Review: Ben Affleck Hits Home in "The Town"
NEW YORK (CBS) Love him in this film or not, one thing is crystal clear: Ben Affleck definitely knows what he's doing behind the camera.
Following up on his well-received directorial debut in "Gone Baby Gone," Affleck returns to the big screen two year s later with his second effort, "The Town." He displays considerable growth, vision and talent. So much so, some critics are calling him an emerging Clint Eastwood.
Based on the award-winning novel "Prince of Thieves" by Chuck Hogan, this gritty R-rated crime drama is set in Charlestown, a small Massachusetts neighborhood that has the dubious record of having produced more armed robberies and bank heists than anywhere else in the U.S.
Affleck, who also co-wrote the screenplay, casts himself as Doug MacRay, a one-time potentially successful hockey prospect, whose life, instead, becomes mired in the legacy of the blue-collar crime town in which he grew up. He's a career thief and the ringleader of a group of ruthless thugs that includes Jem (Jeremy Renner), his trigger-happy partner in crime and soul brother.
Not a movie for the faint of heart, "The Town" opens with a sequence that sees MacRay and his crew donning masks to pull off a violent bank heist. Things don't go quite according to plan when a silent alarm is triggered. po and to secure their escape, the thieves take the bank manager, Claire (Rebecca Hall), hostage. MacRay promises she will be unharmed.
But when the thieves learn she lives in Charlestown, he charges himself with the task of making sure they are not in danger of being caught. MacRay introduces himself in what she thinks is a chance encounter; eventually a relationship between the two begins to blossom.
With the FBI led by Special Agent Adam Frawley (Jon Hamm) in hot pursuit, MacRay has to make a difficult decision between loyalty to his criminal friends and walking away from a "career" and a past he doesn't want to pursue a relationship with the woman he held up.
The Academy Award winner finds himself in familiar territory in this complex, twisted love story, revisiting Boston and appropriating perfectly the accent and mannerism of the town he grew up in.
Meticulous in his research, Affleck said his actors and production crew went to visit former bank robbers and the FBI to explore the mindset of the characters they were portraying and the overall architecture of the story.
A sterling performance by Oscar winner- Chris Cooper as Affleck's convict father helped personalize a film somewhat desensitized by graphic violence and strong language.
Blake Lively was under-utilized as Renner's tough-girl sibling, Krista. A victim of the crime-ridden neighborhood she has grown up in, her character possesses a mixture of tough street smarts and the vulnerability of a woman who wants a better life for herself and her baby. Lively did a fine job capturing both qualities without going overboard, but her relationship with Affleck's character could - and should have - been explored further.
Affleck's directing outshines his acting in this outing, partly due, ironically enough, to the strong supporting cast he helped put together. Jon Hamm is immaculate in his performance as the cop who desperately wants to nab MacRay and his accomplices and the corrupt culture they perpetuate.
The film's storyline is not unique by any stretch of the imagination, with parallels to "The Departed", but the raw grit, high-octane car chases and machine gun-wielding "nuns", together with a huge heist and shootout at the hallowed grounds of Fenway Park still make it a thrill to watch.
"The Town" leaves no doubt whatsoever that Affleck will be given plenty of opportunities to further flex his directorial muscles and that whatever his next venture is will definitely pique audience interest.
MPAA Rating : R for strong violence, pervasive language, some sexuality and drug use.
Running Time : 2 hours, 5 mins