Starring Scott Speedman, Kelly Reilly
Directed by Nathan Morlando
Admittedly, this portrait of Toronto's most infamous bank robber is sleek and entertaining enough to suggest that more Canadian folk heroes should be considered as fodder for mainstream movies. However, writer-director Nathan Morlando's egregious copycatting of Michael Mann's Public Enemies and failure to recognize his own story's strongest elements mean that the jury remains out on whether he's one to watch.
Returning home to Toronto after WWII, Boyd struggles to hold down a job. Much to the consternation of his dutiful wife Doreen (Kelly Reilly), he instead aspires to become a star of stage and screen. In a moment of desperation, he disguises himself with Doreen's makeup, grabs a pistol, and bursts into the nearest bank. Discovering that a pointed gun guarantees a captive audience, Boyd preens like Errol Flynn in The Adventures of Robin Hood. His flamboyance only grows more pronounced with each ensuing heist.
Fleetly paced to a fault, Edwin Boyd burns through its best material by the end of its first act. Playing his anti-hero as a damaged dreamer, the often unappreciated Speedman lends some intriguing subtext to Morlando's workmanlike dialogue.When he mutters, I lost some time overseas, it's clearly apparent that his service cost him much more than just years.
Unfortunately, such nuanced work goes for naught when Morlando suddenly saddles his protagonist with a gang of anonymous thugs and their less-than-enthralling subplots. As a result, it becomes increasingly difficult for Boyd to find screen time in the film bearing his name. And as the proceedings devolve into overly familiar plot points, viewers will be left feeling like they've just been robbed of a truly unique character study.
