Recently, I planned, and set in motion, the events to execute the perfect bank robbery.

Rating: 9/10 (26 November 2011)

Inside Man is directed by Spike Lee and written by Russell Gewirtz. It stars Denzel Washington, Clive Owen, Willem Dafoe, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Jodie Foster and Christopher Plummer. Music is by Terence Blanchard and cinematography by Matthew Libatique.
A heist of a New York bank is being undertaken by exceptionally well organised crims. Led by intelligent Dalton Russell (Owen), the robbers appear to have every eventuality covered. NYPD detectives Frazier (Washington) and Mitchell (Ejiofor) are assigned the case and set about unstitching the volatile situation. But nothing is as it seems, especially since ruthless "fixer" Madeleine White (Foster) shows up to broker a deal with the robbers on behalf of the bank's owner (Plummer).
Spike Lee does a formulaic movie? Surely not? Well yes and no, the genre staples are adhered too but Lee stamps his own authority on proceedings. Where aided by a tricksy and well written script by first timer Gewirtz, he has crafted one of the best heist movies in the modern era. Propelled by a cast on excellent form, Inside Man always has a trick up its sleeve, while characters motivations and reasoning's are always sketchy, thus making the audience just as suspicious as Washington's driven detective is. With Lee choosing a choppy chronology process to unfurl the plot, this too helps to keep the nagging narrative question of "what is going on?" to consistently linger in the air. And with multiple characters ducking in and out of the story, it's a credit to Lee and Gewirtz that the film is neatly streamlined, it's never confusing and always gripping.
How Lee moulds the character dynamics at play always holds the attention, be it the battle of wits between Washington & Owen, or the Foster and Plummer ask no questions axis, no frame or dialogue exchange is wasted. The director even manages to slip in a couple of statements of race related bother involving a Sikh and a copper who gets pulled up on his terminology. While an aside at violent video games sneakily slips in with ironic potency. For sure this is no "Spike Lee message movie," but his awareness of the times, and particularly New York's denizens, never wanes. Blanchard provides some wonderful snatches of music, at times sounding very James Bondian, it adds a nice espionage like flavour into the New York melting pot. As for the ending? Well more like as for the series of reveals? It's cracker-jack time, no cop outs or reverting to type, it's a fitting finale to what has gone before it.
It's not flawless, some little problems reside within, but they are not large ones. Though it is fair to say that if you are someone who makes a point of working things out as soon as possible? Then you are able to do so here, though I do think the makers aren't exactly hiding it, in fact we are dared to pay attention right from the off as Owen's mastermind looks us in the eye and tells us so. But small itches aside, this is darn entertaining stuff, a film that can raise the pulse and hold you in suspense, whilst also demanding you engage the brain as well. 8.5/10