Review of Inside Man (2006) by Spangle — 23 May 2014

Overall, Inside Man is a good heist movie with enough negatives to detract from what is truly a really thrilling and entertaining heist. First, the positives. Clive Owen kills it as the bank robber. Really, he and the heist as a whole are what make this film a success. The trickery and deception he employs really make this a fun and entertaining watch. Denzel Washington also has a good turn as the detective, though he certainly takes a back seat to Owen, as well as Jodie Foster who does great in her role as a "fixer". As we watch the events unfold, it is very entertaining to watch the head-to-head battles between the three as they all represent competing interests concerning the heist. Finally, the ending is great as we learn how everything transpired. There are still some things that make no sense, but I will let it slide here.

On the negative side, as with all Spike Lee films, there are parts where race is shoved down your throat. Luckily, it did not choke the life out of this one, but still felt forced, irrelevant to the storyline, and unnecessary. In addition, the camera work is at times spotty and left me scratching my head and wondering why they chose to use that angle or use that effect, etc. Two scenes in particular (one in which Washington's character runs to the bank doors and one in which Foster's character is patted down by one of the bank robbers) where the camera work is annoying and takes you out of the film entirely.