Not only are major global banks as we know them too big to fail, but local, community-oriented ones are sometimes too small and well-intentioned to even exist. It’s the reality of a system that left Dave Fishwick dismayed, and what serves as the premise for “Bank of Dave,” a film loosely based on the true story of Fishwick’s battle with Britain’s financial system to create a community bank meant to help the little guys.
A man of the people who has made a modest fortune selling vans, Dave (Rory Kinnear) is a Ted Lasso of sorts within his small English town of Burnley, where he makes a habit of loaning money to local businesses and friends in need. After Dave gets the idea to institutionalize his generous streak with the Bank of Dave, where all profits will go to charities, Hugh (Joel Fry), the stiff London lawyer Dave has hired to help, comes into town expecting to disabuse Dave of his idealism. A new bank has not been approved in 150 years, and the powers that be were set up solely to protect the elite.
Yet, after following Dave around for a couple days and catching feelings for his niece, Alexandra (Phoebe Dynevor), Hugh quickly becomes a convert to Dave’s mission.
It all makes for an inoffensively pleasant David (or, rather, Dave) and Goliath story. The conflicts involving complex, powerful interests are set up and solved with simplified, clean emotional beats — helped along in particular by Fry and Kinnear, who do the legwork to support a sometimes sleepy feel-good drama from the director Chris Foggin. Even if the movie is about one small win, there’s a sedate pleasure in seeing it play out, especially knowing a version of it happened in real life.
Bank of Dave
Rated PG-13 some strong language. Running time: 1 hour 47 minutes. In theaters and available to rent or buy on most major platforms.