tavm

23 May 2012

Ben Afflecks The Town was a very compelling action drama

Well, this is the first time I've seen a movie directed by Ben Affleck,as opposed to both starring and co-writing as well, and I must say thatI was very impressed with what I saw! He plays the lead character, aheist thief from the Charlestown suburb of Boston, with compellingempathy that one hopes he doesn't step too much over the line when hedoes the things he does here. I mean, yes, he steals and shoots anddoesn't always make the right decisions but he also has a reasonablebackground that explains his plight. And he's picked the right cast inpeople like Rebacca Hall, Jon Hamm, Jeremy Renner, Blake Lively, PetePostlethwaite, and Chris Cooper among others in bringing this actiondrama to the screen. I don't think I've seen any flaws, story-wise,while watching but maybe that's because I was just very absorbed onjust how things seemed really connected that the whole thing just tookme away. So on that note, The Town comes highly recommended.

22 May 2012

Compelling Movie

A solid movie. Good action, good drama. It really kept me on the edge of my seat wondering what was going to happen. The four-star rating could improve on multiple viewings of the movie.Well worth some of the gift card money I received for Christmas.

dgartland

21 May 2012

strong characters steal the show

Starring Ben Affleck as a bank robber from the Boston neighborhood ofCharlestown, The Town is far more polished than the average crimethriller. Affleck, who also wrote the script, plays Doug MacRay, the leader of agroup of bank robbers from the Irish-Catholic neighborhood ofCharlestown. Doug and his friends Jem, Gloansy and Dez carry out bigtime bank heists. Doug and Jem live together and have been best friendssince childhood. The film opens as the gang robs a local bank branch, taking a teller(Claire) hostage. When they realize that she lives in theirneighborhood, Doug decides to keep an eye on her. Doug and Claire endup falling in love, which worries the other members of the crew.Meanwhile, the FBI, led by agent Adam Frawley (Jon Hamm), is building acase against the crew, unbeknownst to Doug. Throughout the rest of thefilm, Doug and his crew carry out several more heists. All the whileDoug struggles with a desire to get out of "the town." Doug's life ofcrime begins to eat away him. The stress is becoming too much and hewants out. However, it turns out that the world of crime is much harderto leave than Doug imagined. Affleck turns in a fantastic performancethough the character was certainly not difficult for him to play.Having grown up in Boston, Affleck wasn't so much playing a characteras drawing from personal experience (think Eminem in 8 Mile). Affleckdeserves praise though, not for his acting, but for his directing andscript writing. The film isn't driven by the performances of the actors(though Jeremy Renner is fantastic as Jem). Rather, Affleck creates aconvincing portrait of the Boston crime world. The characters are asbelievable as they dysfunctional. The characters Affleck creates areincredibly complex. Doug, for example, is a bank robber, whose fatheris in jail, whose mother left him when he was 6, he was a star hockeyplayer in his youth but his bad temper cost him a shot at the NHL, hedated his best friends sister, she has a child who she says is his, hesays it's not, and so on and so on. At its essence, this is a crime movie. The bank robbery film has beendone several times before. The film has all the shootouts and carchases you expect from a thriller plus all the strong characters andmoral conflict you expect from the best dramas.

21 May 2012

Eh...

It was okay. Kind of predictable. Cheesy at times. Worth watching once. I recomend getting it cheap if you can.

19 May 2012

Good

The premise of this film was good, but overall the story fell short. Well-directed and well-acted, there was no lack of talent behind or in front of the camera. However, I didn't feel like there was any chemistry between them all to show for it. It was as if they were each in their own little movie, not really finding cohesion with each other. Several holes in the plot left huge leaps, or lacks, in logic on MacRay's part, as well as in the overall assumption around the thieves' skills. It's one thing to establish the premise that Charlestown creates the world's most accomplished thieves, but that they carry automatic weapons, leap rooftop to rooftop to escape an entire precinct of cops, etc, is a bit fantastic. In places it can't decide to go for drama or action, all the while trying to be a thriller. All-in-all the film was well shot and keeps your attention, just don't expect more than that.

