Review: The Town (2010)

As part of “Phase 1” of my Batfleck research, I’m taking a look at some of Ben Affleck’s highest-rated movies, particularly recent ones that might show where his acting skills have gone to in modern days.  First it was Argo, which turned out to be a pleasant surprise, and this time around it’s The Town.  This movie received quite a bit of praise when it was out, including a couple of nominations, and now that I’ve seen it I can understand why.  For while The Town is, at its heart, little more than a heist film, it’s done in such a way as to make it a really good heist film.  Read on for more.

The story is pretty simple - Affleck plays Doug MacRay, one of a pair of brothers that, together with their team, perform heists.  The movie starts off with them robbing a bank.  During the course of their mission, they kidnap a girl to use as a temporary hostage.  After discovering that the girl happens to live within a few blocks of them, Doug decides to keep an eye on her in the old fashioned way, by dating her.

The two develop their relationship even as Doug and the rest continue to do their jobs, each heist bringing them closer and closer to being caught.  The FBI is on their tail and knows who they are but just needs to catch them in the act.  We see the downward spiral as it happens, with Doug and everyone else marching toward their doom even as they bring in the big bucks.  Eventually, a huge heist goes bad and not everyone survives the day.

While the script is nothing new, the way that the movie is executed marks it as one of the best in its genre.  The characters are believable (with an exceptional performance by Jeremy Renner as Doug’s brother), the situations mostly viable and there’s no candy-coating to anything that happens other than a (mostly) fairy-tale ending.  The action sequences are a bit over-the-top but still much more realistic than the vast majority of action flicks.  The chase scenes are particularly well-done, despite the fact that no one in real life ever escapes from a cop during a chase.

What stands out in this one, just as with Argo, is Affleck’s directing.  The movie is a solid whole, with no individual scene receiving too much attention.  As far as Affleck’s acting goes, he does manage a step above what he’s generally known for.  He’s still deadpan for 80% of the flick, but there are moments when he goes beyond that to display finer subtleties and more unchecked aggression.  Not award-worthy, but not mediocre either.

The folks at Rotten Tomatoes put this one a slight bit lower than Argo, ranking it at 94/84%, which I’d tend to agree with.  All-in-all, it’s not the kind of movie I’d sit down and watch again, but if you like complex action flicks, this is one to check out.

Photo Credits -           

The Town courtesy of my.spill.hollywood.com