FINDING STEVE MCQUEEN

 

Films that centre around a heist can go a number of ways, the slick style of Ocean's Eleven or the much more serious tone of Heat being just a few examples of how different a path you can go down. Finding Steve McQueen is a heist film that definitely leans toward the more playful side and I, for one, found it to be a deeply entertaining one at that.

Based on the United California Bank robbery in 1972, Finding Steve McQueen sees a gang of close-knit thieves from Youngstown, Ohio attempt to steal $30 million in illegal contributions and blackmail money from President Richard Nixon's secret fund.

Finding Steve McQueen jumps back and forth in time as the protagonist of the film, Harry Barber, comes clean to his girlfriend about the robbery he took part in eight years ago. It's a choice that serves the film well as it gives Barber the chance as a character to reflect on his actions and atone for the errors in his life, offering the audience a more conflicted character within a heist film rather than the thief just out for himself.

The writing is solid as the film delivers a number of laughs and poignant emotional moments between particular characters, Ken Hixon and Keith Sharon giving this the feel of something like Logan Lucky, which isn't exactly the worst company to be in.

Finding Steve McQueen features an ensemble cast of instantly recognisable faces that it'd be great to see more of in Hollywood. Travis Fimmel is great as Barber, the antihero of the piece whose false confidence and relationship with Rachael Taylor's Molly Murphy make him quite an endearing character. William Fichtner is that guy you can just rely on to turn up and deliver quality in his performance and of course Forest Whitaker as well, even if it's a role that doesn't require as much work as some of his previous films.

While it may not be as memorable as some other heist films or as cool as the titular Hollywood icon, Finding Steve McQueen is an enjoyable ride nonetheless. Quite honestly though, there's not many that are cooler than Steve McQueen.

Verdict: ★★★½