Somehow simultaneously glued to my seat and laughing it off

Rating: 8/10 (18 May 2013)

When a bank is expertly being robbed by four people led by Dalton(Owen, lending tremendous personality, using primarily his voice, his face covered 80% of his screen-time... not to mention that we sympathize with him, in spite of us seeing him terrify hostages), not all seems right. Detective Frazier(Washington, a man of principle, and one whose wits may just match those of the aforementioned law-breaker) is trying to figure out what and deal with the dozens of innocents trapped inside. Meanwhile, White(Foster, utterly nailing the role of an ice queen who gets results) uses considerable pull to try to ensure at least part of the outcome.
New York, and its both ethnically diverse and racist people, come alive with the slang, the different types, the many small character moments - the frustration(not fear or empathy!) of their day being put on hold by a nearby negotiation with armed perps. Everyone is credible, and the tight writing leaves little to be desired. Dialog is quotable, poignant, and often hilarious - the comedy in this is disarming, mixed in well with the ever-present threat(did I mention that the hold-up begins right out of the opening credits?).
This is tense(especially with cutting away from the scene we desperately want to see the next part of!), with several sudden bursts of violence(a little of it bloody, hardly ever graphic), as it builds and you wonder what's actually going on. It keeps you guessing, and the twists all work out and come together - not only that, but(unlike Minority Report, which I recently rewatched), you can actually keep track of what's going on. Everyone is driven by self-interest, and feel like real people, no one is just a stereotype(positive or negative). The acting is great or better; our trio of leads are incredible.
There is a lot of strong language(some sexually suggestive) in this. The DVD comes with trailers for Jarhead, King Kong(the 2005 one) and United 93. I recommend this to any fan of heist thrillers. 8/10