Bandits doesn't steal show
By Brian Tanaka
Heuristic Algorithm.
Aluminum siding.
These are four nonsensical words that popped into my head while waiting for an end to Barry Levinson's Bandits. Hilarious in some scenes, painful in others, the comedy starring Bruce Willis and Billy Bob Thorton ultimately trips the security alarm by tacking a love triangle onto a story about two notorious bank robbers.
Based loosely on real incidents, Bandits is the account of "The Sleepover Bandits." Busting out of jail, Terry Collins (Thorton), a brainy hypochondriac with a heart of gold, and Joe Blake (Willis), the brawn to counter Terry's brains, decide to start a new life and open a restaurant south of the border in Paradiso. Problems arise upon the realization that they don't want to get jobs and they're escaped convicts on the lam. So, as any good thief would do to earn some cash, the two start holding up banks. By going to the bank manager's house the night before, Terry and Joe are able to slip into the bank before opening and avoid the high-risks of cops and heroes.
The heists run smoothly and soon Terry and Joe are racking in high revenues. However, Terry runs into a problem one day, a high-speed Mercedes with an emotional Kate (Cate Blanchett) behind the wheel. Kate's instability stems from an ignorant husband and listening to too many '80s love ballads. She soon joins the gang of misfits and suddenly everyone is robbing, loving, and hurting each other.
Despite the marketers' attempts at making this film look like a Bruce Willis vehicle, Billy Bob Thorton plays the main character, with good reason. Terry exudes such radiant pity that it is impossible not to cheer him on, while Joe portrays a sort of aging Cool Hand Luke. Though the film is about a duo of robbers, the main focus goes to Terry. This reflects best when Kate starts falling in love with him. Beforehand, the lady lover Joe sweeps Kate off her feet with a simple stare and they spend two weeks together, shown by a montage set to cheesy '80s music. Compare that to Terry and Kate's time together, which is played out for multiple scenes, it is reflexive to feel for Terry because of his character development.
The most impressive aspect of Bandits is a disjointed plot. Watching this film is like episodic anarchy. The final confrontation of the film is the introduction to the film, which follows into an episode of America's Most Wanted explaining the history of The Sleepover Bandits. This flips to an interview with Terry and Joe, followed by a retelling of the incidents that lead to the robbing of the Alamo National Bank. Destroying the conventions of a linear narrative allows the nature of this film to produce a lighthearted tale.
Levinson creates a unique world through the hybridization of digital video and film. The story is fragmented into two stylings: an "America's Most Wanted"-type program, which uses digital video, and flashbacks of the story shot on film. Well-directed actors and interesting camera angles (lots of wide shots of roaming action) add flavor to the generic plot.
Plot aside, screenwriter Harley Peyton's snappy dialogue (when robbing a bank with a highlighter, Terry exclaims, "What are you going to do with that? Write on them?") along with comedic situations (the bandits enjoying a family dinner of spaghetti with their hostages) redeems his inclusion of a overplayed ménage á trois love story.
Stretched out scenes and character development burden the film by slowing it down. However, with a strong comedic performance by Billy Bob Thorton, interesting narrative, and a satisfying ending puts Bandits on anyone's Most Wanted. B