The Bank

I saw this film during it's cinema run during 2001, and was absolutely captivated by it. The effect it had on it's audience was sinister, since the movie takes such risks in the narrative, and they grow greater and more ominous. This is not Vegas people; this is real life. Those who got hit by the financial crisis will adore this movie, because - even if it's just for the span of the film - you get a slice of something that I bet many people would love from today's banks. Payback! I've been hunting for this one for ages, and am so happy to see it on the market again. Stay tuned for David Wenham's killer answer to the last question of the movie. I fell over myself laughing in the cinema, but the rest of the audience seemed wrung out by it. Then again, I remain unencumbered by mortgages, and owe banks NOTHING - thank God. One of Australia's unsung masterpieces, with two of it's best actors!.

Ok I have a new computer and I've been ripping CD's for days. So I got unbox and downloaded a free movie, cool. Well not cool I play it in the unbox player and the film looks like it was shot all above the waist. I don't understand how this "The Bank" came out where half the movie is not visable. WTF! Ok I guess that's the last time I download a free copy I mean who am I going to complain too, it was free. == Addendum == Unbox is 32 bit and doesn't play well in 64 bit OS. Watch the movie instantly and no problem works fine.

This refreshing movie is a thriller with no physical violence. The hero doesn't try to win the day by punching or shooting. Instead, he uses his intelligence and creativity. One of the main ideas of the film is that it might be possible to predict the stock market using some mathematical formula. Certainly, there is ongoing research into that area. Various formulas have been tried in the last few years with well publicized results. There is a little mathematical mumbo jumbo in the film which probably adds to the production design, but isn't necessary to understand the film. There is a little bit of Hitchcock in the film including some illogic in the script, but it's enjoyable all the same. Anthony La Paglia does some great acting as the antagonist for whom creating additional profit for a corporation is the only goal. In case you think his portrayal is over the top, rent Enron: The Smartest Men in the Room, a chilling documentary about actions in the Board Room. Many features of the plot of this film were in The Spanish Prisoner which is also a thriller without violence.

Love the movie but it is over priced!

Very good but falls flat at the end, a contrived conclusion to an otherwise interesting movie

The Bank is an Australian film about the greed and [dishonesty] of banks. Anthony Lapaglia (who is actually Australian but speaks in this film with an American accent) plays Simon O'Reilly, the head honcho of a major bank who behaves like a cross between Wall Street's Gordon Gekko and Robert Deniro in one of his gangster roles. Indeed, O'Reilly is the only character in the film who routinely swears and is rude to everyone (with the exception of his American wife, whose one line contains a vulgar phrase). Perhaps this is the (occasionally justified, to be fair) Australian stereotype of Americans. I'm afraid, however, that much of what this film knows about Americans and about financial markets was learned only from other movies, especially Wall Street. Simon hires mathematical genius Jim Doyle (played rather blandly by David Wenham) who may have figured out a system to predict the stock market. This system has something to do with fractals and chaos theory; probably not valid, but this is the least of the films weaknesses. There is a parallel plot, awkwardly handled, about a couple whose business was foreclosed by the same bank. After an official hands the couple's young son a summons, the boy drowns in an accident. Although this tragedy is only very indirectly connected to the bank, the film attempts to use this as a device to drive home the heavy-handed point that greed at high levels creates misery for ordinary people. Oddly enough, I found The Bank both confusing and predictable. The connection between the two plot lines is not clear till very late in the film and then they are brought together in a series of scenes that are alternately confusing and simply unbelievable. There is one silly melodramatic scene involving guns. The final twist was supposed to be a surprise, but it was really the only place the script had to go. Without giving anything away, I can say that one of the main characters' actions at the end make much of his earlier behavior completely irrational. The Bank has a few good scenes; there are some interesting discussions involving finance and mathematics. To ask for accuracy on these matters would be asking too much (after all, as far as we know no one has yet found a foolproof way to beat the stock market), but there are too many other things in the film that are not plausible. The ending, for example, is extremely naïve and is more suited for a comedy where realism is not important. At one point in the film someone says "I just hate banks." I'm afraid this was the primary motivation for making this film. This would be fine if they were able to back it up with a credible story, but in my opinion they didn't pull it off here.

Great!

This Australian release was really enjoyable for the first 2/3 of the movie as it ran two interesting but independent story lines, but it falls apart sadly and spirals into the realm of the seriously implausible for the final part of the movie when the stories converge. No plot spoilers from me, The Bank's main plot centers on mathematician Jim Doyle (David Wenham) who has developed a powerful program to predict stock market trends and the power hungry CEO Simon O'Reilly (Anthony LaPaglia) who wants to exploit the program (and Jim) for significant economic gain. There is a subplot that runs concurrently about a family that suffers a tragedy that is caused, somewhat indirectly, by "The Bank". There is an interesting love interest, Michelle (Sibylla Budd), to add another dimension to Jim and also helps to confuse the plot a bit. The acting is fairly solid, but the standout is an over the top performance by LaPaglia who plays the arrogant capitalist stereotype to perfection. The cinematography is almost inspired in places. The use of imagery and lighting to convey the richness of the corporate "haves" verses the starkness of the "have nots" was incredibly well done. There were also times where the lighting, music score, and camera moves were used with great effect to build the emotion of the scene. With almost all movies there is some suspension of disbelief required, and it is easy to over look the over use of chaos theory and fractals thrown in with other techspeak to explain what Jim does, but the actions of people are more predictable so are harder to forgive when one acts completely out of character for the sake of a plot device. There are some interesting plot twists and even a few feel good moments, but overall it fails to deliver a solid and believable story. If you must see "The Bank", this one is a rent not a buy.