Roofman (2025) – Channing Tatum's True-Crime Caper That's Too Charming for Its Own Good
Hello, movie lovers! In this review, I'm scaling the rooftops with Roofman (2025), directed by Derek Cianfrance. Starring Channing Tatum as the infamous Jeffrey "Roofman" Manchester, Kirsten Dunst as his love interest Leigh, with Peter Sarsgaard as a relentless cop and supporting turns from Andy Garcia and Aimee Mullins, this R-rated crime-drama (2h 6m) chronicles a desperate dad's rooftop robberies and toy-store hideout. I was riveted from the first cut-in to the final chase—true-story tension that pulls no punches—earning a 9/10. Let's drop through the ceiling and unpack the heist.
Roofman (2025) - A True-Life Thrill Ride That's as Addictive as the Crimes It Glamorizes
From the opening roof breach—McDonald's vents cracking under moonlight, alarms silent—I was all in. Cianfrance (The Place Beyond the Pines, I Know This Much Is True) turns Jeffrey Manchester's wild 2000s spree into a pulse-pounder: Army vet turned deadbeat dad, slicing skylights for cash to fight for his kid. The Toys "R" Us squat? Genius—six months of cereal raids and Barbie-box beds, breath-holding close calls that had me white-knuckled. Tatum transforms: no Magic Mike charm, just haunted hustle. Dunst's Leigh adds heart—a divorced mom matching his mess, their spark a fragile light in the dark. At 9/10, it's a beautifully made survival saga—relatable dad struggles, ex-wife alienation, new-family hopes—wrapped in funny-fueled tension. The true-crime hook? Irresistible. But damn, it makes a felon feel like a folk hero.
The Plot: From Roof Rats to Toy-Store Terrors
Jeffrey "Roofman" Manchester (Channing Tatum), an Iraq vet crushed by child-support debts and a custody war, turns to unconventional capers: scaling fast-food roofs, dropping through vents for registers, vanishing like smoke. Nicknamed for his ninja entries, he funds his fight—until a bust lands him in prison. Escape? Check. Hiding spot? A shuttered Toys "R" Us, stocked with stuffed animals and surveillance shadows. Enter Leigh (Kirsten Dunst), a single mom whose path crosses his in a whirlwind of want ads and whispered plans. As cops close in—led by a dogged detective (Peter Sarsgaard)—Jeff's double life dangles by a thread: one wrong toy-stack, one bad date, and the house of cards collapses.
Cianfrance's script, from real headlines (Manchester's 2002-2009 rampage, per FBI files), blends Catch Me If You Can caper with The Florida Project grit—126 minutes of mounting mayhem, from roof runs to retail roulette. TIFF premiere September 6, wide October 10 via Paramount. Budget: $18M. Worldwide gross: $32M—a modest win for a mid-budget maverick. Themes of fatherly desperation and redemption's razor edge cut deep, but the charm offensive charms too much.
Performances That Drop Through the Roof
Channing Tatum disappears into Jeff—vulnerable vet with a thief's twinkle, his physicality popping in parkour heists, his heart breaking in custody calls. Kirsten Dunst glows as Leigh—flawed, fierce, her chemistry with Tatum a tender tightrope over the abyss. Peter Sarsgaard slinks as the hunter cop, all quiet menace and moral gray. Andy Garcia and Aimee Mullins add edge as family foils. This ensemble earns the empathy—rooting for a robber feels earned, not easy.
A Cianfrance Caper That's Equal Parts Heart and Heist
Cianfrance pivots from intimate indies to true-crime caper with Roofman, echoing Blue Valentine's relational rawness in Ocean's sleight-of-hand. Visuals vault from neon-lit roofs to toy-aisle twilight—handheld haze, hidden cams that amp the paranoia. Score swells with synth suspense, underscoring survival's silly stakes (Beanie Baby barters?). Unique in its felon-father focus—less glamour, more grit—it probes poverty's push to crime without cop-outs. Compared to The Wolf of Wall Street's excess, this is grounded grift: funny (vent mishaps), fraught (daughter's drawings amid duffel bags), and fiercely human.
Ratings and Critical Reception
IMDb: 7.1/10 (19,000 users), RT: 86% critics (198 reviews)/85% audience (Popcornmeter).
Critics hail it a "disarmingly sweet tonal gearshift" and "humane portrait of a guy who can't get out of his own way," praising Tatum's "eminently likable" lead. Some ding the "shaggy narrative" and "wobbly morality," but audiences root for the rogue. Box office: $32M on $18M—profitable underdog.
My 9/10 vibes with the love—true-story tension trumps the tweaks.
A Major Critique: Romanticizing the Robber
The film's Achilles' heel? It polishes Jeff's crimes with too much polish—armed heists, prison breaks, even torching a dentist feel like quirky quests, not felonies. We empathize with the dad, chuckle at the chaos, but post-credits, the gloss glares: he's no good Samaritan, he's a victimizer. The movie acknowledges the wreckage, but the warm wash makes us forget the weight—turning tragedy into too-cozy caper.
A Gripping Getaway for True-Crime Thrill-Seekers
At 9/10, Roofman is a beautifully made marvel—non-stop pull that blends heart, humor, and hold-your-breath heists. The true tale amps the awe; I'd rewatch for Tatum's tour de force and those toy-store tenses. Empathy for the everyman edges out the unease—flawed felon or flawed film?
What did you think of Roofman? Root for the Roofman, or roof the redemption? Drop your drops below—and suggest my next true-crime twist! Like, follow, share so you don’t miss the next breach. Thanks for the lookout—see you on the roof!
