ROOFMAN

(director/writer: Derek Clanfrance; screenwriter: Kirt Gunn; cinematographer: Andrij Parekh; editor: Jim Helton, Ron Patane; music: Christopher Bear; cast: Peter Drinklage (Mitch), Channing Tatum (Jeffrey Manchester), Kirsten Dunst (Leigh Wainscott), Juno Temple (Michelle), Ben Mendelsohn (Ron Smith), Uzo Aduba (Eileen), Emory Cohen (Otis), Lily Collias (Lindsay Wainscott), Kennedy Moyer (Dee)Jimmy O. Yang (used car salesman),  Melonie Diaz (Jeffrey’s ex wife), LaKeith Stanfield (Steve); Runtime: 126; MPAA Rating: R; producers: Duncan Montgomery, Alex Orlovsky, Chris Parker, Jamie Patricof, Dylan Sellers, Lynette Howell Taylor; Limelight; 2025)

“A lively crime drama based on a true story.”

Reviewed by Dennis Schwartz

 
Smartly directed and written by Derek Clanfrance (“Blue Valentine”/”The Place Beyond The Pines”), and co-written by Kirt Gunn.

It’s a lively crime drama based on a true story. Channing Tatum plays Jeffrey Manchester, a former Army paratrooper officer with a wife (Melonie Diaz) and three children. He was convicted in 2004 for a string of 40 robberies by busting through the roofs of buildings like McDonald’s, earning the nickname “Roofman.” He’s given a prison sentence of 45 years, but breaks out and uses an alias to have an affair with Leigh (Kirsten Dunst), a single mom who is a worker for Toys”R” Us, in Charlotte, North Carolina. Her church congregation, run by the husband/wife singing team of Ron (Ben Mendelsohn) and Eileen (Uzo Aduba), approve of their relationship.

Tatum gives a winning performance as the polite thief we’re supposed to care about despite his crimes, who lives for months while on the run in the toy store. Peter Dinklage is a hoot as the mean-spirited toy store manager, and Dunst gives a sympathetic performance as the 40-something single mom.

It’s a flawed but genial film, that’s entertaining as a truth is stranger than fiction story.

REVIEWED ON 9/15/2025  GRADE: B
dennisschwartzreviews.com