| ‘THE TOWN’ - review |
| Written by Sian Rafferty |
| Saturday, 06 November 2010 23:36 |
 Back in the early 2000’s it seemed inevitable that BEN AFFLECK was slowly slipping into the box of bad choices. Remember 'Pearl Harbour'? Even two male leads on the brink of launching into the Hollywood stratosphere couldn’t save this movie from being a four hour snooze-fest. And it seemed to go all downhill from there. Don’t you even dare mention 'Daredevil' which well deserves its place in the horrific superhero movie fantastic four (also featuring all-time lows: 'The Incredible Hulk', ‘Ghost Rider’ and ‘Catwoman’). Shiver - remember the J.Lo days? 'Gigli'??? Point made. All of this universally raised the question: where on earth did ‘Gone Baby Gone’ come from? Affleck’s 2007 directorial endeavour came straight out of nowhere and hit the general public smack in the face. A good, captivating story and convincing actors? Check. Gritty, low key shoot? Check. Scored 94% on Rotten Tomatoes? CHECK! Finally, it seems like the man is back on track and back in business. ‘THE TOWN’ is his latest, and launches right back into the Boston middle class for another gripping crime drama starring Charlestown, arguably one of the last American neighbourhoods you'd want your transportation to break down in.  Unlike ‘Gone Baby Gone’, ‘The Town’ has more of a Hollywood blockbuster feel to it, and rests on a fairly simple and predictable story. Doug MacRay (Affleck) along with partner in crime Jem Coughlin (Jeremy Renner from ‘The Hurt Locker’) are very successful and clever bank robbers, with burglary in their blood and heist down to a fine art. On a routine job, in a moment of panic Jem kidnaps banker Claire Keesey (Rebecca Hall), who is then terrorised and released. Doug, worried she saw something whilst in captivity, befriends Claire to learn what she knows, but of course he gets too involved - and the charity working banker from the right side of town falls in with the tattooed and broken guy (with a heart of gold, deep down). Oooohhh... this won't end well... Affleck was sometimes cringe-worthy with his slightly wooden acting. At some points he did come across as likable, and in a way even somewhat charming with his timely dry humour. He obviously has an affinity with the town of Charlestown and he fits into the world quite well. Despite the obvious cliché, with an anti-hero constantly struggling against the easy crime route and wanting to better himself, some aspects of Doug’s character do lean towards the third dimension - the way violence is the only answer when Doug finds out Claire was previously bothered by some neighbourhood thugs, and the fact that he never shows any remorse for this demonstrates some degree of developed ingrained behaviour.  The women of the film are two very different stories. Blake Lively’s well-publicised minor supporting role seems to be entirely motivated by a need to get as far away from Serena van der Woodsen as possible, in an attempt to widen her post-‘Gossip Girl’ acting range. In fact, her part seems even more emphasised as you know that she probably went from neon bras and slept-in eye make-up, to Chloe handbags and Louboutins the very day after shooting wrapped. Rebecca Hall on the other hand, does her best with a character which sometimes drifts into the ‘hopeless damsel in distress’ category. Despite this, I love everything about Hall. Recently hailed as one of Woody Allen’s latest muses (playing the straight and narrow to Scarlett Johansen’s flake in ‘Vicky Cristina Barcelona’) I have had a bit of a lady crush on this brunette Brit since she stole James McAvoy’s heart in ‘Starter For Ten’. If you get past the point-blank plot which never derails its slow and certain course and embrace Charlestown for what it is - a town where violence and crime are passed down father to son - it’s not a bad film. Maybe not quite the same level of genius as ‘Good Will Hunting’, yet Affleck pulls together a riotous couple of hours. If you get bored (and I doubt you will) there is also flavour-of-the-moment Jon Hamm as Don Draper - the FBI agent - to keep the ladies amused... THINGS YOU MOST NEED TO KNOW: Ms. Garner you have been hiding something from us... who would have known your doting husband Ben would have such tremendous biceps? HEARTOMETER: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 [ out of 10 ] YOU WILL LIKE, IF YOU LIKE: ‘The Inside Job’, ‘Gone Baby Gone’, ‘The Bank Job’, ‘Public Enemies’... and ‘Bonnie and Clyde’? WATCH: Other films featuring crime in the Boston area include ‘The Departed', ‘Mystic River’ and ‘The Friends Of Eddie Coyle'.  |
