“Three and a half years in jail or twenty-five (thousand) in the bank”? That’s the premise, essentially, of the new MUBI dramedy, “The Delinquents,” which was one of the big hits from Cannes’ Un Certain Regard section earlier this year (read our glowing review here). In short, bank workers toiling away for pennies get fed up, know the system well, and think they can pull off a bank heist with minimal interruptions to their lives—some jail time— and meanwhile, they get rich.
READ MORE: Fall Film Preview: 60+ Most Anticipated Movies To Watch
An amusing heist film that comments on capitalism, labor forces, inequity, and more, “The Delinquents” comes from Argentinian filmmaker Rodrigo Moreno; his 2011 film “A Mysterious World” premiered In Competition at the 61st Berlin International Film Festival and was nominated for the Golden Bear.
And now he’s been upped to Cannes status, and based on the reaction from the Croisette earlier this year, he’s likely there to stay with an open invite from now on for whatever he makes next.
Starring Daniel Elías and Esteban Bigliardi, here’s the official synopsis:
Morán (Daniel Eliás) is a bank employee in Buenos Aires who dreams up a risky plan to liberate himself and his co-worker Román (Esteban Bigliardi) from the shackles of working life: Morán will steal enough cash from the bank to fund their retirement if Román hides the money for him after he confesses and serves prison time; in three years’ time, they’ll reunite, split the cash, and never have to work again. Departing to the countryside to fulfill his side of the deal, the less adventurous Román finds himself transformed by Morán’s idyllic vision of economic liberation far from the rigors of urban life. But what is the true cost of freedom? From writer-director Rodrigo Moreno (A Mysterious World) comes an existential probe into the work-life balance and what happens when it’s shattered and replaced with something radical and new. Combining sumptuous imagery and dry humor, Moreno finds universality and complexity in the eternal dilemma of forging our livelihood.
“The Delinquents” is in theaters October 18 in the US, October 26 across Latin America, and October 27 in Canada. Watch the new trailer below.
