Film

Buster

Name: Buster
Genre: Comedy, Romance, Crime
Released: 1988
Cast: Phil Collins, Julie Walters, Larry Lamb, Ralph Brown, Christopher Ellison

Heist

A surprisingly tender caper-comedy about the aftermath of crime. Phil Collins plays Buster Edwards, a small-time crook caught in the wake of the Great Train Robbery, watching his marriage strain under the weight of hiding. It's funny and sad in equal measure—less heist film than portrait of a man learning that freedom and family don't always coexist.

TMDb rating

2.8

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you like heist stories told from the getaway side, where the loot matters less than the marriage and the mates left holding the bag, with a wry, unshowy tone.

Skip it if you want a lean, fast caper; this is a gentle, meandering character piece where the romance and domestic worry slow the thrills down.

What it asks of you: Expect a slow, easy-going stretch of about 102 minutes, its mood drifting between cheeky and melancholy, so keep your attention loose rather than locked on the plot.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Sexy Beast2001

Ray Winstone as a retired criminal whose peaceful life implodes when an old associate arrives. Like Buster, it finds dark comedy in crime's personal wreckage, but turns up the menace and style until the whole thing becomes hypnotic.

But Very violent, very profane, and Winstone's character spends much of it being thoroughly unlikeable. Not a comfortable watch.

In Bruges2008

Two hitmen hiding in a medieval city, wrestling with guilt and mortality. It has Buster's blend of gallows humour and genuine feeling, with the same sense that running from consequences is always a trap.

But The tonal shifts between comedy and violence can feel whiplashy if you're not in the mood for it. And it gets bleak.

The Ladykillers1955

Ealing at its peak: criminals posing as musicians to rob a bank, constantly thwarted by their sweet old landlady. The same affectionate humour toward working-class crooks, the same feeling that ordinary life keeps winning.

But British 1950s sensibility—some of the pacing will feel slow if you're used to modern editing. Takes its time building to jokes.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Buster

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

A Prophet2009

Both are films about the gap between the man you were before and the man you become when circumstances force your hand. Both suggest that gap might be unbridgeable.

A young man enters prison for a minor crime and becomes something else entirely. Like Buster, it's about a man caught between worlds—but it's a visceral, slow-burn journey into hardening, not softening. The performance is extraordinary.

But French-language prison drama. Brutal and long. No comedy at all, and the protagonist becomes someone you're not sure you like.

Thief1981

James Caan as a jewel thief trying to build a normal life. Michael Mann's film is sleeker and more violent than Buster, but shares that core tension: can you really trade the rush of crime for domesticity?

But Synth-heavy 80s score and a certain glacial coldness. Not warm or funny—it's all edges.

Get Carter1971

Michael Caine returns to his grey, industrial hometown to investigate his brother's death. British crime cinema at its sharpest—no glamour, just men in suits doing ugly things in rain-soaked streets.

But Genuinely bleak and violent. There's no comedy here, and no redemption—it's a film about the wages of that world being paid in full.

Mona Lisa1986

Bob Hoskins as a small-time crook released from prison, adrift in London, trying to reconnect with a world that's moved on. Neil Jordan finds poetry in failure and the kindness between damaged people.

But Quiet and melancholic—if you want pace or clear answers about what's happening, you'll be frustrated. It's a mood piece.

The Grifters1990

Anjelica Huston and John Cusack as con artists—mother and son—in a precarious dance of loyalty and self-preservation. Sharp, funny, and genuinely sad about people who've chosen the con over connection.

But Can feel a bit small and contained. Some viewers find the characters too detached to root for, which is rather the point.

Ocean's Eleven1960

Sinatra-era heist film with real charm—criminals as charming rogues, planning a big score for the thrill of it. Lighter than Buster, but shares that sense of camaraderie and wit in the face of trouble.

But Dated in ways that can feel quaint. The plotting is less important than the vibe, which won't work for everyone.

Moonlight2016

Both films understand that love and freedom are sometimes irreconcilable, and that the cost of choosing one is measured in the absence of the other. Both are elegies.

Three chapters in the life of a young Black man: as a boy, a teenager, an adult. Quietly devastating portrait of how small choices and impossibility shape a life. Exquisitely made—every frame is thought.

But Slow, poetic, and requires patience. No plot in the traditional sense. If you watch films for clarity and momentum, this will feel like it's about nothing.

The Man from the Pru1990

Same era, same low-key Britishness, same fascination with how ordinary men cope when the world demands more than they have to give. Both are oddly tender about their subjects.

A British insurance salesman's humdrum life cracks open. It's a small, strange, funny film about ordinariness and the fantasies we construct to survive it—made by a director you've never heard of, about a life you recognise.

But Genuinely obscure and uneven. The tone wobbles. It won't be on any streaming service you have and it takes real effort to find. And it's not always successful.