spoilers - I got this as a recommendation after watching "Robot & Frank" on netflix.... not sure why... maybe because they both involve theft?? In our story, Sam, the bellhop (Craig Roberts) goes into a jewelry store, after meeting a cute girl Mary (Imogen Poots), and gets caught up in a heist. The jewelry story owner or manager is a big, blustery, blowhard, and I'm amazed that they didn't blow him away; he keeps yelling at the holdup guys, but they had no trouble killing a little old lady who was standing in the store at the time. One of the crooks has a terrible stutter, so he should be no problem to identify at some point. To make him even more quirky, the facemask which he wears has a virgin mary in the center, which the camera lingers on, now & then. A standout here is the sandwich shop clerk, played by Anthony Welsh. He has a smallish role, but carries it off well. The film is OK.... The hostages talk with each other, and with the inept crooks, at one point to stop them from possibly raping one of the hostages. Not the best film I've watched, but not the worst. Lots of talking, some shooting. Ordering food. The jewelry store owner/manager switches from insulting the bellhop to praising him pretty quickly. Then it all hits the fan, the big adventure is over, and they talk a lot about their future plans and dreams for people who were just facing death a few minutes before.

The imbalance caused by the reviewer from New york is a shame. He talks about IQ over 70, but he obviously didn't understand this movie. It is robust and well acted and there certainly is chemistry between the leads. Don't be put off by this American misery. Well worth your time! By the way I have an IQ of 149 and couldn't fault it.The pace is consistent, the locations are excellent, and any appearance by Timothy Spall is a bonus. I feel the Brits do this sort of caper far better than Hollywood, especially considering the low budget, you don't need bucket loads of cash thrown at a project to make sure it's good, or a "star name". Let's appreciate it for what it is and leave the criticism for those megabucks movies from USA that leave you cold, and waste your time!

I wouldn't use any extreme words to describe this film. It's not 'fantastic' or 'hysterical' or 'must see'. But it is interesting and unusual.The story of a jewelry heist gone very wrong and the three hostages awaiting resolution in the rarefied atmosphere of an elite London antique jewelry shop , it is fairly quiet, reserved,occasionally funny ;and occasionally jolting, stressful,violent.Except for a few scenes, it all takes place in one interior ,so it feels very much like a play.I wasn't familiar with any of the actors except my hero, Timothy Spall, but they were all spot on.And it was very interesting to me that the five main actors all pretty much had equal time. There was no one person that 'made the picture.' For me, the story and the characters all felt very authentic and believable, and the pace never felt lagging or forced. The unexpected elements were the romantic interludes- a grief struck gentleman remembering the love of his life,a fairy tale-like story told to distract a worried hostage; a psychopath mesmerized by an opera aria; and they all contributed to making a heist/hostage film something quite different and out of the ordinary.I really enjoyed it.

I couldn't believe that there weren't many reviews for this movie because i think it is underrated. The acting from Craig Roberts & Imogen Poots was spot on. I couldn't think of anyone better to play the roles of Sam and Mary. Sam's slightly shy but slick personality is brilliantly portrayed by Craig Roberts as in 'Submarine', where he plays a similar awkward, shy character. Comes a bright day has a very good storyline to it as it never got boring and I wanted to keep watching. There is a comical aspect to this movie but isn't overpowering. I can't wait to watch it again, the type of movie you just need to watch to know what it's all about, a must see!