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Bank Robbers: The Last Great Heist
By Sabrina McFarland,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Docu about 2006 bank heist has language, violence.
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Bank Robbers: The Last Great Heist
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What's the Story?
In BANK ROBBERS: THE LAST GREAT HEIST, four South American men set out to steal the contents of 400 bank deposit boxes within a two-hour period. The team engineers an elaborate plan and name it the Donatello Project, after one of the characters in the feature film Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The blueprint includes an escape through a water-filled tunnel and disguises to be worn while looting the premises. The group faces setbacks and hostages are taken, but when it's all over, the alleged criminals hope to disappear sight unseen and without ever being apprehended by the law.
Is It Any Good?
Through its firsthand interviews, reenactments, and actual footage, this documentary is a fascinating watch for true crime fans. Bank Robbers: The Last Great Heist presents arresting portraits of the characters that begin with their childhood days. "I went to Catholic school," says Ruben Alberto "Beto" de la Torre, one the robbery masterminds. "I was an even an altar boy, helping at Mass and everything." But, he adds that he got into "some mischief with friends because they were a lot like me," and later in life he discovers "theft and crime also became a vice."
And for artist Fernando Araujo, criminal life is viewed as a profitable one, at least according to a "calling" he gets as an adult one day. "To hell with the paintings, and the only thing I did from then on, 24/7, was think about how to rob a bank," says Araujo, who starts to look for a bank in "a place where I was born, where I grew up." But the path taken by Araujo and the crew, as well as the film's viewers, to an unforeseen territory in Bank Robbers: The Last Great Heist may simply lead to the age-old question: Does crime ever really pay?
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the fact that this documentary focuses on criminals. How do you feel about the bank robbers? Why do you think audiences are so fascinated with crime stories?
Fernando Araujo and Sebastián García Bolster were high school friends. As an adult, García Bolster is encouraged by Araujo to engage in criminal activity. If you were asked by friend to take part in a possible crime, would you? Why or why not?
What may have been the reasons for the robbers not to earn money legitimately? Is stealing ever justified? Why or why not?
How does the cast demonstrate communication and perseverance? Why are these important character strengths?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming: August 10, 2022
- Cast: Fernando Araujo , Gastón Garbus , Sebastián García Bolster
- Director: Matías Gueilburt
- Inclusion Information: Latino directors, Latino actors
- Studio: Netflix
- Genre: Documentary
- Topics: STEM , Friendship , History
- Character Strengths: Communication , Perseverance
- Run time: 110 minutes
- MPAA rating: NR
- Last updated: February 17, 2023
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