18 May 2012

Another cops are all idiots movie

This is yet another movie in which the police/law enforcement are just there to be shooting targets and "idiots", appearing not to be able to drive a squad or shoot straight, and the bad guys vehicle just keeps on going without ever blowing out a tire or breaking the suspension.And of course the "hero" turns out to be the Ben Affleck character, even though he and his fellow dirt bags have killed and wounded many, and terrorized many more.I spent 25 years in LE (retired), and the only idiots I ever encountered were on the "other side" of the law.The real way these shoot-outs end is like the Hollywood Hills Bank of America event......bad guys all dead.

carleyevans

16 May 2012

Charlestown, A Place Where Robbers Are Born

THE TOWN (2010) is finally a film worthy of Ben Affleck's talents asscreenwriter, actor, and director. The script is smart, the directingis seamless, and the acting is superb.We go into the movie wondering who we will root for - the "bad" guys orthe "cops." This a tenuous position -- to want the bad guys to escapecan backfire on a film. This time, we genuinely side with at leastAffleck's character. We want him to change his life, and move beyondthe damage that Charlestown has inflicted upon him and his friends.Blake Lively, Chris Cooper, and Jon Hamm deliver spot-on performancesas does Pete Postelwaite as the most villainous villain one canimagine.All in all, this is a very entertaining though not particularlythought-provoking movie.

16 May 2012

Ben Afflecks best movie yet!

This review is from: The Town (DVD) This movie has a great storyline and is very realistic. It is not based on a true story, but it does take place in Charlestown which is known for armed robberies as a major issue there. Ben affleck and his crew have robbed one bank and a few armored cars for a known criminal in charlestown. This show starts out with them holding a bank hostage wearing masks to cover their faces. They force the bank manger(Rebecca Hall) to open the vault for them who they then take hostage as a precaution and let go blind folded on the beach where she is then questioned by the FBI. Ben's brotherlike friend is worried she knows something and has him follow her around to make sure they are in the clear. While Ben does so he grows feelings for her and pretty soon is dating her. As it gets into the FBI are on there trail, but do not have any evidence yet and as Ben is about to quit and leave town with her two major things happen to stop that. First off the FBI show his photo along with the others to Rebecca Hall which makes her relationship with him end. Then Ben is forced to do one more job so his boss doesn't kill Rebecca. So forced into one last job Ben and his crew dress as police officers to make their way down to the money room at a sports stadium where they get all of the money, but don't quite all make it out alive. The FBI has the building surrounded and infiltrated which starts a gun fight between them killing all of them except for Ben and his brother who make it out with the money. Once the FBI agent in charge finds out there dressed up as officers he finds Ben's brother and is forced to kill him in shootout which Ben sees happen and then leaves and goes and kills his boss for forcing him to do that job and see his entire crew get killed. Afterwards he calls Rebecca apologizing to her and asking to see her knowing the phone is being listened to by the FBI that are in her house. While talking to her and watching her with bilnoculars through a window he asks if he can see her where she then tells him to come to her house. Knowing that the FBI is there he sadly says alright and tells her he loves and is getting ready to come knowing he will be arrested, but then unwilling to let that happen because of her feelings she still has for him she tips him off so he doesn't come. Ben leaves town, but leaves the money behind for rebecca and a clue as to where he went. They do not end up together when it ends, but Ben has plans of seeing her sooner or later!Great ACTION, Great DRAMA, Great ROMANCE- All together an excellent movie!

