Parents' Guide to

How to Rob a Bank

By Barbara Shulgasser-Parker, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 14+

Docu about infamous criminal has violence, language, drugs.

Movie NR 2024 86 minutes
How to Rob a Bank movie poster: Robber stands in doorway

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

  • How to Rob a Bank: Man wielding gun
  • How to Rob a Bank: Robber looks suspicious in bank
  • How to Rob a Bank: Man in white tank top outside

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What's the Story?

For five years in the 1990s, a mysterious and theatrical armed robber suavely robbed a series of banks in the Seattle area until the FBI and local law enforcement caught up with him. His swashbuckling demeanor and the behind-the-scenes planning are revealed through interviews with police, FBI agents, and co-conspirators in HOW TO ROB A BANK. Scott Scurlock was a renegade meth-maker who decided that his line of business was getting too dangerous. Fearing arrest, he switched to robbing banks and did so successfully for five years, amassing more than $2 million from 1992 to 1996. He and his co-conspirators paid a high price.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say Not yet rated
Kids say (1 ):

This is an interesting true-crime tale for older teens and adults. How to Rob a Bank is a straightforward, workmanlike documentary that effectively tells the story of man who lived in a large treehouse, cooked meth in his own lab, then switched careers for bank robbing, and died a violent death. That Scurlock was an interesting and inventive person makes it seem all the sadder that his life was spent pursuing the freedoms he sought by way of illegal means.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about whether or not Scurlock was an admirable person. What traits of his are appealing? Which ones are not?

  • Why are we fascinated by people who appear not to play by the "rules" of society?

  • Do you think Scurlock's living in a grown-up's treehouse adds to his likability and appeal? Why or why not?

  • What's the appeal of true-crime tales?

Movie Details

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