With such a varied cast, Bandits could have been a failure. But the talent involved turns a simple caper into a funny, quick film. While the story in Bandits breaks no new ground, the movie manages to capture the humor and endearment that makes its stars household names. And in a month full of disappointments, it steals the show.
Bandits starts off with a tired, flashback-like plot structure, but director Barry Levinson keeps the story straight and simple, letting the audience get lost in the humor of Bruce Willis and Billy Bob Thornton's numerous robberies. When Cate Blanchett joins the fray, the movie doesn't lose any of its quick pace. As the love triangle develops among the film's three stars, the triangle leans more toward the humor of Dumb & Dumber, rather than the heavy-handedness of Pearl Harbor.
Clocking in at over two hours, Bandits does begin to lose momentum toward the end. Starting the film with the ending kills most of the tension, but Levinson and writer Harley Peyton provide a fun, worthwhile pay-off at the end. The final 20 minutes excluded, Bandits never misses a punchline, and the three big stars show that they can work well together in any situation.