Terrell Howell

14 May 2012

Solid film

Ben Affleck's sophomore directorial effort is a solid one. He makesgood use of his name in showbiz to put together a great cast and weavean entertaining story with no shortage of the elements of what a goodheist film should be. The Town centers around a group of friends whorob banks and cause mayhem in the town of Charlestown. When the gang'sleader, Doug MacCray (Affleck), gets too involved with a witness to oneof their robberies (Hall) things get heated within the group as well asoutside it, as the FBI begins to crack down on these robberies. TheTown, while never skimping on the high quality, fast paced, action,ends up being a strongly character driven story, making it a good heistfilm to watch, while also delivering a substantial amount ofintelligence that many films of this genre lack.I think it's safe to say that Affleck has proved himself much moreworthy of the director chair rather than an acting role. ObviouslyAffleck stars in this film and is as mediocre as you'd expect (nooffense to the guy, I respect his other talents) but he by no meansdrags the film down. Plus the rest of the cast makes up for anythinghis acting can't bring to the table. Jeremy Renner, in particular,plays his role as Affleck's short tempered best friend incredibly well.The relationship between these two is the focus of the film, and whatthey do branches out to the other characters, most of which play animportant role. The handsomely brilliant Jon Hamm plays the hard boiledFBI agent in charge of bringing down these criminals by whatever meansnecessary. He fits the key role of the morally skewed cop that servesto elevate the popularity of our anti-hero protagonists. Rebecca Hallplays the bank clerk who is taken hostage by Affleck and his crew atthe beginning of the film, not knowing that she'd fall for the leaderof this crew later. The relationship between Affleck and Hall was theonly thing I didn't completely buy as far as character developmentgoes, but this storyline served it's purpose, and played an importantrole in the cathartic ending of the film.There is honestly nothing I can really criticize The Town for.Affleck's directing is effective, the dialouge is viscerally excellent,the film stands out in its effluent character development, and theacting is superb. The Town possesses all the elements of a good filmthat is well worth the watch. It's an effective blend of story andaction, just what is needed in a good heist film. The Town is in no waygroundbreaking and it doesn't revolutionize the genre, but it holds itsown against the greats of the genre and fits right in with the criteriafor a good story about cops and robbers. In this regard I can mosthighly commend this film for not trying to be more than it was. Thismovie never forgets what kind of movie it is, and it doesn't try tosoar to new heights. It serves to exemplify what this genre is allabout, and is an all around solid film.

14 May 2012

Gone Baby Gone was no fluke...

I have always thought that Ben Affleck's acting skills are mediocre at best. When watching most of his films, my thought would often turn to how the film in question could have been elevated with someone else in the role. That was certainly the case when I saw "State of Play", in which Russell Crowe acted circles around him, or so I thought. But then I watched "Gone Baby Gone", and started to think that maybe Mr. Affleck's real talent lies behind the camera, not in front of it. "Gone Baby Gone" was a taut, suspenseful thriller that kept me guessing until the end. And with "The Town", Mr. Affleck has proven that he knows his way behind a camera and that his directorial debut was no fluke."The Town" takes place in the seedy underbelly of Boston, where the central character Doug McRay has lived his whole life and where he spends his spare time planning and executing bank robberies. At the beginning of the film, Doug and gang succeeds in robbing a bank (in rubber masks) but ends up taking the bank manager (Clare) hostage as insurance against the police. Even though they released her a short time later, it was soon found out that she actually lived only a few blocks from where Doug and gang lived and hung out. Thinking that he may have seen her around the neighborhood and that she may have recognized him, Doug staged a "chance meeting" with her in order to find out what she knows and ends up developing a romantic relationship with her. To complicate matters further, his best friend Jem is growing increasingly unstable and have become a loose cannon, shooting people and engaging in other sorts of violence acts without the situation calling for it. With the FBI closing in on them, the woman he likes just one step away from discovering the truth about him, and a friend whose unpredictible behavior may put a lot of people in jeopardy, what is a man to do? From the surface, "The Town" is an old-fashioned cop drama that we have all see a million times before. What elevates it from the masses, however, is the solid acting, the character-focused plot, and the clean, well-shot action sequences. This may very well be the best performance I've seen Ben Affleck given, and his supporting cast is equally solid. The film boasts of several exciting action sequences, and these were all staged in a way that brought a refreshingness and new perspective to what can otherwise be stale material. Mr. Affleck also understood the importance of creating 3 dimensional characters that the audience can care about; and it is because you care about what happens to these people that you will be kept on the edge of your seat as the plot unfolds on the screen. Plotwise, the story may be cliched, but the way in which this film was put together certainly was not. With "Gone Baby Gone", Mr. Affleck has proven that he knows his way behind a camera. With "The Town", it is obvious that he has further improved on his craft. He is no Martin Scorsee, but when it comes to making films with exciting action and likable characters, he is not too shabby...not too shabby at all.

