The Old Man & the Gun

Fox Searchlight Pictures | Release Date: September 28, 2018

6.7	USER SCORE Generally favorable reviews based on 101 Ratings

USER RATING DISTRIBUTION

Positive:

Mixed:

Negative:

Watch Now

Buy on

Stream On

Expand

Review this movie

VOTE NOW

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Please sign in or create an account before writing a review.

Check box if your review contains spoilers

0 characters (5000 max)

User Reviews

User score By date Most helpful

GreatMartinOct 13, 2018

Robert Redford announced that this would be his last picture as an actor only to rescind that which is a good thing as he must have seen “The Old Man and The Gun”. Nothing wrong with the film except it is pretty lame to use as a swan song!Robert Redford announced that this would be his last picture as an actor only to rescind that which is a good thing as he must have seen “The Old Man and The Gun”. Nothing wrong with the film except it is pretty lame to use as a swan song!

The movie is based on the true story of Forrest Tucker, who was a serial bank robber, and supposedly was caught 17 times and escaped from jail 17 times. Sounds like it would be a shoot ‘em up, car chases not to mention jail scenes but all you get is one chase scene. Forrest seems to have been a polite and charming bank robber whose victims had nothing bad to say about him and makes for a somewhat boring movie.

Let’s face it that the role should fit Redford like a glove as he is known as a charmer, is known for his smile and no one is Hollywood seems to have anything bad to say about him which really doesn’t make for excitement! We learn very little about who the man was except robbing banks was his job and he loved his job.

We learn very little about his 2 partners in crime Danny Glover and Tom Waits and how they became the Over the Hill Gang.

We do learn more about Casey Affleck as the detective determined to get Tucker but we don’t know why, like we meet his wife and kids but get to know very little about an interracial marriage in Texas in 1981. Tika Sumpter, who plays a real nasty woman in Tyler Perry’s “The Have and The Have Nots” with relish, yet here is the sweet little wife and mother.

The main reason to see this movie is Sissy Spacek. It is far from a revelation to express what a fine actress is but here as Jewel, a woman Redford strikes up a romance with, and in most of their scenes her charm puts his to shame! Like the bank robberies and the aftermaths of being caught, prison and escaping the same, the romance between these two is so low keyed you aren’t sure anything happened!

“The Old Man and The Gun” is a blank and shouldn’t be Redford’s last acting job.… Expand

2 of 4 users found this helpful22

All this user's reviews

TVJerryOct 22, 2018

In what he's claiming is his last performance Robert Redford plays a gentleman who robs banks, while often charming the victims. It's loosely based on a true story about a man who also broke out of prison 16 times. This story picks up duringIn what he's claiming is his last performance Robert Redford plays a gentleman who robs banks, while often charming the victims. It's loosely based on a true story about a man who also broke out of prison 16 times. This story picks up during his final heists, when he befriends Sissy Spacek. Meanwhile, crumpled dectective (Casey Affleck) tries to track him down. This is a gentle, sweet film with plenty of Redford's charisma. His chemistry with Spacek adds another layer of genteel appeal. It moves at a leisurely pace without any action or surprises. Not a splashy final farewell, but quietly amiable.… Expand

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

All this user's reviews

jhepOct 25, 2018

The film would have made more sense if during the bank robbery scenes Robert Redford had worn a button on his lapel saying “Don’t be alarmed. I’m Bob Redford and you’re in a scene in my Swan Song movie about a lovable old coot who robs banksThe film would have made more sense if during the bank robbery scenes Robert Redford had worn a button on his lapel saying “Don’t be alarmed. I’m Bob Redford and you’re in a scene in my Swan Song movie about a lovable old coot who robs banks but would NOT hurt a fly!”……Films based on “true stories” often get filmmakers and script writers into a lot of trouble and sadly this meandering tale is no exception. Maybe this explains why it comes complete with at least a dozen “helpful” notices that say “Tuesday, November 12th 1981, 4:03 PM” and that seem to belong in another movie……Redford is charming but his character remains so vague and undeveloped that we gradually lose interest in him. The real heartbreak here is that Sissy Spacek’s characterization is so promising that she ALMOST gives the story a badly needed core of authenticity. However the Whimsy Tsunami eventually sweeps everything in it path and - sadly-
Spacek’s truly fine performance goes with it.… Expand

0 of 2 users found this helpful02

All this user's reviews

HotelCentralMar 7, 2019

The problem here is that there isn't much of a story. It's about a guy who robs banks. He doesn't have any particular reason for robbing banks. He doesn't appear to have anything against banks. He just loves robbing banks and he doesn'tThe problem here is that there isn't much of a story. It's about a guy who robs banks. He doesn't have any particular reason for robbing banks. He doesn't appear to have anything against banks. He just loves robbing banks and he doesn't even do the deed in a way you could call "clever." Like most modern bank robbers, he just walks into the place and quietly tells somebody he's robbing the bank and the teller or whoever hands over the money.

Also, he meets a woman. They go eat. They talk. That's pretty much it.

A great deal of time is devoted to the police detective who wants to catch the bank robber. This guy doesn't do anything very clever either. In fact, he doesn't do much of anything at all. The character is played as such a laid-back guy you have to wonder if he's got the energy to actually put handcuffs on anybody. He certainly doesn't do a lot of detecting and in the end it's a bunch of cops in uniform who do the arresting.

At some point the FBI takes over the case. That is the first and last time the FBI does anything significant in this film. It may also be the first and last time the FBI even appears in this film. I can't swear that I stayed awake through every minute of the entire film so my apologies to the "FBI" if I missed something.

Frankly, the film is so lackadaisical I wondered if it would die of natural causes before the end credits rolled.

And, yeah, Robert Redford is a fine actor, but in days to come I'll remember him for the Sundance Kid and Three Days of the Condor and All the President's Men. The Old Man and the Gun I've pretty much already forgotten.

Watch it if you must, but don't expect much.… Expand