Directed by Menhaj Huda, the Showtime original Heist 88 is a fictional recreation of the 1988 bank robbery in Chicago, which gained notoriety in the history of bank robberies. Played by Courtney B. Vance, Jeremy Horne is a fictional representation of Armand Devon Moore, who was a criminal mastermind behind the 1988 bank robbery. The filmmaker took some creative liberties to add some dramatic elements to the story and the actual event was very different from what was depicted in the film.
What Happens In The Film?
Heist 88 follows Jeremy Horne, a convicted felon serving his probationary period. He arrived in the city of Chicago with a plan for a bigger crime. With a tracking monitor attached to his ankle, he was not entirely free from the authorities’ surveillance, but even though he was constantly reminded by the police to surrender himself within 21 days, he wasn’t the least bit bothered about it. We see Jeremy hatching a new plan to commit another heist, but he desperately needs some reliable allies who could pull off the robbery. Although in this film, Jeremy is portrayed as a man who cares about the Black community, we never see him actually doing anything other than plotting to get rich and flaunting his expensive watches and luxurious cars.
Despite having a shell company and a luxurious life, his penchant for crime did not abate. Moreover, at his brother’s funeral, he found his nephew Marshall, who came to talk to him, asking for help with his financial problems. Marshall was in debt, and now the moneylenders were after him. In order to exploit the situation, Jeremy jumped at the chance. He met Marshall’s friends, who worked as low-level bank employees at the National Bank of Chicago. Targeting their financial inability to provide well for their respective families, Jeremy tried to incite them to rob a bank to steal $80 million.
After years of working low-wage jobs without earning anything useful for their family, Marshall’s friends, LaDonna, Rick, and Danny, decided to take part in the heist. It was much easier for them to carry out the mission because, in 1988, bank programs and transactions were not fully computerized. There were some phone calls through which the transactions used to be confirmed. Using this situation to his advantage, Jeremy called the bank, posing as the head of three major companies with accounts at the Bank of Chicago, which was subsequently confirmed by LaDonna and Danny. Jeremy succeeded in robbing the bank of approximately eighty million dollars. The entire heist was carried out smoothly, leaving no evidence behind, but ultimately, something spoiled Jeremy’s plan of leaving Chicago with the stolen money.