ihrtfilms

11 May 2012

terrific second film

This is a really terrific thriller that backs up Ben Affleck's careeras a director after his first film Gone Baby Gone. It wastes no time insetting up the premise of a gang of 'serial' bank robbers and thevolatile state they find themselves in. Of course a hostage is takenwhich leads to some very clever plot devices, including a spot ofromance and hidden truths.The film looks great and never gets too bogged down in the harshness of'The Projects' or the reasoning behind the bank robbers. The robberiesthemselves are executed brilliantly and are full of tension as is ascene where Afflecks character and Clare have coffee only to beinterrupted by another of the robbers who of course is mates withAffleck's character Doug. Clare is of course unawre of the fact thatshe is dating her captor and the friend is the one she saw the tattooone. It's so well played out, I think I was gripping my arm a littletoo tightly. The whole cast are excellent in this and there are greatturns from Jon Hamm and Jeremy Renner.The ending is perhaps a little expected, but right up until then itmoves along seamlessly. Affleck does well handling the scenes wheretension is needed, car chases through narrow streets are remarkable.There are also a couple of nice moments: when the robbers park the caronly to notice as they jump out a cop car right opposite and also whenDoug calls Clare at the end and asks if he can meet her and we see himwatching her across the street as she lies that she is alone but issurrounded by FBI.Affleck himself also shines in this, not only has he never lookedbetter, but he actually acts well in this. You can almost forgive himfor Gigli. Almost.More of my reviews at iheartfilms.webly.com

11 May 2012

what you get

This review is from: The Town (Two-Disc Extended Cut) [Blu-ray] (Blu-ray) it came with a damaged case not seriously just not as pretty as it could be. good movie watch it.

08 May 2012

The Town -excellent productgreat quality-

This review is from: The Town (DVD) The product arrived quicker than expected in great shape-fine quality! Would order from this company again when the time comes. Great price/great quality. DNC.

07 May 2012

Afflecks Heist

What Ben Affleck accomplishes in "The Town" is to inject life into hisprospects as a director -- and even more surprisingly -- as an actor.In the first endeavor, not much could be expected, his experience beingnon existent; in the second, his less than convincing body of work washis cross to bear. Surprising or not, Affleck pulls off with passionand dexterity his dual role as actor/director. This is good work. WhileI would have ended the film with his demise, it wouldn't be because ofthe Hollywood cliché that crime doesn't pay; I would like to think wehave grown out of that Cinderella thought process by now.I found myself wondering, near the end, if Affleck had contrived to lethis hero move onto a new life. That he did so bent believability a bit,but what doesn't these days, the real world giving solid evidence atevery turn?What Affleck has done here is put together a film in a genre that hasbeen particularly popular of late, and, in this opinion, finished aheadof the competition. I found this grittier and more provocative than"The Departed" and "Mystic River." Affleck in the company of theScorseses and Eastwoods? Really? Yes, it says here.The performances of Affleck's ensemble are excellent down the line.Rebecca Hall is appealing as the apple of Affleck's eye, in the role ofan innocent bank manager whose life is bent out of shape by the heist.Blake Lively is profoundly effective as the whoring mother of Affleck'schild, a woman whose dignity was robbed from the get-go. Jeremy Renner,whose forte seems to be that he will implode ala his "Hurt Locker"persona at any moment; Pete Posthelwaite, one of those magnets whoelectrifies in any scene; Jon Hamm, as a believable FBI straightshooter out to gun down his contemptible target, Affleck.This is good stuff, and I must admit, that even though he's a Red Soxfan, Big Ben has homered here. If you know anything about Yankee fans,you know I'm biting the bullet, as it were, here.

