The Town

Overview

Boston boy Ben Affleck returns to his roots for a thrilling, if ever so flabby sophomore effort in The Town. In a keen observation of the loyalty and liabilities of friendships in the close nit Boston neighbourhood of Charlestown*, Affleck's adaptation of Chuck Hogan's Prince of Thieves centres on Doug MacRay (Affleck), a reforming bad guy trying to extricate himself from the family businesses: armed robbery. With dad (Chris Cooper) already doing time, Doug and his ominously erratic best friend Jem (Jeremy Renner) lead a ruthlessly professional team of robbers. But when a heist goes awry and Jem briefly makes a hostage of bank manager Claire (Rebecca Hall), the crew decides she must be watched lest she tips off the FBI, fronted by stoic Special Agent Adam Frawley (Jon Hamm). Predictably, Doug winds up smitten and starts a romance with Claire, but are dreams of a better life enough to escape The Town?

The little boy lost routine Affleck trots out here has distinct echoes of his debut screenwriting effort Good Will Hunting (co-written with Matt Damon). So too the wry turns of phrase; Affleck's dialogue is for the most part clever, brash and insightful, but he indulges himself with far too many monologues. Doug's lengthy revelations about his mother and his past come at the cost of any real development of Claire's character. In fact it is only through sheer force of Hall's prodigious on screen presence that Claire comes away as anything other than a sounding board for Doug's existential crisis.

Gossip Girl's Blake Lively is given a little more to do in her surprisingly stellar effort as Doug's ex, young mum and local oxy-skank, Krista. Showing up both Hamm and Affleck in her scenes, she brings a desperate humanity to Krista's messy existence. Affleck also calls in the big guns with Pete Postlethwaite and Cooper as two members of the old guard, and living symbols of Doug's fate.

The Town sees a lot of action, and here Affleck excels. He's clearly aware of the legacy left by films like Point Break and Heat, but proves himself worthy of adding to the genre with some cracking pace, kinetic editing and high tension. Setting the climactic heist in the Red Sox's Fenway Park is pure gold, though even this is pulled down by a denouement heavy in mawkish sentimentality.

Still, as an electric heist film played out with an impressive ensemble cast, and grounded in a believably earnest sense of place, Affleck proves Gone Baby Gone was no beginners luck. It's no The Wire, but The Town has definitely got game.

*The credits dedicate the film to the people of Charlestown. A massive backhanded compliment? You decide.