, but there wasn't much to laugh about for the entire film except laughing at it. The film claims to be base on a real story but it's about 95% fictionalized except for the car crash taken from Graff Diamonds Robbery which was UK's largest in 2009. Other from that, there are no justified claims of reality. Acting is average, script is weak. We are supposed to believe a group of young men who can barely grow facial hair are responsible for raking in cash from a sophisticated fraud ring before trying to pull off a major heist. It's rather simplistic, aiming at a young audience. Speed, sex, violence are all part of the unoriginal formula. It's like a teenage horror film meets Ocean's Eleven.There are dozens of better capers and this film doesn't fall among them. Still, it's passable if you have nothing better to do as it's not horrible, but it does fall short.

I went into this movie without much preknowledge about it. A bunch of college students cover their student loans by doing scams with credit cards. One day they trick the wrong person and a crime boss urges them to pay their debt of 2 million dollars in 2 weeks. That is the basic setup from where the film draws its suspense and interest. I have to say it kind of fails to deliver, though. The beginning does a good job of filling in the characters and is enjoyable. The characters seem to follow the typical role prototypes. Camera direction is competent, there are very beautiful shots, and the few action scenes are not bad. On a side note, Emma Rigby looks gorgeous in here, although she has a very barbie-like vibe going on. The thought crossed my mind that the movie title actually fit her best... The actual heist they are planning is a lackluster. In the end, you realize that it is actually dumb, and there are some major plot holes involved. There are moment where you scratch your head wondering how dumb the characters act. There are tons of alternatives with better script, story and acting. Nevertheless, if you are in the mood for a lightly fun little heist movie, you may watch it. You won't miss something, though.