Loophole

Thief Mike Daniels (Albert Finney) plans to break into the biggest bank in England for one last haul. His team sets up a false office in order to interview architects with the idea they can coax the suitable candidate into mapping out their underground digging job. Down-on-his-luck American Stephen Booker (Martin Sheen) seems to be the ideal candidate for the job, but he scoffs at the idea of being a criminal. That is until he finds out his wife (Susannah York) reallllly wants to start up her interior decorating business. OH NOES! So he descends (literally) into a life of crime in order to finance her dream. The "loophole" of the title refers to the fact they will break into the vault through the ground and set off a motion detector, but when the cops arrive they will see no one inside the bank and think it is glitch. I'm a sucker for bank heist pictures for some reason and this one definitely falls into that category. Unfortunately, while it has a great cast and is well made, it really takes no risks. There is some tension in the final third as rain starts to flood the sewer system and the men must rush to get out, but even that is handled rather mundanely. Sheen also sticks out like a sore thumb and it is easy to believe the role was written for a British fellow (his wife is a Brit after all) and then changed to an American to increase potential markets. Still, it is worth a look at least once if you loves you some men digging in confined spaces.

Another heist movie. This is a cut above average with an excellent cast: acclaimed British film and stage actor Albert Finney. Martin Sheen who had just been shot to fame by Apocalypse Now, alongside Johnathan Pryce,Colin Blakeley, Robert Morley, Susannah Yorke, Dinah Booker and Colin Blakeley. All respected character and lead actors.

Albert Finney plays the leader of a criminal gang whose latest raid has come up short. He plans to break into a vault containing safe deposit boxes. In order to locate the exact location of the vault, he needs the help of an architect who can pinpoint where the tunnel needs to emerge. This is where Martin Sheen comes in.

Worrth watching for the cast giving good performances.

Actually a competent little thriller , utterly and totally ruined by a lousy bewildering last 10 mins or so ! .... Honestly its unbelievable and makes no sense whatsoever !

Well done scriptwriters / director for ruining a nice little film that could have been well more regarded , but now i would tell anyone who thought of watching this movie to avoided it as it truly offers up one of the most unsatisfying and stupid endings you could ever think of !

Albert Finney was an exceptional actor, very good in all the movies, those made in his youth and those in his maturity. Very convincing in this "Loophole" too. Martin Sheen also does a good role as an architect forced to become thief. Susannah York very credible as his wife. All the other actors, Colin Blakely, Jonathan Pryce, Robert Morley, etc., are good. Some who wrote reviews complained that they did not understand or like the end of the movie. The guy who dies and we see him floating on the water, we can imagine that he drowned or had a heart attack. And Martin Sheen goes out of the building exactly as he tells Albert Finney he will, when the water retreats, you only have to imagine this, it's not that hard. Very pleasant surprise is the music of Lalo Schifrin, which, unfortunately, is not as great as in films like "Bullitt" or "Mission: Impossible". What's missing the movie is more suspense, that's all.

I don't think writers understand what being an architect means or how they work ...its especially clear in this film because the need for an architect is totally bogus ... being an architect sounds glamorous and exciting but its a crappy paying profession that anyone interested in making money would never take on ... an architect that designs, builds and lives in that house is as rare as finding an atmosphere on the moon