it's a fine sunny business day in manhattan, so how about... a bank robbery? clive owen et. al. had just that in mind. masked, armed, and calculated, they turn the bank into a fortress and hold the people inside as hostages. enter denzel washington with big willy and the twins to match wits with the crooks and make sense out of this seemingly well-planned crime. enter jodie foster with a corporate smile on her face and a hidden agenda in her, um... hiding place (hey that one rhymes!). take a puff. it's a spike lee joint!
spoiler clue: inside man. the title says it all. anyways, this movie wasnt actually on my list of must-sees. not that i dont think it would be good, it just went under the radar and would have went right past me if layla hadn't wanted to watch it only because she's having an affair with clive owen (albeit an imaginary one). turns out it was a good thing i didnt decide to just stay home and ponder. because this film was beautiful. well, so was my companion, but this film was filmly beautiful. although ive had knowledge of the directorial existence of spike lee, ive never been really familiar with his movies. i heard they were good. now i have proof that they are. inside man was presented with a very personal feel. the exchanges between characters looked authentic and the shots were almost p.o.v., as if you were there watching the events unfold or eavesdropping on the conversations. you even see scenes like the unrolling of the police tape, something you dont see in most movies with a similar theme (that thing about the trains was very realistic) i also like the way spikey chose to inter-cut the present events with future interrogations with the hostages inside the bank who obviously survived. this helped increase the mystery aroma of the movie. lets you put together the puzzle piece by piece but not in a whodunit detective story way. do not expect any big scenes though. like i said, this is a very personal and very human movie. this may be a bank robbery movie but there are no car chases or bullet-ridden encounters here, no sir. (i wonder, however, why heist/hostage taking movies always happen near a diner...)
this film could be used as a visual aid in an acting class. the powerhouse cast performed at top-level calibre in their respective roles. despite zero drama moments. denzel washington was unbelievable. that dude can act. else, he's like that in real life. every word he let go and every expresion he wore, real like the hair on my knuckles. he never goes over the top or makes a hero's one-liners. just calm, casual, and cool. clive owen is equally great, considering he had to act behind a mask most of the time. i think it was primarily his vocals that gave the attitude his character needed. closing the triangle is jodie foster in a very easily but well done role. this trio held the film together and i doubt that the movie would have worked the way it did if it werent for them. also, in a small but effective part was the green goblin himself. and then there's a girl and her nice cleavage that needed no acting. bra-vo.
i am a volleyball and i just got spike leed.
the good: good directing. fine acting
the bad: a lil predictable. or was that deliberate?
the ugly: denzel on a segway shot.
the verdict: 8 bugged pizza box lid lifers.
detective skizzy.
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