...
By Billie Melissa
Contributing Entertainment Writer
0
Share
Newsweek is a Trust Project member
See more of our trusted coverage when you search.Prefer Newsweek on Googleto see more of our trusted coverage when you search.
You'd be forgiven if you saw the bright yellow poster featuring Channing Tatum wrapped in a giant teddy bear with a floatie around his waist and thought you were walking into an out-and-out comedy.
Roofman, while funny, is perhaps one of the most sincere and thoughtful movies to hit the big screen in 2025.
Derek Cianfrance takes the true story of Jeffrey Manchester, a man incarcerated for a series of robberies, who breaks out and ends up hiding in a Toys'R'Us while he awaits assistance from a friend who can help him sneak him out of the country.
Read More on Movies
Led by Channing Tatum as Manchester, Roofman features performances by Kirsten Dunst, Ben Mendelsohn, LaKeith Stanfield, Juno Temple, Melonie Diaz, Uzo Aduba, Lily Collias, Jimmy O. Yang and Peter Dinklage, who all contribute to this wacky tale with empathy and earnestness.
From the first five minutes, you can tell Cianfrance was shooting for a healthy combination of humour and heart. A flustered Tatum, as Manchester, flops into a McDonald's where three workers are setting up for the day. He tells them, if they do as he says, no one will get hurt, and proceeds to rally them into a freezer, ensuring they're wrapped up warm while he takes what he needs.
...
It's not your typical heist scene. There's no elegant, choreographed action sequence or shoot-out; Tatum is an exasperated father desperate to give his daughter her birthday wish of a bike.
While his methods are not ideal, his heart is pure, and the universal feeling that people are experiencing around the world about not being able to make ends meet ripples through Roofman like an echo, reminding us that most of us are familiar with Jeffrey's plight.
It's a connection point. We see ourselves in him, and from there, Cianfrance has us on board for the ride.
For most of Roofman, Tatum is playing a role within a role. He escapes prison and has to set up a new life inside the Toys'R'Us, where his heart is captured by one of the employees, Leigh Wainscott.
She's a mother of two, and mirrors Tatum's Manchester in that she's doing her best to make ends meet and keep her family afloat as a divorcée. He takes sympathy on her when he hears she needs a day off, a request denied by her disgruntled boss, Mitch, played by Peter Dinklage.
A series of events lures Tatum out of his cleverly crafted hideaway and to the local church, where he delivers a bundle of toys for the toy drive. Reluctantly, he takes up the offer to head inside, where he indulges in his first real meal and conversations in months.
Thus begins the tale of John Zorn, a government worker on a classified mission in Charlotte, North Carolina, a role Jeffrey plays to keep his identity at bay.
...
Roofman only works with a lead actor capable of displaying the quandary amidst this. While Jeffrey is, of course, ecstatic to be engaging in 'life' again, as a person whose compassion and empathy run deep, he is heartbroken. Stifling his true identity, Tatum lets the audience into his inner turmoil through his eyes, where his mouth says one thing but those green irises tell a whole other story.
Due to our affection for Jeffrey, Roofman must critique the system that has condemned him. The movie cannot play both sides, and while it does, on occasion, try to, its heart ultimately lies with wanting us to root for Jeffrey to conquer the odds.
In the media, they label Manchester as "violent", spewing language unfamiliar to the man we see before us, working hard to do right by the people he loves, desperate for a new start outside the four walls of a cell. It's only a small detail, easily missed, but a completely thoughtful one, which serves as a small commentary on how language can impact truth.
Cianfrance masters the compassion, but he also masters suspense.
Subverting expectations, the thrill actually comes from love, not some B narrative involving a police investigation. The further Tatum falls into his John Zorn persona, the intensity racks up. Roofman's suspense is driven by our owndesperation for his new chapter to flourish without fault.
...
Love is the remedy. While it drives Jeffrey to continue the charade, it also requires him to be honest, a choice which ultimately leads him to do the right thing, and due to Tatum's heartfelt performance, we feel every inch of the affliction with him.
It's a testimony to Cianfrance's commitment to getting deep into the story, inviting the real-life folks impacted to join the cast and get involved in telling this story together. It's a community effort, and ultimately provides a case for leaning into telling stories that break down barriers and invite audiences to reflect on values they might hold.
While it perhaps runs ever-so-slightly longer than it needs to, Cianfrance's Roofman finds the perfect balance between suspense, heart, and pure entertainment, making it one of the most enjoyable watches of 2025.
Roofman Release Date
Roofman hits theaters on October 10, 2025.
View 0 Comments
Submit Correction
View Editorial & AI Guidelines