Over the Easter weekend in 2015, one of the largest heists in the UK took place at the Hatton Garden Safe Deposit Company, London. Based on the real life robbery, follow four seasoned criminals as they pull off the daring crime.
When the robbery was committed over the Easter weekend in 2015 it became quite apparent that a film would be made due to the scale of the robbery and the media interest, especially once they found out it was a group of pensioners!
Released exactly two years to the day after the robbery itself, The Hatton Garden Job follows a group of old-school criminals who pulled off the largest robbery the UK has ever seen. With the line “while our thieving forefathers robbed the banks, we robbed the bankers” and stop-start photography from the start, comparisons to 1990’s Guy Richie films are easily drawn.
The cast includes Larry Lamb (TV’s EastEnders, Gavin & Stacey) and Phil Daniels (TV’s EastEnders, Quadrophenia) as two of the gang members and stars Matthew Goode (The Imitation Game, TV’s Downton Abbey) as an unknown character who seemingly organises the robbery.
The film makes the group of pensioners into lovable rogues whom despite being at the stage in life most would think of retirement, they aim to push themselves to achieve not only their biggest heist, but the largest the UK has ever seen.
Written and directed by Ronnie Thompson, there are sections of dialogue that drag and there is little or no originality in the presentation. Despite not being to the standard of something like Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels in script, depth, cinematography and budget, The Hatton Garden Job is watchable and an easy night’s entertainment.
With the scale of the robbery itself and the way it has captured people’s imaginations, I am sure this will not be the last time we see this story making the big screen.
