Bandit (film)

Gilbert Galvan Jr, a charming career criminal, escapes from a Michigan prison and crosses the border into Ontario, Canada where he assumes a new identity as Robert Whiteman. After falling in love with a woman he cannot provide for, he turns to robbing banks and discovers that he is exceptionally good at it. Under the guise of a security analyst, Robert begins flying around the country robbing multiple cities in a day, eventually catching the attention of national news outlets that dub him "The Flying Bandit". With his notoriety growing in record time, he is put into the direct sight of a ruthless detective who will stop at nothing to bring him down.

• Josh Duhamel as Gilbert Galvan Jr/Robert Whiteman{{cite news|last=Christinck|first=Debbi|title=Mel Gibson in upcoming movie based on Ottawa Valley bandit|date=June 30, 2021|newspaper=Toronto Star|url=https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2021/06/30/mel-gibson-in-upcming-movie-based-on-otgawa-valley-bandit.html?rf|accessdate=June 24, 2022}}
• Mel Gibson as Tommy Kay{{cite magazine|last=Horst|first=Carole|title=First Look: Josh Duhamel in Crime Thriller 'Bandit'|date=July 10, 2021|magazine=Variety|url=https://variety.com/2021/film/markets-festivals/josh-duhamel-bandit-cannes-1235016145/|accessdate=June 24, 2022}}
• Elisha Cuthbert as Andrea Hudson{{cite news|last=Ho|first=Rodney|title=Mel Gibson, Josh Duhamel, Elisha Cuthbert shooting 'Bandit' film in Georgia|date=May 29, 2021|newspaper=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution|url=https://www.ajc.com/life/radiotvtalk-blog/mel-gibson-josh-duhamel-elisha-cuthbert-shooting-bandit-film-in-georgia/WMQLJ7UK2FDTPEVS4YE3ENDGEU/|accessdate=June 24, 2022}}
• Nestor Carbonell as John Snydes{{cite magazine|last=Galuppo|first=Mia|title=Cannes: Josh Duhamel on Playing a Career Criminal in 'Bandit,' 'Jupiter's Legacy' Cancellation|date=June 29, 2021|magazine=The Hollywood Reporter|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/cannes-josh-duhamel-bandit-jupiters-legacy-1234968323/|accessdate=June 24, 2022}}

On October 30, 2020, it was announced that Josh Duhamel would star as Gilbert Galvan Jr in an adaptation of Robert Knuckle's book The Flying Bandit, which details the life of Galvan.{{cite news|last1=Mcnary|first1=Dave|title=Josh Duhamel Boarding Bank Heist Thriller 'Bandit |url=https://variety.com/2020/film/news/film-news-in-brief-18-1234815978/|accessdate=October 26, 2020|work=variety.com |date=October 26, 2020}} On May 19, 2021, Mel Gibson and Elisha Cuthbert joined the cast. On June 15, 2021, it was reported that Nestor Carbonell had joined the cast as a detective hunting Duhamel's character.{{cite news|last1=Kit|first1=Borys|title=Nestor Carbonell Joins Josh Duhamel in Action Thriller 'Bandit |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/nestor-carbonell-joins-josh-duhamel-in-action-thriller-bandit-1234968102/|accessdate=June 15, 2021|work=hollywoodreporter.com|date=June 15, 2021}}

Filming was originally planned to take place in Vancouver and Ottawa, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, most of the production was relocated to the state of Georgia.{{cite news|last1=Lang|first1=Brent|title=Mel Gibson, Elisha Cuthbert Join Josh Duhamel in 'Bandit' (EXCLUSIVE) |url=https://variety.com/2021/film/news/mel-gibson-elisha-cuthbert-josh-duhamel-bandit-1234976527/|accessdate=May 19, 2021|work=Variety|date=May 19, 2021}} Film crews were spotted in and around the Valdosta area in May and June 2021.{{cite news|last1=Morejon|first1=Jennifer|title='Bandit' movie shoot takes over Downtown Valdosta|url=https://www.wctv.tv/2021/06/09/bandit-movie-shoot-takes-over-downtown-valdosta/|accessdate=June 9, 2021|work=wctv.com|date=June 9, 2021}} Additional filming took place in Ottawa in September 2021.