patrickwigington

06 May 2012

Real Irish Action

Ben Affleck directs ans stars in The Town, an involving, gripping taleof bank robbers in Charlestown, Massachusetts—a ghetto neighborhoodoutside of Boston. The film starts off with a written introduction,explaining that Charlestown has been home to more bank robbers thananywhere else in the United States. With a realistic and chilling firstscene of robbing a bank, the film doesn't stop building itself up untilthe very end.Ben Affleck plays a bank robber, and the leader of his particular gang.While robbing the bank in the beginning of the movie, they take themanager, a young lady, hostage and leaver her a few miles away. Afterone of the robbers realizes she lives right down the street from him,Affleck goes to intimidate her into keeping silent. However, when hetalks to her, he finds himself falling in love. It sounds cliché—and itis—but this doesn't impede on the intense drama and action that Affleckhas so wonderfully created.The first robbery in the film has an extremely nightmarish feel to it.From the exaggerated angles to the Halloween masks the robbers wear,the scene oozes creepiness. The second robbery, which takes place abouthalfway through the film, has one of the most intense chase sequencesever to be put on the big screen. And the masterfully crafted climaxkeeps the audience at the edge of their seats. Affleck gets hissuspenses just right: giving enough to induce stress, and supplyingrelief just at the right moment, unlike many action films that drag onfar too long.I have always admired Affleck as an actor. His portrayal of GeorgeReeves in the under rated film Hollywoodland was one of the best of thedecade. Now he is a sensitive man who lives in a harsh world. As hischaracter gives a small glimpse into his childhood, there is a distinctmelancholy that comes out in him, and lingers just under the surfacefor the whole film. The entire cast has a melancholy to them,highlighting the Irish roots of the town. It is a place of shattereddreams, ruined lives, and rag tag mobs. Jeremy Renner is wonderful asAffleck's best friend and fellow bank robber. He is a stereotypical lowlife: he drinks too much, he spends all of his money, and he is just aplain bad person. Yet, one cannot feel like Affleck's character andcome to like the guy.The love story remains predictable and rather boring until abouthalfway through the movie, and the side plot of Affleck's crack-whoreex girlfriend is a bit unnecessary, but they juxtapose the almostunpredictable and exciting outcomes of the final heist.The film's tone helps tremendously in making it original andinteresting, and Affleck's direction of the robbery scenes are the mostsuspenseful in years. With the blending of so many different ideas, andthe originality of the film, it is near impossible to pin it down intoany one genre, and it makes for great entertainment.http://thatguythatlikesmovies.blogspot.com

Maniac-9

05 May 2012

If theres anything that Ben Affleck knows...

It would be writing/directing/producing movies that have to do withBoston and people who people in the Southie accent. Between The Town,Gone Baby Gone and Good Will Hunting you'd have to say it's safe to sayhe can relate to the type of characters in these movies. As the #2 leadJeremy Renner is absolutely on his game as Jem his #2 guy in theircrew. Blake Lively is very good in a far different type of characterthen you're used to seeing her in. Rebecca Hal, Jon Hamm, Chris Cooperand Pete Postlethwiate also very good in their respective roles.Everything seems real about this movie whether it's the grittiness ofthe area they live in, the action choreography being spot on and justthe overall characterization of the characters.

