Band of Robbers

{{Infobox film

| name = Band of Robbers

| image = Theatrical poster for the movie "Band of Robbers".jpg

| alt =

| caption = Theatrical release poster

| director = Aaron Nee
Adam Nee

| producer = {{plainlist|

John Will
Rick Rosenthal
Matt Ratner
Arun Kumar

}}

| writer = {{plainlist|

Aaron Nee
Adam Nee

}}

| based_on = {{based on|The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn|Mark Twain}}

| starring = {{plainlist|

}}

| music = Joel P. West

| cinematography = Noah Rosenthal

| editing = {{plainlist|

Aaron Nee
Adam Nee

}}

| studio = Torn Sky Entertainment

| distributor = Gravitas Ventures

| released = {{film date|2015|06|13|LA Film Festival|2016|1|15|United States}}

| runtime = 95 minutes

| country = United States

| language = English

| budget =

| gross = $20,555{{cite web|url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=bandofrobbers.htm|title=Band of Robbers (2016)|work=Box Office Mojo|access-date=April 27, 2016}}

}}

Band of Robbers is a 2015 American crime comedy film written and directed by brothers Aaron and Adam Nee, based on Mark Twain's The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. It stars Kyle Gallner as Huck Finn and Adam Nee as Tom Sawyer. Matthew Gray Gubler, Melissa Benoist, Daniel Edward Mora, Eric Christian Olsen, Hannibal Buress, and Stephen Lang also star.

In this modern-day retelling, the two iconic rascals are grown up and small-time crooks still searching for the fabled Murrell's treasure that has eluded them since childhood. The story draws heavily from Twain's classic novels, including characters, plot twists and even dialogue.

Band of Robbers premiered at the 2015 LA Film Festival, and received a limited theatrical release in the United States on January 15, 2016, by Gravitas Ventures.

Plot

When Huck Finn is released from jail he is greeted by his lifelong friend, Tom Sawyer, now an underachieving cop who just can't let go of their childhood dreams of wealth and glory. Tom convinces the reluctant Huck and their bumbling friends Joe Harper and Ben Rogers to rob a pawnshop where their friend and contact, the alcoholic vagrant Muff Potter, believes Injun Joe, a savage and murderous white career criminal who admires and appropriates Native American culture, has hidden Murrell's treasure. Tom explains that robbing bad guys makes them the good guys. Things get complicated when Tom's commander assigns him to train Becky Thatcher, an eager-to-please rookie partner, and the hung-over band of robbers' heist goes awry. But that doesn't stop Tom; instead, he leads the band on a wild treasure hunt from one mysterious clue to another. When Huck's friend, Mexican day laborer Jorge Jimenez, is mistaken as part of the band's activities and arrested, Huck and Tom, on the run from a vengeful Injun Joe and the police, lead the band on a mission to rescue him and be "heroes".

Cast

Kyle Gallner as Huck Finn
Gabriel Bateman as Young Huck
Adam Nee as Tom Sawyer
Willem Miller as Young Tom
Matthew Gray Gubler as Joe Harper
Hannibal Buress as Ben Rogers
Melissa Benoist as Officer Becky Thatcher
Daniel Edward Mora as Jorge Jimenez aka Jim
Stephen Lang as Injun Joe
Eric Christian Olsen as Det. Sid Sawyer
Johnny Pemberton as Tommy Barnes
Beth Grant as Widow Douglas
Cooper Huckabee as Muff Potter
Lee Garlington as Lt. Polly
Creed Bratton as Dobbins
Josh Harp as Packard
Jack Wallace as Doc Robinson
Maria Blasucci as Amy Lawrence
Brian Sacca as Det. Temple
Jeff Newburg as Pap Finn

Release

The world premiere of Band of Robbers was held at the 2015 LA Film Festival on June 13, 2015.{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/2015-los-angeles-film-festival-793617/|title=Los Angeles Film Festival Unveils Lineup|last=Kilday|first=Gregg|work=The Hollywood Reporter|date=May 5, 2015|access-date=April 11, 2024}}{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2015/06/band-of-robbers-clip-supergirl-melissa-benoist-los-angeles-film-festival-1201435805/|title='Band Of Robbers' LA Film Festival Trailer: 'Supergirl's Melissa Benoist In Grown-Up Huck Finn & Tom Sawyer Pic|last=Patten|first=Dominic|work=Deadline Hollywood|date=June 1, 2015|access-date=April 11, 2024}} The film was picked up for distribution by Gravitas Ventures, and had a limited release on January 15, 2016 in theaters in 11 cities.{{cite web |url=https://deadline.com/2016/01/specialty-box-office-brooklyn-room-spotlight-lady-in-the-van-1201684862/ |title=Oscar Nominees 'Brooklyn,' 'Room,' 'Spotlight' Jump; 'Lady In The Van' Solid – Specialty B.O. |last=Brooks |first=Brian |date=January 17, 2016 |website=Deadline Hollywood |access-date=January 17, 2016}}

Reception

Band of Robbers received generally positive reviews from The New York Times,{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/15/movies/review-band-of-robbers-riffs-on-mark-twain-characters-in-todays-missouri.html |title=Review: 'Band of Robbers' Riffs on Mark Twain Characters in Today's Missouri |last=Holden |first=Stephen |date=January 14, 2016 |website=The New York Times |access-date=January 27, 2019}} Variety,{{cite web |url=https://variety.com/2016/film/reviews/band-of-robbers-review-1201680656/ |title=Film Review: 'Band of Robbers' |last=Leydon |first=Joe |date=January 16, 2016 |website=Variety |access-date=January 27, 2019}} and The Cleveland Plain Dealer.{{cite web|url=http://www.cleveland.com/moviebuff/index.ssf/2016/01/band_of_robbers_review_clever.html|title='Band of Robbers' review: Clever modern twist on Mark Twain is comedy treasure|first=Joanna|last=Connors|website=cleveland.com|date=January 14, 2016 |access-date=January 27, 2019}} On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 78% based on 27 reviews, with an average rating of 6.51/10.{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/band_of_robbers_2016|title=Band Of Robbers (2016)|publisher=Rotten Tomatoes|access-date=May 21, 2020}} It has drawn comparisons to the films of Wes Anderson, particularly Bottle Rocket, and the Coen brothers.{{cite web|title=Review: Band of Robbers|url=https://www.joblo.com/movie-news/la-film-fest-review-band-of-robbers-187|website=JoBlo|date=January 14, 2016 |publisher=The JoBlo Network|access-date=April 21, 2016}}

It won the Director's Choice Award at the Naples International Film Festival.{{cite web|url=http://www.naplesfilmfest.com/2015-award-winners.html |title=2015 Festival Winners |url-status=dead |archive-date=March 15, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160315224500/http://www.naplesfilmfest.com/2015-award-winners.html|publisher=Naples International Film Festival|access-date=January 27, 2019}}