Umbrella Men II: Escape From Robben Island

One of the unheralded delights of last year’s Toronto International Film Festival was John Barker’s spirited musical heist comedy The Umbrella Men, which saw a group of friends set up an elaborate scheme to rob a corrupt bank and thereby save their beloved club from a scheming developer. Although that film ended joyfully, as the title of this film suggests, they didn’t get away with it as neatly and completely as they thought.

Back at Toronto for a second year, the original team now presents a scenario which sees heroes Jerome (Jacques De Silva) and Mortimer (Keenan Arrison) picked up by the police and locked up on a reopened Robben Island, haunting symbol of Cape Town’s past. Unwilling to take their chances on a judicial system which could take years to kick into gear, Jerome’s partner Keisha (Shamilla Miller) and loyal friend Mila (Bronté Snell) have to figure out how to spring them, drawing on the resources of the Bo-Kaap community as the club is threatened once again.

It’s a very different story from the first one, much simpler in structure, but the character-driven comedy which formed the backbone of that film remains present, as does the music – the film opens with a chorus which fills in newcomers and those who may have forgotten what happened before. Once again, Cape Town itself is among the characters. We see a bit more of the Bo-Kaap, the iconic Robben Island is treated with an appropriate mixture of awe and dread, and we also take a trip to the sand dunes to the northwest of the city, where hiding ill-gotten gains proves to be more complicated than one character anticipated.

The complicated plan behind the heist was one of the delights of the first film and this one can’t match that. In places it feels far too straightforward, despite the risks which various characters feel compelled to take. It is pleasing, however, to see more focus on Miller and Snell, who were underused in the original and can easily match the men for chemistry and banter. Despite their experience with the bank, the women are far from seasoned criminals, which means that we have more reason to be nervous as we see them challenging men who are, sliding into the waters of a bay known for its sharks, and taking on armed prison guards.

In light of this, it’s a little disappointing to see Keisha slip into the background again when Jerome is around, but the male characters are still fun and deserve some space. Subplots about the fate of the money from the heist will make more sense if you’ve seen the first film but this one does stand on its own, and these deliver some of the funniest moments in the film, including a nicely placed speech addressed to a dog. Elsewhere, the film delivers well on action, and Barker knows how to shoot fights which are both fun to watch and capable of advancing our understanding of the characters.

Though not quite on a par with its predecessor, The Umbrella Men: Escape From Robben Island is an entertaining film with a lot of heart which should please established fans and win over a few new ones.