05 May 2012

Flash-bang

First off, let me go ahead and say, The Town is one of the best movies of the year. If that's all you wanted to know, have a nice day. Otherwise, continue on my friend.I have said it hundreds of times, rather than spell out the plot I prefer to tell you about my experience and feelings about the film. Let's face it - it's a bore to cipher through reviews only to re-read the same material over and over.The Town is Ben (Gigi) Affleck's second attempt at helming a film, and boy does he succeed. As everyone knows (including Affleck himself, I'm sure) Ol' Ben has been taking heat for his recent choices at the flicker show. Some say it started moments after the final reel of Good Will Hunting had spun. Some say he was doomed once Armageddon entered the scene. I don't know, but I have personally never had a problem with his performances as much as the films themselves. He has been in some doozies, which makes The Town that much more surprising.I loved the movie. The characters are realistic and strong. The plot is thick and believable. There are moments that I couldn't believe I was seeing, as they harkened back to Hitchcock. If you have seen it, I will only say: Tattoo. Ben Affleck definitely has his team to thank, but after doing some research I found that he himself may be the reason for the impact of many of the character driven scenes. He told his fellow actors to take the lines they were given, and use improvisation to bookend the lines. This worked extremely well. Instead of the usual cookie cutter deliveries typically found in a film like this, we have a series of smooth real-life conversations that play at a pitch perfect level throughout. The characters seem like they know each other, and speak as if they have history together. And then there is the cool Dark Knight vibe...There are many scenes that I would love to discuss in detail, but unfortunately I would be considered a jerk to those who haven't seen it. Trust me, though the whole film is great, there are five or more scenes specifically that I could write a hundred pages about. Once you've seen it, you'll probably know what I am referring to.Suspense is a big word and it's hard to find, at least in movies churned out these days. You'll find it here, drawn out tremendously and then kicked up again. I haven't held my breath during a movie in a long while. When you care about the characters, even when they are villains, it's a natural response... Hollywood, ahem.In closing, go and see it. Good movies need to be supported, and I for one am looking forward to next Affleckian projecto.The Town is why I go the movies. `Nuff said.

05 May 2012

My cousin wrote the book that THE TOWN was based on!

This review is from: The Town (DVD) My cousin, Chuck Hogan wrote the book, Prince of Thieves and THE TOWN was based on this novel. I was recovering from shoulder surgery and missed this in the theatres!

supah79

04 May 2012

Solid effort, but still flawed

I am actually pretty conflicted about Ben Affleck's new feature 'TheTown'. I liked his previous effort Gone Baby Gone. Like The Town, thatmovie was filled with dangerous looking characters, good actors, aninteresting script and the steady hand of a director in control. Thesurprise of Gone Baby Gone is well, without trying to be funny: Gone.We now know that Affleck has the capacity to make Eastwood- orLumet-like movies. I'm disappointed that Affleck hasn't made the realstep to become that topnotch director. A director who works outimprobabilities in the script. But to say that The Town is a bad moviewould do it no justice. It's actually pretty good. It tries to be inthe same category as Heat, but has too many improbabilities to be inthat category.I am not all that surprised that Affleck made a 4 hour (!) first cut ofthis movie. Because I think this movie needs that kind of running timeto make it's full impact. I had the same feeling with Copland. Becauseof different reasons Affleck had to trim his movie back to it's 2 hourand somewhat minutes for the studio to give it the go-ahead. The 2hours left on the cutting-floor have to be character development. It'sthat simple. We hardly get to know all the interesting characters inthis movie (including the 2 other members of the gang). We find out atthe very last (well, me at least) that it's his best friends sister whoclings to him with her baby. His character MacCrady does themoody-thing just a bit too much, without really explaining. Too bad thestudio couldn't compromise. A 3 hour cut could have made this better.But I guess only Cameron and Mann are allowed to make 3 hour movies.Also, some action taken by it's characters had me scratching the backof my head. The FBI seems to work with tactics from the 1970's. Whenthe ambulance leaves the stadium, it is not riddled with bullets, whenthere was an intense exchange of fire not long before. But the driverdies in the following crash. Trainstations are not riddled with cops,so a convict can just take the train to freedom? The cops on the streetdon't have MacCrady's profile and face implanted on their brain, seeinghe shot at cops and all? And the biggest one: the girl really falls forhim? Really? Like Gone Baby Gone, the ending is too soft, too pleasingand too easy.But let's not be too negative. Affleck gives his The Town an authentic(as far as I can tell, never been) feeling. The character speak andmove like they have lived in Charlestown most of their lives. Thereisn't a line a dialog that sounds cheesy or out of place. Although Ireally don't know what the FBI-man meant with the size of bills thing.The actors are their characters. That's because they are good actorsworking with good material, but Affleck knows how to get it out ofthem. The action-scene's are well photographed and not implausible justto make you go 'whhooaaa…'. But with the always excellent RobertElswitt behind the lens, that's a certainty.If there's a way to get the studio to sign off on a 4 hour cut on BluRay, let me know Ben. Because I would love to see that one. With theversion we have now, I still recommend it, but I still feel that bitsand pieces are missing.

