By GhostWhoWalks

Summary: This television movie is based on real life events and it tells the story behind the FBI’s hunt for a pair of armed bank robbers who have been terrorizing banks around Miami.

Notable cast members: The most well known cast members here are Ronny Cox, Michael Gross and David Soul. Ronny Cox was the lead villain in Robocop and Total Recall and was also in the first two Beverly Hills Cop films. Michael Gross is best known for playing Steven Keaton on Family Ties, and David Soul was, of course, Hutch on the classic cop show Starsky and Hutch.

In the film, Cox plays the senior member of the FBI agents out to catch the robbers, while Gross and Soul play the robbers.

Review: What I think stands out in this film is that the writing and acting is above what you’d usually expect out of a TV movie, and it’s combination of that writing and acting that gives you a movie that is more than deserving of a prime time slot on any quality cable channel and a late night slot on network television.

Given the subject matter of the movie it’s pretty dark for the most part, as you get a good look into the mindset of the films two villains and their behavior, and you’re also very aware of how desperate the FBI are to get their hands on them. It’s not all dark, however, as a very distinct atmosphere of camaraderie and friendship is clear whenever the FBI agents are together, either in the office working on the case or out of the office and together having fun. That is something that I think is important in a film like this, because it enables you to feel closer to the FBI guys and become more invested in the outcome of the movie.

The best scenes of the movie feature the villains, Gross and Soul, as they very effectively portray their character as dark and sinister villains, completely unlikable, and they successfully make you forget about their most famous roles, which were the total antithesis of their characters here. The FBI agents have their scenes too; when they get together for a barbecue at the house of one of the agents, it comes across like they genuinely all like each other and really are close friends, making the scene all the better and decidedly poignant, especially after the conclusion of the film.

The climactic scene of the film is the fateful showdown between the FBI agents and the bank robbers, and it’s very powerful stuff as the hunt for the robbers’ ends in a dramatic and violent shoot out that, in real life, was considered one of the most violent in FBI history. The scene reflects this, and it is a wild and violent affair, but at the same time incredibly dramatic as the agents and villains battle it out in the final showdown.

Overall Impressions: This is a very good movie. The writing is good and the acting is top-notch. There are no filler scenes as everything means something and tells a part of the story. This movie gets: A strong recommendation to see.