Buster

Played light but there's genuine feeling. Strong cast, Phil Collins works well in this role, as does he and Julie Walters as the hub of the movie: honest with the right touch of romance. She is great in this, as she usually is. There's naturalistic period detail: ketchup, grubby kitchens etc. First half is well-paced with real tension to the train robbery, much like a western but with just the right touch of London humour. Second half lags a little with some silly moments (drunken antics) but it's all the so-called dream heading for the inevitable reality check. Surprised it took this long for me to see it but being 13 when it came out it wasn't cool back then especially with it's music being so overplayed. Seeing it now in 2023 it feels familiar yet innocent and stronger as a UK crime movie than I'd expected. Even the music has become pleasing in a nostalgic way, 'Two Hearts' gave me goosebumps (that key change!).

Buster (Phil Collins) is a petty thief with some skill. If he wants a new suit, he just breaks a store window and makes off with a mannequin. If the baby needs supplies, Buster sneaks into the chemist's at night and picks out what is needed. His wife June is getting a bit tired of this and would love to have a place of their own, not a rental. Therefore, Buster arranges a major train robbery (THE Great Train Robbery in the early sixties). The plot is almost successful but Buster does not remain anonymous and is a hunted man, post robbery. Will he ever see his family again? This is a very likable movie about an unlikely charmer. Buster does not want an honest job to support his family but one just can not help liking the guy. Collins is quite good as this amusing thief. Julie Walters, as his wife, is also sweet and attractive. The plot is amazing when one realizes these events actually took place. Part love story, part cat and mouse game, this film is a fun view. Anyone who sits down to Buster will be laughing in short order, leaving the sometimes somber world behind.

With the title "Buster" given to this film starring Phil Collins in the title role, this movie directed by David Green is all about the 1963 Great Train Robbery when a gang of robbers carried out the biggest robbery in criminal history for £2.5 million was big money for 1963 prices. Worst, the train driver Jack Mills sustained head injuries during the attack and later died from leukaemia. For a reason why Phil Collins made this film was that he maintained close contact with one of the robbers Ronald "Buster" Edwards. The 1960s scenes are well put together on film here but it's very underrated. Larry Lamb looks almost strikingly like one of the gang leaders Bruce Reynolds. Well, the film has been criticised for glorifying the robbery. There is nothing glamorous about the robbery as it was a vicious crime. Phil Collins might steal your heart but not on this film while some of the robbers have returned to their criminal haunts and it now seems to be that many years after the robbery, most of the gang members have long since disappeared just like most of the money and in 1994, Buster Edwards struck down by depression,hanged himself in a disused garage near London's Waterloo Station where he traded as a flower seller.

This is one good movie! This is a good movie for Phil Collins fans such as myself. Phil Collins is not only a great singer and drummer, hes also a great actor. This is a good movie to watch on a Friday night if you don't have anything else to do. You won't be sorry.

Singer Collins stars in this simple film about a thief who successfully pulls off the biggest train robbery in history, who then decides to start a new life in Acapulco with his wife June (Walters). Well matched stars in lovely paced yarn with Oscar nominated tunes from Collins ("Two Hearts").