What if a Hollywood studio owned by one of the largest conglomerates in the world released a film highlighting the evils of corporate America and sympathetically depicting a popular revolt against it? With the arrival of “How to Rob a Bank” (Amazon MGM), moviegoers no longer have to wonder what that would be like.
The picture’s plot pits Ryan (Nicholas Hoult), a military vet who now leads a gang of Pittsburgh bank robbers, against FBI Agent John West (John C. Reilly). Frustrated by the thieves’ success, West recruits tech expert Reagan (Zoë Kravitz) to track and catch them. Reagan has been in trouble with the law and West promises to resolve her legal woes in exchange for her help.
As Ryan and his collaborators continue their successful spree, we learn that they are acting out of financial desperation. Ryan and his wife, Emi (Anna Sawai), moreover, are harboring a deeply emotional resentment toward a bank led by smarmy executive David Walton (Christian Slater).
Screenwriter Mark Bianculli and director David Leitch attempt to invest their high-energy heist movie with social relevance by having the criminals use their prominent presence on the internet to try to stir up a revolution against capitalism. But this only succeeds in removing their caper movie from the realm of fantasy.
As a result, the dubious debate in the dialogue about the morality of sabotaging a rigged economic system calls for more careful analysis than would otherwise be the case. Many will not find the entertainment value worth the effort.
The film contains ethical themes requiring mature discernment, a suicide, drug use, some irreverent humor, including a brief anti-Catholic slur, a scene of marital sensuality, a few instances of profanity, a couple of milder oaths, pervasive rough and frequent crude language, occasional crass talk and obscene gestures. The OSV News classification is L — limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling. The Motion Picture Association rating is R — restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.
Read More Movie & Television Reviews
Copyright © 2026 OSV News
