Very Good Movie.

Rating: 10/10 (16 June 2012)

The Town is a movie about a group of bank robbers lead by Doug MacRay (Ben Affleck). It is based on a Chuck Hogan novel "Prince of Thieves". When they abduct the manager Claire Keesey (Rebecca Hall), Doug starts interacting with her to see is she can testify to any of their identities. FBI Agent Adam Frawley (Jon Hamm) begins investigating who the perpetrators bank heist are. While Doug and Claire's relationship starts to develop, James "Gem" Coughlin (Jeremy Renner) insist that they rob another bank. This time the heist goes terribly wrong and the get into a firefight with the police, but manage to escape. Doug tells Fergus "Fergie" Colm (Pete Postlethwaite) that he wants to quit robbing, but Fergie intimidates them into robbing Fenway Park. The robbery goes horribly wrong and everyone dies except Doug. He then kills Fergie for making him be involved with the robbery. Finally, Doug takes the money and hides it in Claire's garden with a note saying she can spend it better and he'll see her again "this side or the next"(Affleck, 2010).
The main theme of the movie is an internal good vs. evil struggle. Another movie that is related in theme is "Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde". The internal struggle between good and evil is played out in this very well. Doug is trying to turn his life around but it seems like he keeps getting sucked back in. One technique that helps drove the theme is dialogue. From this we gain the most insight into the workings of the theme. One part in the movie Doug meets with Gem and says he's done. Gem doesn't want to believe this but Doug is firm in his wanting to quit robbing and start a normal life. After he tells Gem, he goes to Fergie and also tells him that he's done. Fergie and Gem do not take his wanting to straighten up his life good, Fergie even goes as far as threatening Claire's life to make him stay. Without this important dialogue the theme of the movie is lost. The other important technique in this movie is the setting. Setting is defined as, " The time and place in which a film's story occurs" (Boggs & Petrie, 2008).Boston and the surrounding area is well known for infamous robbers and criminals. "Whitey" Bulger is from the area and he was arguably one of the most famous from there. "The Departed", another Boston area crime movie, is loosely based one his life. Boston has been the setting for many great crime dramas, because of its reputation. The movie could have been set anywhere, but that location gives some extra believability and justification to the story. Although the theme is good vs. evil, this is also a very good film for its pure entertainment value. I hope you see it and enjoy it as much as I did.
References Affleck, B., (Writer/Director). (2010). The Town Motion Picture. United States: Warner Bros. Boggs, J.M., Petrie, D.W. (2008). The Art of Watching Films. (7th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill