Written by: Peter Craig, Ben Affleck, Aaron Stockard
Starring: Ben Affleck, Rebecca Hall, Jon Hamm, Jeremy Renner, Blake Lively, Titus Welliver
Rating: [4/5]
Falling into a life of crime hardens individuals into having a general sense of mistrust of authority for obvious reasons but also of anyone not directly involved in their inner circle. Something that can damage the way these individuals view relationships and can certainly complicate things, especially when particular stressors introduce themselves to the characters in the exhilarating and well-crafted The Town.
Operating as successful bank robbers in Boston, Doug (Ben Affleck) and Jem (Jeremy Renner) get the job done and evade the attention of the police. When their most recent heist involves taking a hostage, bank manager Claire Keensy (Rebecca Hall) they fear keeping her alive would eventually lead the FBI to their doorstep. While Doug seeks to keep an eye on her, he begins to develop feelings for her, which certainly brings some complications.
Heist films that manage to capitalize on the circumstances that make them so powerful truly stand out. Heist scenes already come baked in with plenty of stress just watching them as an audience member. Everyone’s on high alert, fear drenching all involved, guns pointed all around, police on their way, and a time crunch for the robbers to get in and out before they face their doom. The right ingredients come together for something that when failed comes across as a missed opportunity. Luckily, Ben Affleck knew exactly what he was doing with The Town and by magnifying these characters and creating some bone-chilling scenes, he created something quite sensational.
Starting by showing the proficiency of these men in action, we learn that the four burglars are lifelong friends. The more we learn about their circumstances, the more everything comes together about what the individuals in this part of Boston get viewed as and Affleck utilizes it for the betterment of the film. As we learn from FBI Special Agent Adam Frawley (John Hamm), Charlestown in Boston produces most of the individuals who resort to robbing banks as a form of income indicating this may be a rougher part of town. Nothing in this film seeks to dispel this notion and if anything it further amplifies the issue with the characterization of the players in this game. Not only do we have the robbers, but other strings get pulled in a more macro sense, which this feature did not necessarily seek to focus on and did not need to.
Ultimately this feature hinges on the relationships Doug has with both Jem and Claire. Jem essentially operates as a brother to Doug but he certainly will jump to violence much quicker than Doug would like. The fearlessness Jem displays certainly makes him an ally when taking on gut-churning situations but also makes him quite the wild card when any sort of change of plan alters things. Jem’s actions in the opening heist essentially get the ball rolling for the central conflict of the feature and introduce Claire. Between Doug and Claire, you have two individuals who would not have interacted if not for the initial heist but fate has brought them together and a romance begins to build while Claire remains unaware of the true identity of her former captor. Their romance threatens everything Doug has built with his lifelong friends and this tension continues to climb when the truth eventually gets revealed to both sides of the dangerous game Doug plays with his affection for her.
The heist scenes themselves are absolutely thrilling as Affleck succeeds very well in creating such tense moments. The most famous look, as shown on the poster comes from the heist where they dress up as nuns. Quite possibly the most terrifying outfits one could think to wear to pull off a heist and this decision adds to the terror the poor employees must endure. Having this costume used in a particularly Catholic city like Boston also does raise some eyebrows as to what type of impact it would for all involved. Each of these heist scenes demonstrates the precision of these characters while also illuminating the danger involved for everyone. Affleck never loses sight of this rightfully.
With many solid performances on offer in this feature, the biggest standout of them all is Jeremy Renner. Perhaps giving his greatest performance, he goes into full character actor mode and delivers something as entertaining as Jem. As Bostonian as it gets, Renner displays the brutishness of this character along with what made Doug remain close friends with Jem despite the latter’s tendencies to go off of the reservation when not convenient.
Entertaining throughout and showcasing awesome work by everyone involved, The Town succeeds in crafting something worth watching. It contains excellent pacing in propelling this story along and the tension of the inevitable reveals that will transpire allow for quite the viewing experience and showcase once again what makes Ben Affleck such a competent filmmaker.
Films with Josh 
