Bandits
Directed by Barry Levinson
- comedy
- crime
The story
After escaping from prison, Joe and Terry go on a crime spree, robbing banks through Oregon and California in order to finance their scheme for a new life south of the border. Unfortunately, things get more complicated when they meet Kate, who runs into them with her car. She joins the bandits on their cross-country spree, and eventually she steals something, too: their hearts.
What it’s like
Warm, sunlit Americana with a breezy crime-caper gloss: bright daylight over dusty highways, motel rooms with flat afternoon light, and the bank interiors that flicker between tense and comic. Director Barry Levinson keeps the framing clean and conventional, mostly medium shots and two-shots that let the leads' odd-couple chemistry carry the picture, while the score is a light, jaunty pop-and-jazz wash that never lets the danger get too heavy. The mood is playful and wistful in equal measure, a road movie with a fond, slightly melancholy undertow about second chances and the people you pick up along the way. The pace is easy and episodic, with the kind of loose rhythm that suits a lazy weekend afternoon or a comfort rewatch while doing something with your hands. Violence is occasional and cartoonish: guns are brandished and shots fired during the robberies, with no gore and little real menace, and the sexual content is light and mostly flirtatious. The tone is more crime-comedy than thriller, so it won't feel tense or cruel. It is for people who want a charming, gentle heist comedy with a romantic streak and good-natured leads.
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