Finding Steve McQueen

Everyone loves a good genre film and the heist film is certainly one of Hollywood's favorite charms. A craft as revered as William Goldman and Elmore Leonard. As cool as a Tarantino-curated soundtrack. And why not? Those stories feed into inherent impulses. An underdog sticking it to The Man. The Anybody gambling for a life as a Somebody. Thieving out of sport. Or need. At times, crime does not pay in the glitzy cinematic world. That unlikely hero fails. And falls. Worlds are destroyed. Irreparable harm befalls both innocents and the not-so. Other times? Ah, other times everything simply works out.

Based on the startlingly-real but mostly-unreported 1972 United California Bank Robbery, the film Finding Steve McQueen narrates one of the largest bank robberies in US history. Much like the quiet nature of the actual robbery, this underdog film suffered a criminal VOD release instead of well-deserving theatrical accolades.

Screenwriter and Southern California News Group reporter Keith Sharon broke the story of Harry Barber - bank robber, getaway man, and Steve McQueen idol - in his Stealing Nixon's Millions expose, later serialized in his true crime podcast Crime Beat. Barber, along with professional-criminal Enzo Rotella (a delightful William Fichtner who brings a meal of prosciutto and provolone along with his SAG credentials) and a crew from Youngstown, Ohio, steal away to Laguna Niguel, CA where, apparently, President Richard Nixon stashed over $30 million; election money absconded from the Dairy Farmers' Association. The robbery was a success but the story, much like this film, went mostly unheard.

The film, directed by Mark Steven Johnson, cleverly jumps around in time setting Harry's new small-town life against the daring heist, and the FBI's manhunt, led by a French horn-playing Forest Whitaker. Johnson fashions a more comedic look at the heist genre. More Old Man & The Gun; less Reservoir Dogs. And the style works. Travis Fimmel plays out Barber with equal parts McQueen fetishism and wide-eyed "What, me worry?" enthusiasm. Fimmel sells the role. Barber not only wins the heart of Molly Murphy (Rachael Taylor), but his aw-shucks honesty makes him that perfect Anybody. One that deserves to be a Somebody.

Finding Steve McQueen is a fun ride complete with an 8-track's worth of 70s pop-culture references and music. The film weaves to the genre beats yet for all of its real-life incredibleness, doesn't pop those points to their best. Perhaps it's the honesty of the tale, or too much silliness, but the film ultimately downplays the usual genre tropes and regrettably eliminates the amped-up thrill, taming the crime, and restricting the heat between Barber and Murphy.

Unusual, ridiculous, honest, fun, Finding Steve McQueen is an entertaining heist flick that successfully steals the time and deserves a happy ending.

Highly fictionalized account of an actual bank robbery that occurred in California, 1972. The main character (Harry Barber), one of the robbers, is a young man who sees himself cut from the same cloth as the actor, Steve McQueen. Despite often having a 'deer in headlights' look about him, Harry unfolds a detailed tale of the robbery some years later to his girlfriend, Molly. The main theme of the heist centers on stealing President Nixon's slush fund money that supposedly is hidden in a safety deposit box with the bank. FBI agents Lambert and Felt (of Nixonian fame as deep cover contact, Deep Throat) are hot on the trail of the heist crew. Both the love story and the heist are an enjoyable watch.

I thought this was a delightful little film. I liked the structure and the way the story unfolds. Anyone who lived through Watergate will also appreciate the time. I loved that we had an appearance by Deep Throat in his official capacity as Deputy Director of the FBI. I also loved seeing Forrest Whitaker as the dogged FBI agent

Based upon true events, this movie mixes a bank heist, romance and being a fan of actor, Steve McQueen, into ultimately kind of a refreshing ride. There is an earnestness to this movie as well as humor -- I haven't genuinely laughed out loud at a movie in a long time. The soundtrack is spot on, also, and enhanced the movie. The only actor I recognized is Forest Whitaker, and he adds needed credibility in his depiction of a decent member of law enforcement.

Finding Steve McQueen is a love story disguised as a bank robbery movie. This is a Baby Driver wannabe, without the great production, direction and dialogue. If you've never heard of Travis Fimmel before, well, this film won't leave a lasting impression of him with you either. Finding Steve McQueen has 24 Producers, so if the tempo or mood or anything else seems uneven-there you go. Everything starts out exciting as a bank heist film, but then it flips to a love story and by the 1 hour marks it's ZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzz. The soundtrack is fantastic, so this is the movie you play in the background while doing something else, like surfing the internet.