Something about.. The Town

I had high hopes for The Town. A modern day bank robbery film - violent and brutal, action-packed but with an unexpected and unconventional love story.

Previews gave the impression of a powerful, fast-paced but challenging film about a man torn between his dark money-hungry criminal side and his good loving side.

The audience was thrown into the action, kicking off the film with the chilling robbery carried out by masked thieves with guns. A similar scene like that in many bank job movies I felt the film may struggle to be original or memorable.

But disappointingly it turned out to be even less than just that.

The film just took itself far too seriously. (Although I never thought possible) there was too much intensity. No scenes of lightness to lift the mood, no moments to breath, and there was certainly no fun or humour. There was just too much pent up passion, too much tension. It was like waiting for a stretched elastic band to break, or waiting for a giant balloon to burst - uncomfortable and awkward.

In a modern city setting and with some 'normal' characters the story was too dark and evil. There were too many hushed tones, mumbling on-edge conversations and whispering voices in dark corners.

Too much intensity - took itself too seriously, there were no moments to breath, no scenes of lightness or even humour. The Town was full of too much pent up passion, too much tension.

Shockingly Ben Affleck was one of the best parts of the film. Unlike his typically corny acting he was surprisingly convincing as the double-sided Doug MacRay, a greedy bank robber and a caring partner.

Rebecca Hall was good as Claire Keesey - a hostage from the bank robbery who unknowingly falls for one of her captors - is average. She plays the part well but brings no sparkle to the lead female and is instantly forgettable (I had to IMDB her in order to reference her in this review!)

And Blake Lively struggles to demonstrate her acting ability outside of Gossip Girl, playing Krista Coughlin, a drug user, single mother and former lover of Affleck.

In fact, the unknown actor Jeremy Renner who plays the harsh and gritty character of James 'Gem' Coughlin is the strongest performer in The Town. He plays an edgy, chilling and cold criminal with little compassion in his debut film and he could be one to watch in the future.

All in all, my hopes were dashed. The film was nothing special. It was average - distinctly average.