REVIEW — “Roofman”

Based on an unbelievable true story, Roofman follows Jeffrey Manchester (Channing Tatum), an unemployed former Army Ranger father who, in his desperation to provide for his family and young daughter, resorts to robbing area McDonald’s restaurants (45 to be exact) by cutting holes in their roofs, earning him the nickname: Roofman.

Tatum‘s character possesses a “superpower” survivalist mentality and a strong attention to detail. He sees what others don’t: opportunities. However, he can’t figure out how to channel his skills into a lucrative (or legal) career. So he resorts to crime.

While his victims describe him as a polite and apologetic thief, police describe him as an armed and dangerous genius-level idiot, which he is, albeit a resourceful one. Eventually, the law catches up to him and he is arrested and sentenced to 45 years in prison for robbery and kidnapping.

After cleverly escaping from prison, he hides out inside of a local Toys “R” Us store by creating a makeshift home behind a hollow bicycle display wall. Over the course of six months, Jeff lays low while plotting his next move. He sleeps during the day and showers in the men’s room sink at night. To survive, he lives off of stolen peanut M&Ms, pawns merchandise for cash and uses baby monitors to track the Toys “R” Us staff.

Over time, he becomes immersed in the lives of the store’s employees, particularly Leigh (Kirsten Dunst), a kind-hearted, divorced mom to two daughters (Lily Collias and Kennedy Moyer). After attending a toy drive at Leigh’s church, Jeff is embraced by their community. Posing as “John,” an undercover federal agent from New York, Jeff begins a romantic relationship with Leigh and soon charms over her family.

As an escaped criminal hiding in plain sight, Tatum turns up his “awe shucks” charm. Scrawny and greasy, the regular beefed-up heartthrob lost considerable weight to play the down-on-his-luck, delinquent dad living a double life. As Jeff, Tatum is in his sweet spot: a loveable in-over-his-head lunkhead.

Whereas Jeff has a lot of love to give and no one to give it to, Leigh is desperate for love and open and ready to receive it. Very deserving of her recent career resurgence, Dunst is at ease in the motherly role. She exudes hopeful grace as a kind woman of faith and family and delivers just the right amount of cautious optimism towards Tatum‘s charming man-on-the-run.

The chemistry between the two leads is effortless and their relationship feels natural. The film has you really rooting for them, however a storm is brewing that threatens Jeff’s new life. As the walls begin to close in around him, he once again resorts to a life of crime to keep his deception from unraveling.

Rounding out the cast are Peter Dinklage as Leigh’s jerk of a boss, Mitch; LaKeith Stanfield as Jeff’s shady military buddy and confidant Steve, and Ben Mendelsohn and Uzo Aduba as a local preacher and his wife who welcome Jeff into their church with open arms. The film also stars Juno Temple, Tony Revolori, Melonie Diaz, Jimmy O. Yang and Emory Cohen.

With Roofman, director Derek Cianfrance takes a largely forgotten tabloid headline and delivers a thrilling, tender and heartbreaking tale of love and forgiveness that will leave a big smile on your face. A criminally entertaining film, Roofman is a charming true crime crowd-pleaser. 4/5

Rated R with a running time of 2 hours, 6 minutes, Roofman opens in theaters on October 10, 2025.