October's Film of the Month: The Town
If you were a movie executive being pitched the basic premise of this film, you'd probably conclude it could go either way.
The story's far from original and the script is dogged by familiar cliches, so the end result could be pretty horrid. But, with a strong cast and talented director, there's no reason why it shouldn't be a watchable crime drama. 'The Town' is more than watchable, because the cast is excellent and the direction is superb - with Ben Affleck scoring points as both a performer and film-maker.
Affleck showed great promise with his directorial debut, 'Gone Baby Gone'. Here, he demonstrates the potential to become a major Hollywood director. Once again, the working class neighbourhoods of Boston serve as the principle location for the story. The streets, the buildings and the style of cinematography evoke the atmosphere of 'Mystic River' and the excellent (often overlooked) TV series 'Brotherhood' - set in the neighbouring state of Rhode Island.
The film works as both heist thriller - with some tense set pieces and an exciting car chase - and unconventional love story. The scenes between Affleck and Rebecca Hall are among the movie's many highlights.
Also deserving of credit are Jeremy Renner as Affleck's slightly psychotic, but ultimately sympathetic best friend; Jon Hamm, managing to flesh out the character of the FBI guy on Affleck's trail and avoiding becoming "Don Draper with a gun"; Chris Cooper, barely on screen for five minutes, but giving a performance worthy of a Best Supporting Actor nomination; and Pete Postlethwaite, who portrays the most menacing florist in cinema history!
