X
- Netflix
- Apr 7, 2021
- Netflix
- Apr 7, 2021
Summary The documentary series directed by Colin Barnicle looks into the still unsolved case where two men dressed up as Boston police stole 13 works of art worth more than $500 million from Boston's Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in 1990.
- Netflix
- Apr 7, 2021
- Netflix
- Apr 7, 2021
Season Premiere: Apr 7, 2021
70
6.6
Summary The documentary series directed by Colin Barnicle looks into the still unsolved case where two men dressed up as Boston police stole 13 works of art worth more than $500 million from Boston's Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in 1990.
Season Episodes
View All Seasons
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 13 Critic Reviews
70
77% Positive
10 Reviews
10 Reviews
23% Mixed
3 Reviews
3 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 13 Critic Reviews
70
77% Positive
10 Reviews
10 Reviews
23% Mixed
3 Reviews
3 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
This Is a Robbery is expertly structured to build and keep momentum, teasing major elements of the story before bringing them home later. Despite its cinematic luster (The Irishman producer Jane Rosenthal is among the producers), this is a tight, four-episode series, not a four-hour movie. The interviews in This Is a Robbery are an embarrassment of riches.
What makes This Is a Robbery so compelling, and unique in contrast to the slew of other true crime docuseries available, is that everything about this crime is weird. The show does a terrific job of using experts to relay the strangeness of the heist – from what was (and wasn’t) stolen to the decision to keep the security guards alive.
The cast expands outwards from its most intriguing hub, encompassing attorneys, museum higher-ups, those connected to suspects, and people with a great deal to say. ... In all, this makes for a fascinating portrait of an incident that lives on in the memory of a city that has both high culture and organized crime encoded in its DNA.
Despite the first episode’s draggy pace, the aftermath of the Gardner Museum robbery is what will keep us watching.
One of the local reporters who’s been on the Gardner case beat since the beginning says that it’s been “30 years that these masterpieces have been missing. It needs a break.” “This is a Robbery” does a decent job at laying out what’s happened over those three decades — it also does a lot to prove that statement right.
"This Is a Robbery" occasionally delivers on the promise of its engrossing introduction, but is largely held back by the creators' obvious desire to methodically introduce and dismiss various theories, as well as an unfortunate lack of visual interest (especially for a series centered on art).
This Is a Robbery (directed by Colin Barnicle) is not entirely without merits. But it swerves into ponderous territory far too often to capture the incredible stakes and weight of the crime it examines.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 5 User Ratings
6.6
80% Positive
4 Ratings
4 Ratings
0% Mixed
0 Ratings
0 Ratings
20% Negative
1 Rating
1 Rating
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 5 User Ratings
6.6
80% Positive
4 Ratings
4 Ratings
0% Mixed
0 Ratings
0 Ratings
20% Negative
1 Rating
1 Rating
There are no user reviews yet. Be the first to add a review.
