The Bank Job Trailer Analysis

The Bank Job 2008 Trailer from Dziaulis on Vimeo.

The Bank job is a 2008 action thriller, directed by Roger Donaldson and starring Jason Statham and Saffron Burrows. The film itself is an adaptation of the 1971 Baker Street robbery. The film conveys it's time period very well, along side a strong sense of class difference using sound, editing, and various iconography. This is clearly illustrated in the trailer alone.

For example the soundtrack to the trailer- the classic "London Calling", a great representation of the time period, but also the iconic London accent, which also hints at the class difference, truly bringing the viewer into 1971.

Another element that plays with the upper and lower class beyond the obvious east and west accents, is the costumes. The heroes of the film, or rather the anti-heroes wear leather jackets and turtlenecks, they even wear rolled up woolly hats in certain parts of the film, reminding the audience of the iconic appearance of the 1970s robber. This, all while the antagonists, wear bespoke suits and cocktail dresses, creating a clear distinction between both class and character orientation, which hints at the strong theme of the corrupt politics, appealing to an audience that enjoys the genre. Not only this, but it gives the anti-heroes, the protagonists, an underdog position, making them more likable, and relatable to the audience.

However iconography is not only used within the costumes. Within the trailer, the colour gold is very prominent, not only in the footage used from the film itself, but also in the cut in text, that narrates parts of the trailer. This combined with talk of princesses, cigarettes and shots of the tropical countries, eludes to wealth, and more importantly, banks themselves. For the audience this highlights a clear element of the plot. 

This illustration of the plot, is a stereotype of the thriller genre. Particularly when accompanied by fight scenes, and the classic snapshot editing styles, which is reminiscent of planning scenes from films with similar themes. This an the stars of the film, strongly appeal to fans of the genre, highlighting the real purpose of the trailer- to get people to come and see the film.