Location is so powerful in movies. However, it is perhaps the most underrated facet to making a good film. While it is not always necessary, when one of the characters in a film is the setting, a whole new dimension is added. Ben Affleck’s Boston is practically a living, breathing organism. Affleck’s roots clearly show here, as he displays a great love and fond understanding of the area and the lifestyle it presents. Despite this love, he does not cringe from showing the dark underbelly of the society with gritty realism.
The film opens informing us that the Boston neighborhood of Charlestown raises the most bank robbers and armored car thieves in the nation. One group of these crooks is committing a string of well-executed robberies, deftly evading the FBI. This group consists of four childhood friends: Doug McCray (Ben Affleck), James "Jem" Coughlin (Jeremy Renner) running the gigs, and Albert "Gloansy" Magloan (Slaine), and Desmond "Dez" Elden (Owen Burke) as driver and techie, respectively. During one robbery, loose-cannon Jem takes the bank manager hostage as leverage in the case of running into law enforcement.
They release the bank manager, Claire Keesey (Rebecca Hall) and McCray agrees to check on her and keep her scared of speaking to the FBI. McCray, however, is instantly stricken and the two begin a relationship, secret from Jem. FBI agent Adam Frawley (Jon Hamm) is in hot pursuit of the crew, and continually pressing Keesey for information while McCray is wanting to get out of the game and run away with her. Before he can, however, a local criminal boss “The Florist” (Postelthwaite) has one last job for him.
The film makes it evident that when you grow up in Boston you never really leave. Even if some can escape the physical city, it’s still in their blood. Chris Cooper plays Doug McCray’s father and a perfect example of this. Sitting in prison for life, he is still reluctant to deny the allegiance he swore years ago, though his compatriots are long gone. Jem has come to accept this as his fate as well, and tries to get McCray to see that they both share it.
This is a great follow up to Affleck’s directorial debut, “Gone Baby Gone”, and feels almost like a spiritual sequel. Boston returns as a character in “The Town”, immersing you so fully in the culture you almost feel as if you had been there. Affleck clearly loves Boston, and knows how to use that love very effectively; he is emerging as a serious film maker and actor. Affleck has landed some very good roles in the last few years and is showing some serious acting chops. He is completely believable as the man who wears the gangster face when he needs to but is caring and willing to do anything for Keesey.
Jeremy Renner does a fantastic job, continuing to prove his worth after his exceptional turn in “The Hurt Locker”. Cooper is fantastic in his solitary scene, using his minimal screen time very effectively. John Hamm plays a much more aggressive role than his often soft-hearted Mad Men character. His character is fighting to imprison the gang with such fervor and disregard for collateral damage. He is a perfect flipside to Affleck’s character, introducing the notion that, at the end of the day, all we are really doing is working for a paycheck; regardless of which side of the law we are on. Blake Lively surprises us with a very real, sad turn as the drug running-sister to Jem. However, her and Renner share sadly little screen time for being siblings.
Many films forget the importance of context, but Affleck’s love affair with Boston sets up the perfect setting for this film. As of late, Boston in particular has quite popular in the filmmaking circle, and if it continues to influence films like this, I’m sure no one will have a problem with it staying this way. This movie is an example that everyone can look to when making a film about a town. In fact, this “Town” isn’t so much a crime film as it is a Boston film.
Sources
* Rated R for strong violence, pervasive language, some sexuality and drug use
* Directed by: Ben Affleck
* Written by: Ben Affleck, Peter Craig
* Starring: Ben Affleck, Rebecca Hall, John Hamm, Jeremy Renner
