Great action, intricate plans and good acting.

Rating: 9/10 (12 October 2015)

This film is really exciting and the plots are just so intricately thought out. What I really like about this film is how engaging it is, that it pulls you in by sheer force. From the beginning the film shows us how they pull off heists, and this sets the expectation for what this group can do. So while we are unsure of what they plan to do later on, we willingly follow knowing it will be great. Also, I think this was the film that made me appreciate mini coopers.
The acting was great in this. Mark Wahlberg is a little mild, and does not really seem to be the robber type, but he played his part well. Charlize Theron did great too, unfortunately she is the only female in the film and so obviously is given the emotional role. Plus it was her father who died, so there is justification for her tears. But I must admit, her character was pretty tough and badass which I give props to. Jason Statham, Seth Green, Yasiin Bey and Edward Norton did their parts well too.
Apart from minor background stories of the group and how they started their career, we do not see what motivates them to steal in the first place. When planning the revenge on Steve, the phrase 'it's not about the money' constantly comes up, so if money was not a big motivator for them, why did they become robbers in the first place? The rest of the film is motivated by revenge obviously, but without giving a reason for their start in crime, it depicts that these robbers aren't really robbers, since they are robbing from the biggest robber of them all. Also, Charlie is pretty much the only mastermind in the film which makes the rest of them there to provide muscle or just for comedic effect.
Overall a really engaging and exciting film that did not exaggerate masculinity which I am grateful for. It would have been nice to have more than one female character though.
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