The Town
2010
***½
Director: Ben Affleck
Cast: Ben Affleck, Jon Hamm, Rebecca Hall, Blake Lively, Jeremy Renner, Pete Postlethwaite, Chris Cooper
The Boston neighborhood of Charlestown is famous for its high crime rate. Doug, Jem, Gloansy and Dez are lifelong friends and professional bank robbers who play cat and mouse with the FBI. Doug wants to ensure that the hostage from their last heist doesn't know too much, but he falls in love with her instead. Ben Affleck's follow-up to Gone Baby Gone is another gripping crime film, this time based on Chuck Hogan's novel Prince of Thieves. The story is gritty and authentic, if not terribly original. The bank robbery reminds me of Point Break, the street shootouts hark back at Heat, and the climactic heist follows in the footsteps of The Killing.
