The Bank Job appears to be a face-paced exciting robbery and espionage film. While those things did take place, it was long, slow, and not as flashy as hoped.
With Jason Statham as the lead, I expected The Bank Job to have fight scenes and car chases. It did not. Compared to other Statham flicks, The Bank Job was slow-paced and more dramatic than action-focused. Some of the pacing results from the story being based on an actual bank robbery in 1971. As intriguing as that is, it also made the story drag on. The heist takes place halfway through the film, with a full hour of runtime before the end. The robbery's aftermath is filled with political maneuvering and negotiation between several dangerous groups interested in the contents of the safe. With an hour to tie up all the loose ends, the ending somehow felt abrupt and disappointing. The Bank Job has a few cool moments, but even with a strong lead like Statham, it was average at best.