Bullet Train director’s eye-popping new heist thriller with A-list cast is out now

In cinemas now, the movie's cast includes Nicholas Hoult, John C. Reilly and Zoë Kravitz.

The movie follows the Wolf Pack, a crew of social media-savvy bank robbers (led by Nicholas Hoult) who broadcast their daring heists, unaware that their growing viral fame has put them in the crosshairs of a veteran FBI agent (John C. Reilly) and a brilliant software engineer (Zoë Kravitz).

"Despite the unlikely duo closing in, the crime ring pushes past their limits, putting everything on the line for their beliefs - and their most ambitious heist yet," the plot synopsis adds.

JOE's review of How to Rob a Bank

How to Rob a Bank is terrific popcorn entertainment. What's so immediately striking about the movie is the iconography and mystery surrounding the Wolf Pack.

Who are these enigmatic thieves who don stylised animal masks and post footage from their robberies on social media? Online, they quickly amass a huge following. Part of this is down to the ambition of the heists. But it's also due to their humorous commentary on them, their providing of tips to viewers on how to commit their own robberies, and the way they donate large amounts of their crime's proceeds to charity, Robin Hood-style.

Right away, we want to know more about the crew. All the while, director David Leitch (already acclaimed for action movies like Atomic Blonde, Bullet Train, and The Fall Guy) is clearly having a blast blending the grainy, gritty aesthetic of a '70s crime movie with the often garish, overstimulated editing style of viral videos. The finished product is truly eye-popping, and unlike anything we've really ever seen in a film before.

Watch the trailer for How to Rob a Bank right here:

It quickly becomes clear that the Wolf Pack aren't just committing these heists and posting videos of them for fame and clicks. They have genuine personal reasons to be angry at the powers that be, issues that stem from wider real-world social injustices related to capitalism and wealth inequality. Their social clips have been carefully designed to allow them to spread their message far and wide, avoid detection, and even secure help from fans to get them out of a jam when needed.

How to Rob a Bank often strains credulity in terms of what the Wolf Pack are practically able to achieve. That said, the movie is bold and stylish and raises some important critiques about the world today. The cast is universally terrific too.

Nicholas Hoult strikes the perfect level of charisma, gravitas and vulnerability as the gang's leader. Anna Sawai brings an effortless cool to her getaway driver. Pete Davidson maybe steals the show as the Val Kilmer to Hoult's De Niro, if comparing this to Heat, the greatest heist film ever. While better known as a comedic presence, the former SNL man might make you cry here with the level of genuine pathos he conjures.

Also, John C. Reilly and Zoë Kravitz make for a charming buddy act as the FBI agent and hacker team on the Wolf Pack's tail. The pair add a much-needed nuance to a movie that could have simply become "robbers good, all institutions bad".

How to Rob a Bank is in cinemas now. Check out JOE's interview with its stars Anna Sawai, Nicholas Hoult, and Pete Davidson right here.