real suspension of disbelief

Rating: 7/10 (14 February 2011)

What I liked best about this film is how it stuck with me. Thinking about it the night after I watched it and the next day, I kept testing its premises and events for credibility. It stood up to the scrutiny. I even had a long discussion with my wife, an attorney, about the plausibility of Doug's escape from Charlestown, to wit, is he a fugitive from the law or does he have a possibility of starting his life anew?
What we're talking about here is real suspension of disbelief. Ben Affleck deserves credit for directing a pretty good movie that more than surpasses the critical test of any book or film, namely does it get to its audience. Notably, he met this standard at least once previously with Hollywoodland. I still ponder just how Superman died based on the plot devices of this film.
A couple of picky criticisms:
1) The Town seemed to move a little slow for a heist movie, and one with three violent robberies and chase scenes, too. Every time I paused it to get up for a moment and looked at the On Demand slider, I found myself surprised that so little of the total length of the film had elapsed.
2) The dialog, presumably an attempt at provincial authenticity and possibly an homage by Mr Affleck to his native Boston, got in the way too often. The actors sometimes mumbled important verbal exchanges.