Billed as Robert Redford’s final film before retirement, The Old Man and the Gun centres on the true story of 70 year-old bank robber Forrest Tucker (Robert Redford). After escaping from San Quentin, he performed a series of heists that fascinated and captured the imagination of the public in the early 1980’s. Caught up in the events are love interest Jewel (Sissy Spacek) and the determined detective John Hunt (Casey Affleck), who at times takes the role of the protagonist more so than Forrest himself.

Normally in crime films you find yourself rooting for one side or the other, but this not the case for The Old Man and the Gun. Redford’s charisma as Forrest means you can’t help but want him to get away, while Affleck’s detective performance shows a loving family man that deep down you want to be the guy to catch Tucker. The plot ticks by at a great pace and you never find yourself getting bored, while the humour is refreshing especially at the end (don’t worry I’ll stop there).

The experienced cast is good, as you expect them to be. The side characters of Teddy (Danny Glover) and Waller (Tom Waits) don’t really feature much, but serve a purpose. Some might say that that the film is only getting respect because of Redford’s pending retirement, however that would be a great injustice to the cast of this excellent character driven plot, who definitely deserve praise. The Old Man and the Gun has a unique narrative, mainly down to the bizarre yet fascinating true story of Forrest Tucker, who managed to escape from prison 18 times successfully (and 12 times unsuccessfully, according to the man himself).

I am led to believe that the film also remains mostly true to actual events, including the remarks about Tucker’s style made by various witnesses. Overall, The Old Man and the Gun is a well-paced and fascinating character-driven film that is definitely worth a watch. If it does turn out to be Robert Redford’s last before retirement, it would a fitting swansong for the icon.

 

Matthew Moorey