Lovingly shot and engrossing, with fine performances from Owen, Washington and Foster

Rating: 9/10 (1 December 2015)

This movie blew my mind as a kid, and rewatching it last night showed me that whilst it didn't stand up to that first watching, Spike Lee's film is still an enthralling, near-perfect bank heist even if its external subplot is a bit less fun.
We open on Clive Owen, sitting in what appears to be a prison cell. The beauty of Inside Man is that often we see things that mean little to us until their meaning is revealed to us later on. Owen and his smooth, deliberate and calm delivery hook us into the film before we even begin. I'm a big sucker for "listen carefully" monologues, and Owen's might be one of the best.
The opening montage is a clash between gorgeous cinematography and grating music - for some reason, Spike Lee wanted to incorporate Slumdog Millionaire music before it was cool. Then we kick straight off - Owen and co storm a bank, take everyone hostage and set to work. Much of the film is seen through the eyes of Detective Frazier (Denzel Washington), the lead hostage negotiator who handles the situation on the ground.
Matthew Libatique's cinematography is one of the film's highlights. He uses Steadycam to show us that Owen is firmly in control, while Denzel scenes are filmed with hand-held cam to indicate confusion. The initial hostage scenes are genuinely frightening thanks to Owen's commanding performance (even behind a mask and sunglasses) and the almost too smooth tracking shots reminiscent of Full Metal Jacket's opening scene. There are almost no noticeable cuts during these bank tracking shots and they create an incredible aura of tension when we realise how close the robbers are in proximity to the hostages at all times. Flash forward scenes, during which Denzel and Chiwetel try to pick the hostages from the robbers, are bleached to show us the different time periods. Barry Alexander Brown does an impeccable job editing the film together from all of Libatique's cameras.
Denzel Washington was an inspired choice for Frazier, a charming, calm and collected negotiator with whom breaking eye contact is impossible. The scenes during which he and Clive Owen talk are woefully too few, as both men are exceptional. Chiwetel Ejiofor is a solid partner for Denzel Washington (far better utilised than he was in American Gangster) and Willem Dafoe is solid as the lead uniform on the ground. The film also has a very meaningful subplot about the bank's founder (Christopher Plummer) and his hired "fixer" (Jodie Foster - exceptional as a calm woman who never looks down on anyone but nevertheless knows she is superior) trying to protect interests within the bank.
All scenes involving the robbery itself are exceptional with few flaws. Many of the film's extras are excruciating - loud caricatures like "New York woman" and "Jewish man" - and some of the writing really ruins the scene (an old woman screeches for the robbers to "go ahead, make my day"). The story is the film's greatest asset, but a fair bit of dialogue is poor. The best scenes are the ones owned by Denzel, who Lee instructed to improvise.
Once the robbery comes to an end, the story stays overlong as Denzel plays politics with Foster and searches for the truth. Its never explained how Owen knew where his sought bounty was or even that it was in the bank - the identities of his accomplices tend to go over our heads given that we cannot pick them from the film's extended cast. And the film's final scene literally feels like it is leaning into a porno, with bow-chicka music and Denzel's annoying girlfriend on the bed moaning about handcuffs.
However, Inside Man is a directorial achievement, featuring a cast of magnificent smooth- tongued actors and one of the best thought out crimes ever put to film.