Review of The Town (2010) by Jonnyfendi — 17 Jan 2011

If you think Ben Affleck is a great Actor, you should take a better look at GOOD WILL HUNTING (1997). If you think Ben is a great Screenwriter, you should see more thoroughly in THE TOWN. In thiz last movie, he also directed it.

For me, Ben is the third talented Actor-Director in the past decade, beside Clint Eastwood and Mel Gibson. Thiz is his second long feature after respectable GONE BABY GONE in 2007. The Town is Charleston-Boston, where everybody knows everybody.

It revolves around the bank thief Doug (Ben Affleck), his partner in crime James (Jeremy Renner), along with their former hostage Claire (Rebecca Hall) who will be having a love affair with Doug later, and a FBI agent Adam (John Hamm).

All of them got tangled into cat and mouse situation. First half of the movie, it is introducing the characters and situations. Then the second half, it flips over nicely and everything is mounted up very well.

I think Ben is success with his directing method bcoz he does not exaggerate things up, he just let every thing flows naturally. Yes, he is playing save here. The factors that empower thiz movie are simply a good script and consistent Actor performances.

Ben himself shows a very calm and convincing performance. As well Rebecca Hall as his love interest, Hall delivers a precise fragile and lovable character. Jeremy Renner is deathly awesome with his street-gang attitude.

Most of the supporting Casts deserve honorable mentions as well. Blake Lively as Doug former-girlfriend and single parent, I have never seen Lively blends into thiz kind of troubled character. Chris Cooper as Doug behind-the-cell father, it only took one scene but it is surely memorable.

And the last but not least for me, it is Pete Postlethwaite as Fergie the flower man who is the brain of the crime. There is strange feeling by only hearing his intimidate and unique accent. In the end, we realize it is The Town that could change people, and the people are just victims.

It is harder to change the system than the person itself. But to change the system, it should start by changing the person as well. And thiz will be a never ending circle. It is totally out of our control.

But we can control something, for me it is waiting for another Ben next project. I will see him again, on thiz side or the other. Visit My Blog on JONNY'S MOVEE: http://jonnyfendi.blogspot.