The Great St. Louis Bank Robbery (1959) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

Egan kills Ann during the apartment invasion after experiencing a flashback to when he murdered his abusive mother. His deep-seated misogyny, which stems from his mother's cruelty, is triggered when he sees Ann's presence as a betrayal that could compromise the heist. This violent act demonstrates how Egan eliminates anyone he perceives as a threat to his operation.

Foreshadowing: Earlier, Egan confesses to George that he murdered his mother by pushing her down a flight of stairs.

• John Egan
• Ann
• murder
• fire escape
• betrayal

The heist fails because the gang neglected to bring a police-frequency scanner and was unaware that the bank had relocated a switchboard from the lobby. These security gaps undermine key aspects of their plan. When an employee triggers the silent alarm, police swarm the exterior before the robbers can execute their getaway.

Foreshadowing: The timeline notes the gang meticulously gathers information on the bank, but they clearly miss critical details about the security infrastructure.

• heist
• Southwest Bank
• police scanner
• silent alarm
• failure

George breaks down because he is overwhelmed by the realization of what he has become. The woman he holds hostage warns her husband that he is a vicious criminal, and this characterization shakes George, who has no criminal history and only wanted money for school. The guilt from Ann's death combined with the violence of the heist causes him to protest that he is not really a criminal before releasing the hostage.

Foreshadowing: George consistently tries to maintain his identity as someone not truly criminal, even promising Ann he would use the money to return to school.

• George Fowler
• hostage
• breakdown
• guilt
• capture

Gino commits suicide because he is terrified of returning to prison after having already served time as an ex-convict. When cornered in the basement vault with no way out, he would rather die than face capture and another lengthy incarceration. His desperate financial need for money to pay for his criminal defense trial underscores this fear throughout the film.

Foreshadowing: Gino's motivation for joining the heist is explicitly stated as needing money to pay for his defense in an upcoming criminal trial.

• Gino
• suicide
• vault
• prison
• fear

Willy abandons the gang because when the police respond to the silent alarm, he panics and flees in the getaway car. His decision leaves the other robbers stranded at the bank, with no means of escape. This betrayal reflects the loose loyalty among career criminals who prioritize their own survival over the crew.

Foreshadowing: The timeline establishes that Willy was wary of George from the start, showing his distrustful nature.

• Willy
• getaway car
• abandonment
• betrayal
• police

Egan forces George to participate directly in the robbery as punishment for feeling personally betrayed by George. After discovering Ann's warning to the bank came from George's connection to her, Egan decides George must share the risk. This forces George from his role as mere getaway driver into the dangerous position of inside man.

Foreshadowing: Willy saw George and Ann together, which enabled Egan to trace the source of the warning that nearly compromised their operation.

• John Egan
• George Fowler
• robbery
• punishment
• betrayal

Egan's misogyny stems from his traumatic childhood with an abusive mother. During a drunken confession to George, Egan reveals that he eventually murdered his mother by pushing her down a flight of stairs. This experience left him with deep-seated hatred and distrust of women, leading him to forbid any women from being involved in his criminal work.

Foreshadowing: This backstory is revealed when Egan tells George about his mother's abuse during a private conversation.

• John Egan
• misogyny
• mother
• murder
• backstory

George borrows money from Ann because the gang needs money to pay for a hotel room while planning the heist. Gino convinces George to ask his sister, making it the first meeting between George and Ann since an unspecified incident got them both expelled from college. This creates tension as both hide the true source of the money from Egan.

Foreshadowing: The summary notes this was the first meeting between the young couple since an action by George got them both expelled from college.

• George Fowler
• Ann
• money
• college
• expulsion

Neither George nor Gino stand up for Ann when Egan invades her apartment and demands she leave town. George fails to act because he is too afraid of Egan, having already been punished by being forced into the robbery. Gino fails to protect his own sister because he is too timid to challenge the criminal mastermind who holds his freedom and future in the balance.

Foreshadowing: This failure directly leads to Ann's death and becomes a key factor in George's psychological breakdown.

• George Fowler
• Gino
• Ann
• protection
• failure

After releasing his hostage and allowing himself to be captured, George is taken away in a paddy wagon. The ending shows him seeing the world receding behind metal bars, symbolizing his loss of freedom and his dreams of returning to school. He becomes the sole survivor of the gang but loses everything, his freedom, his love interest, and his clean criminal record.

Foreshadowing: George's final image mirrors the imprisonment Gino feared throughout the film.

• George Fowler
• captured
• paddy wagon
• imprisonment
• ending