So Intense And Great, Yet So Very Underrated

Rating: 10/10 (2 July 2020)

"The Town" is just simply one of those movies that never received the recognition that it deserved. I know that I'm not a professional movie critic or anything like that, but just hear me out.
Ben Affleck, a person who most movie fans either love or hate, directed, wrote, and acted in the lead role of "The Town". The movie follows the character Danny McCray (Ben Affleck), who has been exposed to a lifestyle of crime since he was born, which, being from Charleston, Boston, MA, and having a father who has been imprisoned for a very long time, explains why. Crime runs in the family in Charleston, from father to son, uncle to nephew, grandpa to grandson, etc.... McCray had the opportunity to, and for a short time, did, play in the NHL, until his rage, which was most likely learned from his roots, broke out and left him battling not the opposing team, but his own teammates in a fight. After losing his opportunity in hockey, McCray moves back home and reboots his old, criminal ways, this time turning his attention to armored trucks and banks, rather than his past dealings in dope. He may be young, but do not take McCray's intelligent plots for granted. He is clever and efficient with his jobs. McCray's only setback was his experienced yet impulsive right hand man, James Coughlin (Jeremy Renner), who was McCray's childhood friend. It is sort of how Nicky Sanroro (Joe Pesci) becomes Sam "Ace" Rothstein's demise in "Casino" (1995), although Coughlin wasn't quite as severe or ruthless as Santoro. Coughlin is the type that shoots first and thinks later, and although a guy like that may be handy to have around in certain situations, in the end, he can, and mostly will, bring bad circumstances to a crew that is already small and outnumbered compared to the entire Boston Police Force. Other than Coughlin, who I am not saying is a bad crew member, rather an unpredictable one, the other two crew members are solid. One was smart with technology (in accordance to hacking bank records, cameras, and that sort of thing), while the other was smart with vehicular mechanics, serving as the getaway driver and handyman. With that kind of crew, and the smaller sort of jobs that they hit, they were lethal to say the very least.
On the other side of things, "The Town" features a heavy does of screen time from the Boston Police and the FBI's point of view on the investigation of what eventually became McCray's crew, very much like "Point Break" (1991). Adam Frawley (Jon Hamm) is the lead FBI agent assigned with the task of pursuing McCray and his crew. This aspect of the movie provides an incredible balance of crime versus law, while adequately portraying both sides. Although McCray and his crew are the main part of the story, it is intriguing to witness the law's point of view on the crime's happening in Boston.
I'm not going to sit here and ruin the end for y'all, even though I did mark this review for spoilers due to the amount of plot that I discussed. But in the end, "The Town" features multiple great shootout scenes, a thrillingly clever story, an impracticable yet passionate love story, and a skewed brotherhood between two men who grew up in a crime ridden family. How can it get any better?
If you're one who loves intense yet gut wrenching heist movies like "Heat", this movie is a top pick for you. I do believe that "Heat" is the best of its genre, I mean it does have the greatest cast of all time, but "The Town" is a suitable second. It is much better than "Reservoir Dogs" (1992), "Inside Man" (2006), and "Den of Thieves" (2018), and holds a slight rank over "Point Break".
Now that you have my unprofessional opinion on one of my favorite movies to ever be released, I encourage you to take the 2 hours to sit down and watch "The Town". I guarantee that it will not disappoint, and will leave you in a somewhat cheerful yet melancholic state after the conclusion. Take the time to watch this above average movie that has received unfairly low ratings. It will in time, if not almost instantly, become a film that you want to add to your Blu Ray collection or just watch often whenever you get the chance.
"The Town" is a fantastic movie that has been sincerely underrated since it's release in 2010. It is time to shine the light on what a great film this actually is. Take the time to watch it, and I promise that you won't be disappointed. I don't just rate any movie 10/10, but "The Town" easily made the cut, it is up there with all of my favorites and easily contains a spot within my top 10 movies of all time. Give it a watch and thank me later.