The Town

[prettyxcool]

Chris Eubank gets everywhere - he was at the Renault World Series Silverstone last year. We had a nice chat and he even posed with me for a photo!

[SocialFlutterBy]

Thought this film was a lovely change from the latest stream of rom com, loved the chracters the storyline was strong a realy nice change for me althougt the film did slow down a little in the middle the ending more than made up for it for me and my OH oh and Ben Affleck not usualy my cup of tea however based on this i think i could become quite addicted LOL yummy!! all in all i give this film a 9/10 would have been more if it hadnt slowed in the middle

[stuartboy]

I saw this last night - definately one of the best films this year!
Does anyone know what the clementine at the end meant? It was in the money bag

Clementine was an orange which was a clue to her that he had gone to Florida - the Sunshine State - where they grow oranges. One of the final scenes was Ben Afleck in the Everglades. She also gave him a clue when she mentioned her "sunny day" on the phone as a way of informing him it was not safe to come to her apartment.

[Sunny Saver]

I saw this last night - definately one of the best films this year!
Does anyone know what the clementine at the end meant? It was in the money bag

Clementine was an orange which was a clue to her that he had gone to Florida - the Sunshine State - where they grow oranges. One of the final scenes was Ben Afleck in the Everglades. She also gave him a clue when she mentioned her "sunny day" on the phone as a way of informing him it was not safe to come to her apartment.

Was that what it meant... I thought it was cos he said his grandmother had a restaurant called tangerine something... Doh!

[bevvy]

I saw this last night - definately one of the best films this year!
Does anyone know what the clementine at the end meant? It was in the money bag

Clementine was an orange which was a clue to her that he had gone to Florida - the Sunshine State - where they grow oranges. One of the final scenes was Ben Afleck in the Everglades. She also gave him a clue when she mentioned her "sunny day" on the phone as a way of informing him it was not safe to come to her apartment.

Was that what it meant... I thought it was cos he said his grandmother had a restaurant called tangerine something... Doh!

I thought he said she had a restaurant in Tangerine, Florida (it is a place in Orange County)

[Beate]

And she lives in Clementine Road? LOL, must admit I had not realised the significance of the orange fruit in the bag though I did get the "sunny days" reference at once!

[jimibaboza]

PS Did anyone else spot former boxer Chris Eubank making his way up to one of the screens as we were on the way out?

I did. He walked past a group of people who asked him for a photo to which he replied "I am a very busy man, sorry" and walked off.
He was way overdressed for a trip to the cinema in my opinon.

But anyway about the film, my review in the spoiler.

[spoiler]There are those who say that those who can’t do, teach. I have often wondered if the Hollywood version goes like those who can’t act, direct. Proof of this comes in the form of The Town. A movie directed by an actor who has appeared in so many box office bombs that his career resembles a battlefield.

So it is not surprising that he had a go at directing (and also starring) in this movie. The overall plot is simple movie fare dealing with bank robberies and the fallout that comes with living a life of crime. This movie rises above the rest however by concentrating on an area which has largely gone unnoticed in films, the emotional impact that such a violent event can have.

The movie begins with an action packed bank robbery and follows the lives of both the robbers and one of the victims afterwards. It is a unusual premise and one that does a great job in drawing you into the story and elevates it above a typical cop and robbers flick, which are ten a penny these days.

It would be easy in a story to fall back onto cliché and simply make the story a action piece with a love story thrown in for good measure. But this is where the movie shines, there are no one note characters here, everyone has enough presence and backstory to make the place feel alive and you will never question why a character actions as they all feel natural and as a consequence of the events that are unfolding. Ben Affleck, who plays a street wise robber named Doug MacRay is gives a very strong performance and succeeds in making the character three dimensional to such a great degree that every conflict is written on his face. He is aided by a strong supporting cast, particularly the love interest (Rebecca Hall) who has to carry most of the emotional weight during the first half.

For me the interesting part of this movie is the portrayal of the police force. Jon Hamm plays a FBI agent who clearly believes that the ends justify the means. We see him harassing people, beating people up and generally acting like a thug in order to catch the criminals. It is such a shocking move that for most of the movie the audience will see them as the bad guys.

The only bum notes lie in the directing, Affleck does fall back on action movie cliché such as spinning the camera around a group of people and steady cam. But while they are noticeable they are not overused. He does manage to get top performances from the cast and there is little to fault the script, which he also wrote.

This movie is a great watch with strong acting from all in it and it is easily the best heist movie since Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. Ben Affleck shows everyone that he really can act given the right material and hopefully this will put him back on the Hollywood map.[/spoiler]

http://www.deepfriedzombie.co.uk/

[Sunny Saver]

And she lives in Clementine Road? LOL, must admit I had not realised the significance of the orange fruit in the bag though I did get the "sunny days" reference at once!

Can you imagine if she had said 'Sunny Saver' instead?!

[hdaniel82]

I absolutely loved this movie. What a great director Ben Affleck is. I've not seen Gone Baby Gone but it's definitely on my list now. 9/10

[kittycoocat]

Really enjoyed this film ...viewed in Cardiff this Monday. Screening was full.
Must say Ben Affleck did himself proud directing this great film, as well as staring as leading male.

A good 9/10