This is a guest post by Brandon Meagher:
There are countless classic moments in cinema that
feature jaw-dropping heists, robberies and crime capers. While watching these
shockingly memorable scenes, some viewers might catch themselves wondering,
“Could that really happen?” Others, however, might think, “That’s literally impossible!”
Although we could argue both sides of this debate
indefinitely, here’s the main point to remember: it’s only a movie. Reality
often gets suspended when seen from Hollywood’s exaggerated lens. A blog piecefrom Atlanta Lockmaster states it best by explaining that movie criminals are
the career/veteran like crooks while in reality the majority are young petty
thieves looking to make a big score.
In fact, based on recent studies conducted around bank
heists and robberies, would-be thieves stand a higher chance of receiving a
payout in the movies than out on the streets.
Real Bank Heists vs The Heists in the Movies
According to 2009 research compiled by the FBI, an
average robbery payout in the U.S. totaled roughly $4,000. You were probably
expecting a much larger sum, right?
That assumption likely results from films such as Ben
Affleck’s entertaining crime drama, THE TOWN (2010), for example. In the
opening scene, Affleck and his gang of Boston thugs steal well over $4,000 with
automatic assault rifles and frightening masks. Watch this scene and determine
for yourself if such a reckless feat could be successfully replicated
off-screen.
Criminals Opening Safes On Screen -- I Can Do
That...Right?
Another scenic moment many moviegoers love is an intense
safe cracking sequence. Our eyes bulge and spines stiffen as we intently watch
the sweat dripping down a character’s face while he or she forces open a
deposit box, full of valuable jewels or cold hard cash. One such scene particularly
stands out as classic edge-of-your-seat cinema -- Charlize Theron’s
pulse-pounding heist from THE ITALIAN JOB (2003). With her enemies on hot
pursuit, Theron’s character still manages to crack a safe and escape with the
loot in stacks of gold in under two minutes.
In actuality, however, the process of breaking into a
lockbox is more complex and time consuming. The World Champion safecracker
takes an average time of 5 minutes to open a secure bank vault. You can view
his impressive performance on the Discovery Channel.
Moreover, the world’s most secure bank vaults require
around 15-30 minutes for even the most experienced safecracker to break open.
Beating The Motion Sensors -- They Make it Look So Easy!
Fans of the crime genre also tend to enjoy scenes
involving motion sensors such as this iconic moment in MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE
(1996) when super-spy Ethan Hunt, played by formidable action star Tom Cruise,
repels down a secure vault and catches his own sweat to avoid motion detection.
After watching this far-fetched exploit, you might be
shaking your head at the sheer lack of believability. Nevertheless, Cruise’s
fictional stunt actually served as inspiration for a real-life robbery in 2010.
This case involved a group of South Brunswick, New Jersey, thieves who pulled
off a Mission Impossible-esque heist at a local Best Buy. Using power tools,
they cut a hole in the store’s roof, repelled through that opening and stole
$26,000 worth of laptop computers, while managing to avoid touching the floor.
This enabled them to evade both motion sensors and security cameras.
It’s Just a Movie
Although a rare circumstance, this elaborate crime caper
suggests that, while they seem virtually improbable, some film heists should
not necessarily be discredited as sensationalized box-office drama.
Regardless of how unrealistic these sequences appear to
you, many moviegoers still agree that the image of a stealth crook breaking
into bank vaults, avoiding motion detector lasers and walking away with a
million dollars is undeniably entertaining.
Are there any scenes from your favorite “Hollywood Heist”
that we haven’t analyzed? Tell us about it in the comment section below!
Sources:
About the Author
Brandon Meagher, a graduate from Georgia State University
with a Bachelor of Arts in Film, is a self proclaimed movie junkie and enjoys
watching, talking, and blogging about everything film related. You can check
out more of his work here at Movies on the Mind. He currently resides in Southwest
Florida.
More later...
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