Arkaign
Lifer
- Oct 27, 2006
- 20,736
- 1,377
- 126
The Town - 8.5/10
I went into this not really expecting anything special, but I was fortunately in for a good surprise. While not quite on the level of 'Heat' or 'The Departed', it was still far above average for a crime/action thriller. Ben Affleck does well here, but Jeremy Renner (lead in The Hurt Locker) really steals the show here. The direction was very competent, and the action sequences are definitely well done. About the only considerable weak spot was the lead FBI agent, I'm not going to blame it entirely on the actor, the script didn't seem to flesh him out very much at all, so the audience doesn't really have anything more than a very thin character to go on. He pops up now and again in the story and seems just sort of douchey and flat. Overall there's nothing terribly original here, good old cops and robbers (in Boston again, that city has been getting some screen time of late!), but it's pulled off well enough that any genre fan should have a great time with it.
I'll say it clearly : Ben Affleck has come a long long way from the respective messes of Gigli and Daredevil, and his presence works well in ensemble pieces. His direction, while not Scorcese-level by any means, is really quite good. He doesn't employ a lot of flashy tricks or artistically unique elements, but he's consistent and the deadpan style works great here. There are multiple scenes where you could tell a lot of filmmakers would be inclined to stretch out, try to raise tension/etc, but Ben's direction stlye here just bangs it out in real-time, which leads to some very sudden violence and nothing lingers on the screen unnecessarily. It's extremely satisfying at times. If you want to know the exact opposite, think of stuff like 'Truth or Consequences, N.M.", where there is heaps of slow-mo, extreme camera angles, and everything is telegraphed a mile away.
If you like crime sagas with a good dose of action, here you go, a surprise joyride. If you're expecting a script on par with The Departed or Heat, you may be slightly let down. This is not a best picture contender, but it might definitely be the best film of its type this year.
I went into this not really expecting anything special, but I was fortunately in for a good surprise. While not quite on the level of 'Heat' or 'The Departed', it was still far above average for a crime/action thriller. Ben Affleck does well here, but Jeremy Renner (lead in The Hurt Locker) really steals the show here. The direction was very competent, and the action sequences are definitely well done. About the only considerable weak spot was the lead FBI agent, I'm not going to blame it entirely on the actor, the script didn't seem to flesh him out very much at all, so the audience doesn't really have anything more than a very thin character to go on. He pops up now and again in the story and seems just sort of douchey and flat. Overall there's nothing terribly original here, good old cops and robbers (in Boston again, that city has been getting some screen time of late!), but it's pulled off well enough that any genre fan should have a great time with it.
I'll say it clearly : Ben Affleck has come a long long way from the respective messes of Gigli and Daredevil, and his presence works well in ensemble pieces. His direction, while not Scorcese-level by any means, is really quite good. He doesn't employ a lot of flashy tricks or artistically unique elements, but he's consistent and the deadpan style works great here. There are multiple scenes where you could tell a lot of filmmakers would be inclined to stretch out, try to raise tension/etc, but Ben's direction stlye here just bangs it out in real-time, which leads to some very sudden violence and nothing lingers on the screen unnecessarily. It's extremely satisfying at times. If you want to know the exact opposite, think of stuff like 'Truth or Consequences, N.M.", where there is heaps of slow-mo, extreme camera angles, and everything is telegraphed a mile away.
If you like crime sagas with a good dose of action, here you go, a surprise joyride. If you're expecting a script on par with The Departed or Heat, you may be slightly let down. This is not a best picture contender, but it might definitely be the best film of its type this year.