Filipe Coutinho

04 May 2012

Ben Afflecks directorial debut was much more than a mere and rare stroke of luck

Two main conclusions can be withdrawn from the gripping, poignant andunexpected The Town: one, Ben Affleck's directorial debut was much morethan a mere and rare stroke of luck. In fact, his ability to shootBoston in a crude, humane and extremely intense way puts him on thelist of the most promising directors of the decade; two, it seems thatthe fresh perspective provided by working behind the cameras gave him awhole new identity as an actor. Affleck's Douglas MacRay is easily oneof his finest and most recommendable achievements.Based on Chuck Hogan's "Prince of Thieves", The Town isn't aparticularly inspired or groundbreaking idea. A longtime thief tries toabandon the family business as his feelings for a bank manager growwhile he is being pursued by a tireless and ruthless FBI agent. If wewere to judge this film by its synopsis, Michael Mann's Heat would cometo mind: "Don't let yourself get attached to anything you are notwilling to walk out on in 30 seconds flat if you feel the heat aroundthe corner". The problem would be easily solved and the picturewouldn't be as significant as in fact is. However, its straightforwardand quite praiseworthy script allows Affleck to navigate throughfamiliar ground and carefully coordinate the events in order to shape aconvincing chain reaction about the unpredictability of human behavior.In spite of not being a complex odyssey about the people of theCharleston projects and the reasons why they chose the wrong side ofthe law, The Town provides a fruitful insight about the motivations ofgrown men deprived from their childhood. Intelligently appealing to thedramatic point of view of the characters instead of cooking a feast ofblood and explosions, Affleck, Craig and Stockard's screenplay managesto keep the audiences immersed in the action. There is a quitesurprising balance between the galvanizing action sequences and theemotional and heartwarming events. And none of this would be possibleif it wasn't for the excellent work of the acting ensemble. It wasfairly exciting to watch John "Don Draper" Hamm in an unfamiliarterritory and giving a compelling and immaculate performance as well asit was satisfying to confirm Blake Lively's potential with her MarisaTomei kind of role. Nonetheless, Jeremy Renner steals the show with hisnerve-wracking, electrifying and volatile personality. After his tourde force in Katryn Bigelow's The Hurt Locker, the undeniably talentedRenner becomes the ultimate bad guy with a bad attitude.If it wasn't for Affleck's shameless desire to turn this film insomething more 'artsy' (the slow motion and the black and whiteflashback are utterly unnecessary), The Town could be a trulyremarkable picture. However, it still is an exhilarating 70s revivalbringing to mind Friedkin's classic The French Connection. There aretwo or three scenes for the books, namely the car chase sequence or theMichael Mann homage close to the curtain fall. All in all The Townprovides great entertainment but also the conscience that action moviescan be a powerful tool for reflection. A must see.