I do enjoy a good bank heist film.  The more realistic it feels, the better.  It’s a tougher genre to master in the 21^st century given the arrival of the internet, high-definition security cameras, and electronic banking.  It’s not like the American Old West where a revolver-holding cowboy could simply walk into a bank, demand the teller hand over all the cash, and then ride off into the sunset on their trusty horse.  As an author, how do you craft a plausible robbery in today’s age which crowds will buy into?

Kudos to screenwriter Ben Hopkins for what he serves up in Fuze, the latest from Scottish director David Mackenzie (Hell or High Water).  Sneaking into the vault of a bank in downtown London may seem impossible but the crew of thieves, at least this instance, have a decent plan.  They’ve planted a bomb on a nearby construction site and made it appear like a relatively harmless World War II relic.  Once discovered, the police call in the army’s top bomb squad folk, shut off the power to the neighbourhood (utility lines lie under the site), and evacuate everyone within a one-kilometre radius.

It serves as the perfect ruse and the robbers then pounce.  With the bank closed and no one around, they tunnel through the wall of an adjacent building.  Will they get away?  Will anyone catch on to their plans before being completed?  I’ve spoken only of the film’s opening act and, particularly since I’m a fan of the movie, I’ll say no more to preserve the experience for audiences.  There are cunning acts, surprising plot points, and an interesting finale (excluding the unnecessary epilogue).

Thumbs-up to the cast which include Theo James (The White Lotus) and Australian Sam Worthington (Avatar) as thieves, Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Belle) as a suspicious police superintendent, and Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Nocturnal Animals) as a bomb expert.  There’s no singular character of focus with editor Matt Mayer expertly blending their respective stories together in a fast-paced, energic manner.  With a runtime of just 96 minutes, it’s a fun watch.

Offering a touch more than Crime 101, another decent heist movie released earlier in the year, Fuze is entertaining and engaging.