Welcome Back, Mr. Affleck

Rating: 9/10 (22 January 2011)

It's no surprise to anyone that Ben Affleck has been off the map for quite some time, despite minor roles in other movies lately. Could it be that putting on that different hat, the director/actor one, was the change this guy needed? As a director he made his point with 'Gone Baby Gone', but now I must say he deserves a standing ovation for 'The Town'.
Who knew, right? I mean, the guy was puked and mocked in tabloids, and I won't mention what me & my fellow comic-fans thought about his Daredevil stint. Honestly, I don't give a rat's behind who he dates. Let me judge his acting instead. Well, add directing now, too.
This movie simply blew me away. As a director, Affleck took me to Charlestown, where you can almost taste the downwards spiral of mess the characters find themselves in. A raw picture, raw characters, and a raw story. As an actor, Affleck and his co-actors convinced from the start, you just want the 'bad guy' to succeed. And those accents! It gave that little bit extra, without overdoing it. At times you would almost think of the plot twist possible with Jon Hamm. Luckily this isn't the last movie that will feature Pete Postlethwaite, but he did one heckuva job as usual. Jeremy Renner portrayed that zealot the story asked for. I was surprised to see 'Gossip Girl' Blake Lively in the movie, as well. To me, she was bit of the weak link in the ensemble. I felt she did a good job, but didn't convince me as much as the rest did. Almost as if she tried to hard. Rebecca Hall however was a positive surprise. After in my opinion, forgettable roles in major productions, she gave us a character to remember.
All and all, Affleck made the movie into one of my favorites.
Good job.. Welcome back.