I'm Glad I Don't Live in This Town

Well, as the critics have said, Ben Affleck has flexed his movie muscles and lifted up a winner.  "The Town" is a gritty, well-paced, thought-provoking, well-acted and very well written film.  Not only does Ben star in it, he also directed and co-wrote the film with Peter Craig, Aaron Stockard and Chuck Hogan.  

It is set in Boston (where Ben grew up) and takes place mostly in the neighborhood of Charlestown, the bank robbery capital of the world. The story revolves around Doug (Ben Affleck), James (Jeremy Renner "The Hurt Locker") and Claire (Rebecca Hall "Vicky Cristina Barcelona".) Doug and James are career criminals who come from a long line of Boston gangsters.  However, Doug is looking to get out.  During the heist that Doug hopes is his last, they end up taking Claire as a hostage.  They let her go but not before they take her driver's license and Doug discovers that Claire lives nearby.  He begins a relationship with her (she never saw her captors) and Doug's struggle to end his life of crime truly begins.  There are moments in this film that are truly stunning to watch and the actors bring such a gritty realism to the film.  Ben Affleck shows a maturity I haven't seen before, and Jeremy Renner is as tense and tortured as he was in the "Hurt Locker", only with a more evil and sinister core.  Rebecca Hall gives us the average girl thrown into a horrible situation with such life and courage, you will feel as if you've always known her.  And then there's Blake Lively ("Gossip Girl") as James' sister, Krista, a drug addict who is in love with Doug.  Her chameleon performance should make producers and casting directors take notice.  This woman can act.  


The ending sequence of the film takes place at Fenway Park, which is a total bonus to an otherwise great crime film.  Go see it!