Stander | | Cast : | Thomas Jane, David O'Hara, Dexter Fletcher | | Director : | Bronwen Hughes | | Studio : | Columbia Tristar Hom | | Format : | Color, Widescreen, Dolby | | Released Date : | August 06, 2004 | | DVD Released Date : | July 05, 2005 | | Language : | English (Dubbed), Spanish (Subtitled) | | Audience Rating : | R (Restricted) | | | BUY THIS DVD FROM AMAZON |
Customer Reviews
| Rating |  | | Date | July 02, 2005 | | Summary | COMPELLING CRIME DRAMA | Content
 | Based on a true story, STANDER is the story of a frustrated cop who becomes a bank robber, robbing over 25 banks while a cop, and then many more after he escapes from prison and enlists the aid of two fellow escapees in his heists. Set in the smiley face days of the 70s, STANDER works due to the remarkable performance by Thomas Jane, who has been critically lambasted for some of his work in "The Punisher" and "Dreamcatcher." In this film, Jane captures the frustration, guilt, and determination of Andre Stander. This antihero actually wins his audience's sympathy as he struggles to elude the law and expunge his own guilt over the murder of an African rebel. STANDER is a different film and even with its tragic conclusion, stays in your mind. |
| Rating | | | Date | May 20, 2005 | | Summary | Amazing: Truth Stranger Than Fiction | Content
| Stander was one of the least watched and most amazing films of the year. Tom Jane gives a startling, heart ripping, pulse pounding portrayal of outlaw Andre Stander. Stander was the notorious Johannesburg police officer shocked and revolted by what he witnessed as an officer in apartheid driven South Africa. To prove what's wrong Stander embarks on a career of crime - bank robberies to be specific, and he finds he's good at it. Very good indeed.
Though we know what he's doing is inherently wrong, one cannot not route for Stander as he and his gang become more and more daring and flamboyant with their bank heists.
The supporting cast is up to the challenge and Deborah Kara Unger gives a standout performance as Stander's much put-upon wife whom he never stops loving.
Rare is the film that combines such strong social and political commentary with rip-roaring action adventure. This is a truly remarkable effort from director Bronwyn Hughes who'd previously given us fluff like "Harriet the Spy" and the Ben Affleck challenged "Forces of Nature." If she makes more films like "Stander" - she could be collecting gold statuettes.
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| Rating | | | Date | May 13, 2005 | | Summary | Based on a true story. | Content
| the film was based on the true life story of Andre Stander (Tom Jane) who is a white South African police officer in Johannesberg who has a great career and a beautifull wife (Deborah Unger). But soon after a riot that endes up with the killing of some unarmed black civilians and violence happens, he is shocked by the events that just took place and then decides to break the law by becoming a bank robber and goes against the system, so the film shows us how sucsesful he was and how he managed to escape untill he gets imprisoned where he meets two friends who then break out of prison and eventually become partners in crime.
What I liked about this film was the exciting way the film was shot, some of the action scenes were great including a car chase that was hard to believe considering that it was based on a true event. The drama takes place during a difficult time in South Africa where racial upheavel would take place in the late 70's and soon Andre had become a notorious criminal and a wanted man that robbed almost 40 banks wearing various disguises. I think that Tom Jane did a great job portraying this character and made this film more compeling to watch so I deffinently recommend that you buy this or at least rent it. |
| Rating | | | Date | April 15, 2005 | | Summary | One of 2004 most underated and unnoticed greats! | Content
| This movie wasn't promoted a lot, and of course not a lot of people saw it or even rent it, but I asure, it's a great movie. It's based on a true story of the life of Andre Stander. South African police who saw corruption and decided to turn Bank robber to prove it. The problem is that he got too much into it. I'm not familiar with the casts, but it's a great performance from all. I will recomand this movie for those who like true life story. Again, Good story, good performance, lots of actions and emotional ending. |
| Rating | | | Date | March 01, 2005 | | Summary | "You know, a white man could get away with anything today" | Content
| Stander is such a bizarre and incomprehensible story, that I watched this movie pretty much in disbelief. To think that a white South African policeman and riot enforcer would have some sort of epiphany and start robbing banks after he participates in quenching a violent and deadly riot is a bit of a stretch. But the film is reportedly based on a true story, which makes it even more weird, and while its good in places, it never really gets to the heart of Standers motivations for doing what he did. Is he a sociopath? Did the killing of innocent black men make him have some kind of breakdown? Is he some kind of modern day Robin Hood? Or is he all of these things? This viewer was never really sure.
Set in South Africa during the terrible days of apartheid, Andre Stander (a really sexy Thomas Jane), is the son of an Afrikaans general, and is the youngest police captain in the Johannesburg Police Force. We first meet him when he is about to remarry is ex-wife Bekkie (Deborah Kara Unger, terrific as usual). They have just spent a honeymoon on a beach frolicking in the water naked, and they're both obviously hot for each other again. For much of the first 20 minutes, we witness them having lots of whispery, shadowy sex with Stander showing off his tight, muscled body.
Stander is employed to oversee a peaceful demonstration by the black population, but thanks to some trigger-happy cops the protest turns violent and Stander kills an unarmed man. Determined to seek repentance and realizing that the white system is too busy trying to stamp out black liberation than fight real crime, he's encouraged by his loving father (Marius Weyers) to resign from the force.
Determined to expose the shortcomings in the white authoritarian system, Stander begins to rob banks. He gradually becomes more audacious with each robbery, using a variety of different inventive disguises, until he's eventually caught. In jail he meets Allan Heyl (David Patrick O'Hara) and Dexter Fletcher (Lee McCall), and the three of them conspire to break out of prison, eventually going on a crime wave that is unprecedented in South African history.
Apart from the visually stunning opening sequence, with its fascinating overhead vistas of Johannesburg, that contrast the opulent suburban white communities with horrendous black shantytowns, the film - perhaps unwisely - disposes of any overt political analysis. Instead, Stander concentrates on the friendship that develops between the three men, and their efforts to outwit the ever-increasing machinations of the South African police. There are lots of car chases and bank robberies as Stander, Allan, and Dexter become cross-country buddies and construct even more daring and enterprising robberies. How Stander eventually outwits the authorities is one of the highlights of the film.
Thomas Jane is absolutely terrific as Stander. He carries this movie totally, from the intensely dramatic to the quietly intimate. And while sometimes his South African accent is hard to understand, he still brings an enormously powerful and earthy presence to the screen. All the other players are good, especially Deborah Kara Unger who just can't emotionally handle Stander's divisive lifestyle anymore.
The film looks good, coloured in heavy yellows and browns and the period costumes help to expertly recreate the era of 1974. But the film often looks rather cheap and cheesy and, at times, it's terribly hard to follow, with short small scenes confusingly interspersed together. Stander was obviously a complex man of contradictions, and also a man who liked to hang out naked. And since he ended up keeping most of the money he stole, I'm not sure whether this film did a good enough job of showing whom Stander really was. Mike Leonard March 05.
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