On November 12, 2026, the crime action thriller "How To Rob A Bank" by David Leitch is released in Ukrainian cinemas. Read about what is wrong with the new film by the director of "John Wick" and "Deadpool 2" in the UNIAN review.
What the film is about
The plot centers on a group of charismatic thieves in animal masks who rob banks in various American cities. At the same time, they position themselves as a kind of modern-day "Robin Hoods," for whom the main thing in this business is not money but social justice.
Moreover, they record all their robberies on video and post them on social media, along with instructions on how to rob banks properly so as not to get caught, and calls to improve one's financial situation in precisely this way, since, in their opinion, it is impossible to earn a decent living in the modern world through honest means.
Of course, such leftist ideas enjoy great popularity among a broad audience of those who want to have a lot of money but are not ready to toil day and night at an ordinary job for it.
And these videos also attract the attention of FBI agent John West. Realizing that he won't be able to track down the criminals on his own, he brings in former university lecturer and talented hacker Regan Gardner, currently under house arrest due to a surveillance program she created that caused a tragedy. It is this program that should help track down the robbers.
And then begins the hunt for noble criminals who, it would seem, are always one step ahead. But, after all, they make mistakes too. However, will their motivation be enough to justify their actions?
Actors and characters
The gang of criminals under the mask of a wolf is led by a young man named Ryan, played by Nicholas Hoult ("Mad Max: Fury Road," "The Favourite," "The Menu," "Nosferatu," "Superman") – intelligent and talented, but blinded by revenge. He blames a large bank for his personal tragedy, which issued him an "unpayable" loan that effectively deprived him of everything (actually, not everything, but what seems important that he has left doesn't interest him all that much).
In this case, his beloved Amy, played by Anna Sawai ("F9", the series "Pachinko", "Monarch: Legacy of Monsters", "Shōgun"), is also involved, along with weapons expert Vince, played by Pete Davidson ("The Suicide Squad", "Bodies Bodies Bodies", "Dumb Money"), IT specialist Hugo, played by Rhenzy Feliz (the series "Runaways", "The Penguin"), and a couple more characters who are not developed at all.
Overall, the main problem with this film was precisely the characters on the robbers' team. Obviously, the intention was for the viewer to side with them and sympathize with them. But whether they are poorly developed or their motivations are poorly written, by the end the viewer will more likely be glad that they get caught and will not want them to escape.
The motivation of Ryan and Amy is revealed only somewhere in the middle of the film, but up to that point they look more like some "Bonnie and Clyde" in search of adrenaline who recently started a romance, rather than a couple since their student years experiencing the recent loss of a child.
The motivation to punish a ruthless bank that issued them a completely legal, albeit immorally high loan for the treatment of their sick son, who ultimately died of the disease, does not look convincing enough to be able to rob banks with real weapons, drag other people into one's criminal activity, humiliate honest police officers, incite the masses to such actions and provoke mass protests, to which the majority came not for high anti-capitalist ideas, but for a free tablet... Well, it's so-so... Perhaps in the infantile leftist Western world this works, but here we have adult life.
What Hugo does in this company is completely unclear. A talented guy who could well have gotten a legal job with a decent salary, which would have been quite enough for himself and his family, instead chose a dubious path. Why? They didn't explain it to us. They could have at least come up with something like the fact that he isn't hired by a serious firm because he's Latino.
The only character in this group whom you sympathize with and understand is the Afghanistan war veteran Vince, who contracted a terminal illness during his service. He understands that he is already dying and tries, in the time he has left, to do something so that his wife and little daughter will have a sufficient reserve of money after he is gone.
But the duo of John C. Reilly ("What's Eating Gilbert Grape," "Gangs of New York," "The Aviator," "Chicago," "The Hours," "Step Brothers," "The Lobster," "Licorice Pizza," "Dreamland. Corporation of Dreams") and Zoë Kravitz ("X-Men: First Class," "Mad Max: Fury Road," "The Batman," the series "Big Little Lies") in the roles of a detective and a hacker who unexpectedly became partners, on the contrary, turned out to be very successful. Both had clear motivation and generally became the main positive heroes in this story. And the chemistry between them worked wonderfully too – without romance, but with friendship.
In addition, the cast includes Tati Gabrielle ("Mortal Kombat 2", "Uncharted", the series "You", "Chilling Adventures of Sabrina"), Christian Slater ("Interview with the Vampire", "Broken Arrow", "Mindhunters"), Young Mazino (the series "The Last of Us", "Beef"), Paul Sparks (the series "House of Cards", "The Crown"), and others.
Who is the director
The film was directed by former stuntman David Leitch, who, together with Chad Stahelski, once directed the first "John Wick" (2014). Later, he also directed such explosive action films as "Atomic Blonde" (2017), "Deadpool 2" (2018), "Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw" (2019), "Bullet Train" (2022), and "The Fall Guy" (2024).
Visually, Leitch sustained the new film in his usual style – it is dynamic, bright, spectacular, slightly seasoned with black humor.
But his attempt to play at social satire failed miserably – everything here is very superficial and simplified. He took aim at the theme of anti-capitalist protest against a system that throws ordinary people beyond the poverty line while enriching the powers that be, but he did it too infantilely, in the style of Western leftists who along the way "clean out" jewelry stores, Apple stores, and ATMs.
Reaction to the film
The world premiere of the film took place on November 11, 2026, and the first critics' reviews of it are mixed.
Critics praise the film's action component and the acting ensemble, but criticize it for a superficial plot, poor character development, and excessive use of the "social media-style" filming method.
Currently, the film's rating on IMDb is 6.3 out of 10 points, while on Rotten Tomatoes it has 44% approval from critics. At the same time, on Metacritic, film experts rated it 47 out of 100 points, which corresponds to the characterization of "mixed or average reviews."
Our verdict
If you are simply looking for a bright, dynamic spectacle "for popcorn and beer" with a good cast and do not plan to think about the plot, then you can go to the cinema to see "How to Rob a Bank."
If you try to find some socially sharp intellectual component there, then it's better not to.
Read about other movie news of the week in our separate review. You can also check out our selection of the most interesting TV series of November 2026.