First of all, there is a lot to like about this film. It is tightly written, just about perfectly paced, and the cast is absolutely fantastic. The script provides a few really standout moments. Overall, it's a fun film.
Just don't think too hard about it. The original "big plan" actually works pretty well overall as an idea. The problems mostly stem from the "twist" when they have to improvise a new plan on extremely short notice. I can suspend a lot of disbelief for a film like this, but the absurdity of how they manage to pull it all off in the end completely blew my suspension of disbelief if I gave it even a couple seconds' thought, so it's a good thing the film moves pretty fast at that point so most of the audience won't think about it.
First of all, where did they get all the money to set up this gig? Minimum a few hundred thousand dollars in rented properties, vehicle purchases, expensive electronics, lots of other equipment, explosive, and information.
More importantly, where did they get (at the last minute) the new explosives that they didn't need for the original plan? (The original plan didn't call for blowing through massive amounts of concrete.) How did they know about and gain unrestricted, undetected access to the subway area where they set the explosives? How did they know exactly where to set the explosives (positionally)? Remember they had to take precise measurements with electronic devices to set the explosives in the Italian Job they were repeating. How did they even know what lane the armored car would be in, when there were multiple options? You can't control what lane it gets into via traffic lights.
Where did they get the massive piece of steel they dropped across the hole they blew? That's not the type of thing you can buy wholesale on a moment's notice, that would have to be specially manufactured.
Since when do metros have no central railing going down the stairs, and no turnstyles to take people's fares? No railings anywhere in fact. Somehow you can drive a vehicle from the street straight down onto the tracks?
And how does taking over the city's traffic light grid also let you remotely shut down the metro trains? (Note that I had no problem suspending disbelief over hacking the traffic lights. I'm on board with the fantasy, I just want a good explanation for it. They showed us he was a genius and his repeated efforts to get into the traffic system.)
Their original plan called for them to perfectly time their delivery of the cars onto a train that was about to depart. That train left the night before. So how did they manage to secure a spot on a new train at exactly the time they needed (without knowing exactly what time Edward Norton would have his trucks in motion)?
What's with the scene of the helicopter trying to block the car? A helicopter cannot physically stop a grounded vehicle. The helicopter is pushing air, the grounded vehicle has gravity and friction. It will just push the helicopter out of the way, and 99.99% cause the helicopter to crash spectacularly.
How did they know Edward Norton would manage to follow them, alone, on foot, to the train so they could turn him over to the Ukrainian mobsters? What if he hadn't managed to carjack that vehicle, or if he'd failed to follow Marky Mark all the way to the trainyard, given how fast Mark was driving and how poor Ed's vehicle was?
My next questions are less about all that than just what was going on: why wasn't Wrench on the train with them at the end? Did they stiff him on his share? (What a twist ending it would have been if he'd double-crossed them the same way Edward Norton did at the beginning. They find out their train car was never connected and he stole all the gold for himself!)
Why DIDN'T the Ukrainians with the guns just take Ed Norton AND all the gold? Are these mobsters with a heart of gold, turning down 27 million dollars? Hard to believe.
Now let's forget all that and talk about how we're supposed to feel once the film is over. The closing montage is all upbeat, showing us all the stuff the characters bought and the fun they had. But I was left with a lot of thoughts I clearly wasn't supposed to have. Like why are we celebrating that these lowlife thieves got away with the gold? Remember, it wasn't Edward Norton's gold. They stole the gold in Venice. From the rightful owners. They're all a bunch of dirty thieves, so why are we happy when they win?
I'd also like to know how many people died or suffered permanent injuries in ambulances jammed up in all the gridlock they caused in L. A. How many were killed or injured in the countless crashes they caused? All in pursuit of stealing.
I know we're not supposed to think about these things. "Just shut up and enjoy the film." But all of this is why I give it a grudging 7/10.
Just don't think too hard about it. The original "big plan" actually works pretty well overall as an idea. The problems mostly stem from the "twist" when they have to improvise a new plan on extremely short notice. I can suspend a lot of disbelief for a film like this, but the absurdity of how they manage to pull it all off in the end completely blew my suspension of disbelief if I gave it even a couple seconds' thought, so it's a good thing the film moves pretty fast at that point so most of the audience won't think about it.
First of all, where did they get all the money to set up this gig? Minimum a few hundred thousand dollars in rented properties, vehicle purchases, expensive electronics, lots of other equipment, explosive, and information.
More importantly, where did they get (at the last minute) the new explosives that they didn't need for the original plan? (The original plan didn't call for blowing through massive amounts of concrete.) How did they know about and gain unrestricted, undetected access to the subway area where they set the explosives? How did they know exactly where to set the explosives (positionally)? Remember they had to take precise measurements with electronic devices to set the explosives in the Italian Job they were repeating. How did they even know what lane the armored car would be in, when there were multiple options? You can't control what lane it gets into via traffic lights.
Where did they get the massive piece of steel they dropped across the hole they blew? That's not the type of thing you can buy wholesale on a moment's notice, that would have to be specially manufactured.
Since when do metros have no central railing going down the stairs, and no turnstyles to take people's fares? No railings anywhere in fact. Somehow you can drive a vehicle from the street straight down onto the tracks?
And how does taking over the city's traffic light grid also let you remotely shut down the metro trains? (Note that I had no problem suspending disbelief over hacking the traffic lights. I'm on board with the fantasy, I just want a good explanation for it. They showed us he was a genius and his repeated efforts to get into the traffic system.)
Their original plan called for them to perfectly time their delivery of the cars onto a train that was about to depart. That train left the night before. So how did they manage to secure a spot on a new train at exactly the time they needed (without knowing exactly what time Edward Norton would have his trucks in motion)?
What's with the scene of the helicopter trying to block the car? A helicopter cannot physically stop a grounded vehicle. The helicopter is pushing air, the grounded vehicle has gravity and friction. It will just push the helicopter out of the way, and 99.99% cause the helicopter to crash spectacularly.
How did they know Edward Norton would manage to follow them, alone, on foot, to the train so they could turn him over to the Ukrainian mobsters? What if he hadn't managed to carjack that vehicle, or if he'd failed to follow Marky Mark all the way to the trainyard, given how fast Mark was driving and how poor Ed's vehicle was?
My next questions are less about all that than just what was going on: why wasn't Wrench on the train with them at the end? Did they stiff him on his share? (What a twist ending it would have been if he'd double-crossed them the same way Edward Norton did at the beginning. They find out their train car was never connected and he stole all the gold for himself!)
Why DIDN'T the Ukrainians with the guns just take Ed Norton AND all the gold? Are these mobsters with a heart of gold, turning down 27 million dollars? Hard to believe.
Now let's forget all that and talk about how we're supposed to feel once the film is over. The closing montage is all upbeat, showing us all the stuff the characters bought and the fun they had. But I was left with a lot of thoughts I clearly wasn't supposed to have. Like why are we celebrating that these lowlife thieves got away with the gold? Remember, it wasn't Edward Norton's gold. They stole the gold in Venice. From the rightful owners. They're all a bunch of dirty thieves, so why are we happy when they win?
I'd also like to know how many people died or suffered permanent injuries in ambulances jammed up in all the gridlock they caused in L. A. How many were killed or injured in the countless crashes they caused? All in pursuit of stealing.
I know we're not supposed to think about these things. "Just shut up and enjoy the film." But all of this is why I give it a grudging 7/10.
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