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BANK ROBBERY SCENE FROM SEAN BEAN’S CA$H COMES TO LIFE WHEN A REAL ROBBERY OCCURS AT THE SCENE OF THE SHOOT

Art imitates life, or vice versa?

A Feb 24th 2009 robbery at Lincoln Park Savings Bank could pass for a play-by-play reenactment of a major film, titled Ca$h! shot at the same location, according to the film’s representatives.
“I couldn’t believe it. It was almost the same scene we shot for the movie, at the exact same location,” said film producer Naveen Chathappuram.
Lincoln Park Savings Bank was robbed by Melvin Reese, 46, of Gary, Indiana. Reese handed the teller a note demanding money, then fleeing with $1,665 in cash. He was later apprehended by Chicago Police, partly with the help of bank vice president Peter Volpe, who followed the robber on foot. All of the money was recovered.
In Ca$h!, a similar scenario arises when notorious bad boy Sean Bean (Lord of the Rings trilogy) and Chris Hemsworth (Home and Away, Star Trek Movie), are led on a wild chase through Chicago, eventually ending up at Lincoln Park Savings Bank, in pursuit of the obvious-- cash.
“I’d say it was déjà-vu from the movie. You get an adrenaline rush,” said Volpe.
While the similarities between the robbery and the movie scene are uncanny, Chathappuram says there is an “additional twist” in Ca$h.
“It certainly plays out a bit differently in Ca$h. You’ll have to watch it to find out,” he said.
Film representatives are not worried that Tuesday’s robbery was inspired by Ca$h. Both film representatives and bank officials had agreed to exclude the name of the bank on camera, to avoid any such circumstances.
“It’s certainly not a copy-cat action since the movie has not been released yet,” Chathappuram said.
“Security is always our primary concern, and that’s why we decided to omit the name of our bank from all movie footage,” added Volpe.
Ca$h is a psychological thriller that explores the power money has over humans. It is set to release later this year and “places Chicago on the film map,” according to film representatives. The film is the work of acclaimed director Stephen Milburn Anderson of South Central fame.
Recently, “MovieMaker Magazine” ranked Chicago as the country’s number one city for indie filmmaking in its ninth annual ranking of U.S. movie cities.