A fugitive hides out in a toy store and romances a single mother in Roofman. Jeffrey Manchester (Channing Tatum) is a divorced US Army veteran struggling to provide for his three kids. Highly intelligent and possessing keen observation skills, Jeffrey managed to commit 45 armed robberies at McDonald’s restaurants, earning the nickname “Roofman” due to his modus operandi of entering through the roof. However, Jeffrey is caught for his latest robbery and is sentenced to 45 years in prison.
While behind bars, Jeffrey carefully devises a plan to escape and seeks the help of his friend Steve (LaKeith Stanfield) to obtain documents that will enable him to leave the country. However, Jeffrey has to wait for the heat to die down, so he ends up squatting in an unobserved nook of a Toys “R” Us store, oblivious to the store’s manager, Mitch (Peter Dinklage). When Mitch refuses to donate toys to a church fundraiser run by employee Leigh Wainscott (Kirsten Dunst), Jeffrey takes it upon himself to steal some toys and donate them himself. As a result, Jeffrey, going by the alias of John, ends up dating Leigh while still a wanted fugitive.
Roofman Synopsis
Roofman is a true crime romantic comedy co-written and directed by Derek Cianfrance (Blue Valentine, The Place Beyond the Pines) and based on the stranger-than-fiction story of criminal Jeffrey Manchester, played in the film by Channing Tatum, who hid out in a Toys “R” Us store, while a wanted fugitive in the early 2000s. Initially, the plan was for Jeffrey to lie low for a few weeks until it was safe for him to contact his friend Steve, played by LaKeith Stanfield, to organize a way out of the country. However, Jeffrey is told by Steve’s girlfriend, Michelle (Juno Temple), that Steve has left on a tour of Afghanistan, lengthening the wait to six months.
With the help of baby monitors, Jeffrey observes the staff at the Toys “R” Us, and he begins to feel sympathy for the way single mother Leigh Wainscott, played by Kirsten Dunst, is treated by the store’s manager Mitch, played by Peter Dinklage. This results in Jeffrey going to Leigh’s Presbyterian church, where he is welcomed by paster Ron Smith (Ben Mendelsohn). Jeffrey begins dating Leigh after attending the church’s singles brunch and gets to know her two daughters. However, Jeffrey knows that the time will come when he has to make arrangements with Steve to flee the country, or else risk getting caught.
My Thoughts on Roofman
While I am not usually someone who gravitates towards romantic comedies, the true crime element of Roofman is what kept me hooked to the story. It is completely unbelievable that the real Jeffrey Manchester was able to hide out in a Toys “R” Us store for six months, decorating a nook behind a display and even figuring out how to turn off the recording function of the security cameras. While it can be argued that Roofman might have been better suited for a documentary, not unlike Secret Mall Apartment, Derek Cianfrance does make a fitting decision to play archival news and interview footage during the closing credits, in order to drive home the fact that everything that happens in this film is true.
Through his performance as Jeffrey Manchester, Channing Tatum has the challenge of portraying the criminal as sympathetic, while not absolving him of his crimes. There is a point in Roofman, where you are rooting for the relationship between Jeffrey and Leigh Wainscott to work out, though I’ve seen enough episodes of Unsolved Mysteries to know that this was unlikely to happen. However, even knowing the result doesn’t affect how the relationship between the two is played out on screen.
Roofman is also a refreshing change of pace for director Derek Cianfrance, whose previous features Blue Valentine, The Place Beyond the Pines, and The Light Between Oceans leaned heavily into depressing melodrama. Roofman, on the other hand, has truly hilarious scenes, leaning into the absurdity of Jeffrey Manchester’s situation. That said, Roofman still has its dramatic moments, which question of the belief that despite his crimes, Jeffrey Manchester was still ultimately a nice guy. As such, Roofman is a true crime-infused romantic comedy that I give my recommendation to.
Trailer for Roofman
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