The Old Man & the Gun (2018)
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A legendary career criminal finds himself drawn into an unexpected romance while evading the law.
The story
Forrest Tucker, a 74-year-old career criminal and prison escape artist, has been wanted for two years following a daring escape from San Quentin State Prison in 1979. After a recent bank robbery, he encounters a woman named Jewel on the side of the road. While pretending to assist her with car trouble, Forrest becomes captivated by her and her life on a farm. He attempts to perform a series of heists to pay off her mortgage, all while evading a persistent investigation by Dallas Police Detective John Hunt and the FBI.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Forrest Tucker, a 74-year-old career criminal, is wanted for a 1979 escape from San Quentin. After a bank robbery, he meets Jewel, a woman with car trouble, and begins a relationship with her. He conducts a string of heists to pay off her mortgage, but is frustrated when the bank requires her signature. Meanwhile, Detective John Hunt investigates the robberies, eventually meeting Forrest's daughter, Dorothy. Forrest eventually recognizes John during a night out. Later, police attempt to capture Forrest; his car backfires, leading to him being shot in the arm. He surrenders to the police and is imprisoned. During his incarceration, he gives Jewel a list of his sixteen previous escapes and a blank seventeenth. Upon release, Jewel takes him to her farm. They live quietly until Forrest, feeling restless, calls John from a payphone before walking into a bank. The film ends with title cards stating he robbed four more banks that day and was smiling when arrested.
- First release year
- 2018
- Runtime (minutes)
- 93
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- David Lowery
- Writers
- David Lowery · writer
- Cast and characters
- Robert Redford · Forrest Tucker; Casey Affleck · John Hunt; Danny Glover; Tika Sumpter; Tom Waits; Sissy Spacek; Augustine Frizzell · Sandy; Isiah Whitlock, Jr. · Detective Gene Dentler
- Genres
- biographical; crime; drama
- Themes
- romance; crime; aging
- Tone and mood
- easygoing; ethereal
- Premise and plot tags
- bank robbery; biographical; heist
- Source material / true-story basis
- David Grann's 2003 article in The New Yorker titled 'The Old Man and the Gun', later collected in Grann's 2010 book The Devil and Sherlock Holmes.
- Reception
- The film received mostly positive reviews from critics, with a weighted average score of 80 out of 100 on Metacritic, indicating 'generally favorable reviews'.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 80 · scale: 100 · review count: 49
- Awards and nominations
- Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy · Golden Globe Awards · Nomination
- Production trivia
- Robert Redford announced his intention to retire from acting after completing this film.; The film was shot on Super 16 mm film.; The film features a cameo by John Wayne Hunt as Trustee Jim.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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