During interviews with Collider and Screen Rant, director Allan Ungar revealed that even though the shooting schedule was cut from 32 days down to 21, the production still managed to shoot 200 scenes in 95 sets and locations. This often required Ungar to be directing three units at once, sometimes with cast member Nestor Carbonell's help.{{cite news|last1=Hermanns|first1=Grant|title=Allan Ungar & Nestor Carbonell Interview: Bandit|url=https://screenrant.com/bandit-allan-ungar-nestor-carbonell-interview/|accessdate=September 28, 2022|work=Screen Rant|date=September 28, 2022}} Carbonell tore his achilles tendon while filming the chase scene for The Big Vancouver. Although he was advised to go in for surgery immediately, he decided to stay on until the completion of principal photography with the assistance of a walking boot. Despite this, only a few of the scenes involving his character Snydes had to be rewritten.{{cite web|last=Weintraub|first=Steve|title=Néstor Carbonell and 'Bandit' Director Allan Ungar Talk Wild True Story About Canada's Infamous Flying Bandit|date=September 27, 2022|website=Collider|url=https://collider.com/nestor-carbonell-bandit-director-allan-ungar-interview-shogun-driver/|accessdate=September 27, 2022}}

The film was theatrically released in the United States and Canada on September 23, 2022, and was also made available on digital platforms.{{cite web |first=Jill|last=Goldsmith|title='Railway Children,' Anvil, Abigail Disney & 'The Greatest Beer Run Ever' – Specialty Preview |url=https://deadline.com/2022/09/railway-children-return-anvil-abigail-disney-greatest-beer-run-ever-specialty-preview-1235125995/ |website=Deadline Hollywood |date=23 September 2022 |access-date=23 September 2022 |language=en}} In its first two weeks of release, Bandit was the #1 movie on iTunes across multiple categories and was the 5th most watched film on the platform.{{cite web |title=iTunes Top Independent Movies |url=https://www.popvortex.com/movies/charts/top-independent-movies.php|publisher=Pop Vortex |access-date=1 October 2022 |language=en}}{{cite web |title=What Killed 'Blonde' at Netflix? The Gerard Butler Did It |url=https://www.indiewire.com/2022/10/blonde-netflix-gerard-butler-1234768880/|website=Indiewire |access-date=2 October 2022 |language=en}} Upon its debut on Paramount Plus Canada, it was the #1 film in its first week.{{cite web |title=Top 10 on Paramount+ In Canada|url=https://flixpatrol.com/top10/paramount-plus/canada/|website=FlixPatrol |access-date=27 November 2022 |language=en}} It was released in the UK and several countries across Europe as an Amazon Original on Prime Video on February 22, 2023 where it spent its first two weeks at #1 and #2, and remained in the top 10 of all films for its first month. Netflix released the film in 19 countries on November 11, 2024 where it remained in the top 5 for its first week.{{cite web |title=Top 10 Most Popular Movies On Netflix |url=https://www.netflix.com/tudum/top10/mexico?week=2024-11-10|publisher=Netflix |access-date=27 November 2024 |language=en}} It also reached #1 on Apple TV in Canada, Australia, Spain and Russia.{{cite web |title=Flix Patrol Bandit |url=https://flixpatrol.com/title/bandit/|publisher=FlixPatrol |access-date=19 November 2022 |language=en}}

On October 28, 2022, a month after its release, Redbox announced that the film was the most-watched original title of 2022 and their second-best performing release ever.{{cite web |title=In Brief: NBA stars, Wu-Tang rapper board Handle with Care |url=https://playbackonline.ca/2022/10/28/in-brief-nba-stars-wu-tang-rapper-board-handle-with-care|publisher=Playback Online |access-date=28 October 2022 |language=en}}

Critical reception for the film has been mostly positive, with many critics and journalists praising Josh Duhamel for delivering a career-best performance as well as Ungar's direction.{{cite web |title=Bandit Review: Josh Duhamel Steals The Show As A Legendary Canadian Bank Robber |date=20 September 2022 |url=https://www.thewrap.com/bandit-review-josh-duhamel-elisha-cuthbert-nestor-carbonell/|publisher= The Wrap |access-date=21 September 2022 |language=en}}{{cite web |title=Bandit Review|url=https://www.joblo.com/bandit-review/ |publisher= Joblo|access-date=21 September 2022 |language=en}} On Rotten Tomatoes, 74% of 35 critics gave the film a positive review, with the critic consensus declaring "It struggles to consistently capture its fact-based story's stranger-than-fiction charm, but Bandit mostly works -- and Josh Duhamel has never been better."{{cite web |title=Bandit |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/bandit |publisher=Rotten Tomatoes |access-date=20 January 2024 |language=en}}

The film won the award for Best Soundtrack at the 2023 Canadian Sync Awards as part of Canadian Music Week.{{cite web | last=King | first=Ashley | title=Here are the Winners of the 2023 Canadian Sync Awards | website=Digital Music News | date=2023-06-09 | url=https://www.digitalmusicnews.com/2023/06/08/canadian-sync-awards-2023-winners/ | access-date=2023-06-09}}

{{reflist}}

• {{IMDb title|9853500}}

{{Allan Ungar}}

Category:Films shot in Georgia (U.S. state)

Category:Canadian crime drama films

Category:Films directed by Allan Ungar

Category:2020s Canadian films

Category:2022 biographical drama films

Category:Crime films based on actual events