Taking the tried-and-tested identity parade route to posterhood, Masterminds’ new UK quad introduces the heist comedy’s gallery of rogues. Roguing it up from left to right are Owen Wilson’s hapless accomplice Steve; Zach Galifianakis’ armoured car driver-turned-bank robber David; his other sidekick, Kristen Wiig’s Kelly; and Jason Sudeikis’s gormless hitman, Mike McKinney. The intellectual force is not strong in this lot.
Formerly known as Loomis Fargo, the long-awaited comedy from Napoleon Dynamite's Jared Hess now goes by that more-than-a-little-ironic handle. Inspired by a true incident in 1997, the story involves armoured car driver David, who channels his antipathy for the job into a plan to liberate a fortune from a bank vault. $17 million dollars worth. Sadly for him, he’s hardly operating at **Inside Man **or Rififi levels of competence. The trail of evidence for the police practically comes with its own sat-nav.
Double-crossed by Steve, Galifianakis’ hapless robber makes a run for it to Mexico where he sets about spending some of the cash. Not unnaturally, our hero's next plan is to get even.
The rest of the cast includes Ken Marino (Veronica Mars, We're The Millers) as a wealthy and resentful neighbour of Steve's; Kate McKinnon (SNL) as David's domineering fiancée; Leslie Jones (an SNL writer) as a detective on the thieves' trail; Mary Elizabeth Ellis (It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia) as Steve's gold-digging wife; and Devin Ratray (Blue Ruin, Nebraska, Home Alone) as Steve's henchman.
SNL's Emily Spivey wrote the original script, which was then overhauled by Chris Bowman, Hubbel Palmer, Jody Hill and Danny McBride; and there's yet one further SNL connection in Lorne Michaels, who's among the producers. Masterminds is out in the UK on October 9.