The Town
Directed by: Ben Affleck
Starring: Ben Affleck, Rebecca Hall, Jeremy Renner,
John Hamm, Blake Lively, and Chris Cooper
Rated: R for strong violence, pervasive language, some sexuality and drug use
Ben Affleck is a better director than actor. In his latest film, The Town, he does both, answering the question of can his good direction turn him into a good actor. (Answer: good enough.) While his sleeper hit Gone Baby Gone was a fantastic morality tale and pretty harsh-yet-good movie overall, his new film seems to lack that quality, although not due to his acting. He's fine enough, and much better than the stale Blake Lively or comical John Hamm. His film simply can't decide what it wants to be. It begins to feel much like Gone Baby Gone, then suddenly turns into a popcorn blockbuster, then splices it between imagery straight from a Boston tourism video. Because of this, The Town comes across quite hypocritically. No matter how much Affleck's character or vision may try to cover it up, he warns and un-romanticizes a life of crime then turns and gives us high-octane action, where innocent police officers are shot and we cheer when robbers get away. It's much like the parent who says to their kid "don't smoke" with a Marlboro hanging from their mouth. Unlike Johnny Depp's Public Enemy film, The Town tries to show Affleck's character's goodness by having him feel bad and fight robbers worse than he, which simply doesn't cut it. It's an entertaining movie, but it could have been better and more emotionally connecting, especially if it would have followed the much more interesting (and superbly performed) character played by Jeremy Renner, or stuck with the whole storyline of trying to cover up their crime while dating the only known witness (now there's a morality tale.) Or, by actually giving a higher view of justice rather than a lower view of integrity. Ben Affleck understands Boston, he just doesn't understand what is good.
Starring: Ben Affleck, Rebecca Hall, Jeremy Renner,
John Hamm, Blake Lively, and Chris Cooper
Rated: R for strong violence, pervasive language, some sexuality and drug use
Ben Affleck is a better director than actor. In his latest film, The Town, he does both, answering the question of can his good direction turn him into a good actor. (Answer: good enough.) While his sleeper hit Gone Baby Gone was a fantastic morality tale and pretty harsh-yet-good movie overall, his new film seems to lack that quality, although not due to his acting. He's fine enough, and much better than the stale Blake Lively or comical John Hamm. His film simply can't decide what it wants to be. It begins to feel much like Gone Baby Gone, then suddenly turns into a popcorn blockbuster, then splices it between imagery straight from a Boston tourism video. Because of this, The Town comes across quite hypocritically. No matter how much Affleck's character or vision may try to cover it up, he warns and un-romanticizes a life of crime then turns and gives us high-octane action, where innocent police officers are shot and we cheer when robbers get away. It's much like the parent who says to their kid "don't smoke" with a Marlboro hanging from their mouth. Unlike Johnny Depp's Public Enemy film, The Town tries to show Affleck's character's goodness by having him feel bad and fight robbers worse than he, which simply doesn't cut it. It's an entertaining movie, but it could have been better and more emotionally connecting, especially if it would have followed the much more interesting (and superbly performed) character played by Jeremy Renner, or stuck with the whole storyline of trying to cover up their crime while dating the only known witness (now there's a morality tale.) Or, by actually giving a higher view of justice rather than a lower view of integrity. Ben Affleck understands Boston, he just doesn't understand what is good.
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