My mother broke her arm last week and is now staying with us. As you might imagine, it has been a challenging few days, so we decided to watch a movie last night. Finding the right film is always tricky. Mom is no fan of bad language, violence, angst, subtitles and you can guess the last category.

We settled on Bandits, a twenty year old movie starring Bruce Willis, Cate Blanchett and Billy Bob Thornton.  Bruce and Billy Bob play convicts who break out of prison using a cement mixing truck. They connect with a stunt man wannabe, played by Jane Fonda’s son, Troy Garrity. The three men form a gang called The Sleep-Over Bandits. The night before a bank heist, these guys stay at the bank manager’s home. The next morning, they force the manager to help them rob the bank before customers arrive. Soon after their first robbery, they run into Kate (Cate Blanchett), a wealthy housewife who is disenchanted with her inattentive husband.

The writing is quirky and intelligent. The directing is spectacular. I’ve never seen better comedic timing and that goes for all four of the main characters. The plot is deliciously absurd and not altogether predictable. If you’d like to take your mind off of reality, check out this movie.