Verdict
Summary
Robbery is a taught crime drama with a few action scenes to keep things moving; it’s a low key affair but worth a look.
Plot: After a local crime lord threatens a young thief (Jeremy Ferdman) over his debts, the youth enlists the fine criminal skills of his crotchety aging father (Hindle) in a series of reckless heists that should recoup him all the money he needs. But complicating matters, are heavily armed criminals in their way, and juggling the day-to-day challenges of his father’s dementia diagnosis.
Review: The latest movie from the Toronto After Dark Film Festival is an action thriller/crime drama about a young thief who plans a series of reckless heists with his father who has dementia in order to battle the disease and pay off a dangerous gambling debt.
Although it’s a slow moving affair I found Robbery quite tense at times and the two leads played by Jeremy Ferdman and Art Hindle are at the top of their game. Ferdman reminds me of a young Eminem for some reason but he really looked the part as a criminal in this movie so he came across as believable from the start.
It’s quietly tragic as Frank (Hindle) struggles to remember things like who his son is giving us some tender moments between them as they try to make enough money so Richie (Ferdman) can pay off his debts.
There are few scenes with Richie robbing houses which will have you on the edge of your seat wondering if he will get caught. At first he’s tough to sympathize with as he is after all a criminal but it’s a life he has essentially been forced into as he had none around while he was growing up.
Richie owes money to a ruthless local casino owner who is quite happy to torture people to get a point across and the scene where Richie has some fingers removed was a tough watch.
It climaxes with a shoot-out in the woods and as I said it isn’t exactly packed with action before that but the story and characters are enough to engage.
The plot moves well and the script has plenty of twists and turns to keep you thinking throughout.
Overall, Robbery is kept going with its impressive cast and building tension with a satisfying finale. It’s a little slow in parts but definitely worth checking out.
Tonight is the last night of the Toronto After Dark Film Festival where you can check out Overlord and You Might be the Killer. Check out the website for more details.
