Superthief: Inside America's Biggest Bank Score (2012)

Like so many documentaries, the mileage of "Superthief" largely depends on the viewer's interest in the subject matter. A truly good documentary should be able to cultivate that interest, however, and "Superthief" has a hard time stealing the viewer's attention.

"Superthief: Inside America's Biggest Bank Score," tells the story of the 1972 Laguna Niguel bank burglary where Amil Dinsio and his team stole an estimated $30 million to $70 million from a United California Bank.

As it's based on Rick Porello's book which in turn is based off his own manuscript, the documentary is told from the point of Phil Christopher, the "Superthief" behind disabling the vault's alarm.

Though his role was invaluable to the job, simply focusing on Christopher diminishes the role of the other team members, especially Dinsio.

A 2003 episode of "Masterminds," a Canadian crime documentary show, makes the escapade more interesting than it is in "Superthief" by using computer-generated recreations of the bank's architecture. It also walks the viewer through the burglary and criminal investigation step-by-step with limited reenactments.
It does all this in one-third the running time of "Superthief."

In contrast, "Superthief" is little more than a series of interviews strung together with archival photographs and voiceover.

Before "Superthief," director Tommy Reid created a documentary about Danny Greene. This documentary paved the way for feature film "Kill The Irishman." It's easy to imagine Reid hopes the same will happen here.

Christopher is a likeable guy. Where "Superthief" excels is in creating sympathy for him. At 69, he should be nearing retirement. Instead, he's three years out of prison and working for a living.

If a competent actor portrayed him in feature film, he could have a similar charismatic quality to Johnny Depp's George Jung in "Blow," though a writing team would certainly have to punch up the story with some drama between the key players.

Of course, there's nothing wrong with "Superthief" as it stands, but there's nothing particularly right about it either. It's a strictly by-the-books retelling of historical events, and - personally - I've always had a hard time staying awake in history class.