Ben Affleck is one of the most underrated and harshly criticised people in the film industry, whether that be his acting , writing or directing. I personally can't see why so many people have a problem with his work, personally for me his is one of the best working today. The title of this review may make you think this a poor film, no not at all, its just not as good as some of his previous work.
No matter what you think of him or about this film you have to give credit to Affleck for not only direct this film but writing it and starring as the lead character. It shows how much he really cared for the project and that he had a clear vision for what he anted it to look like on the screen. His acting in the film is good he portrays a relatable "outlaw" who is just trying to get on with his life and gets immersed in the Irish and Italian mob world. He makes you feel great empty for the character and a willing for the character to succeed in all of his ventures whether they be good or bad ill intentioned with is amazing how that is done. The script by Affleck as well is also good has elements of humour where there needed and are not overused especially in film like this which is mainly darkish. The dialogue between characters can be tense and meaningful at times and then heartfelt and emotional the next. There is a really good balance of emotion in the dialogue at any given seen or time in the film and is a testament to Affleck's talent. Then there is the directing of the film which is also good by Affleck, I could be wrong but this is his most adventurous project so far. What I mean by that is the scope of this film which is far greater than Argo, The Town or Gone Baby Gone. The action and the production design of the film is immaculate from start to finish, this attention to detail and scope all begins with Affleck's vision, he deserves a lot of credit for taking on such a huge undertaking with the film.
The Cast as a whole excluding Affleck were all good as well, from the more well established actors like Sienna Miller, Chis Cooper and Brendan Gleeson to the more surprising ones is Elle Fanning. All of the them gave good performances all of which you could understand there motives of what they are doing in the film. From the harshness of Brendan Gleeson as Affleck's father, being this overbearing cop who doesn't care what his son gets up to but that he must pay the consequences. Sienna Miller playing this sweet woman who has also been engulfed by the mob world and wants to deserted escape from it, she is the heart of the film for the short amount of time she is in it. Chris Cooper is always dependable actor and much like Affleck extremely underrated he never has a bad performance. The bigger surprise of the film is Fanning, she is the emotional heart of the second half of the film. Fanning going from a chief of polices's sweetheart daughter who would become a movie star to a fanatical religious speaker. It shows a fantastic range to her talent and should definitely great better roles if she's does this more often.
The final action scene of the film is truly brilliant, fantastically shot and choreographed. Heart pounding from star to finish and is a real call back to old mobster films this is the best part of the film and something that should be praised about, brilliant from Affleck.
Lastly there are some negatives of the film, I believe that the film can now and then get a bit sluggish and can be quite slow in moving from one story line to another. All the story itself can be a bit to slow and then all of a sudden really fast during the action scenes, it doesn't work all the time unfortunately. Its not as good as Argo, The Town or Gone Baby Gone but is a fine achievement by Affleck and shows the diversity in his work. It does nothing to damper his talent but it also doesn't increase it either really, 70 % out of 100 its a good film with good performances all round with really good action scenes. It can sometimes though can fall a little flat but its worth going to see, still gives me confidence in Ben Affleck directing, acting and writing a Batman film!
No matter what you think of him or about this film you have to give credit to Affleck for not only direct this film but writing it and starring as the lead character. It shows how much he really cared for the project and that he had a clear vision for what he anted it to look like on the screen. His acting in the film is good he portrays a relatable "outlaw" who is just trying to get on with his life and gets immersed in the Irish and Italian mob world. He makes you feel great empty for the character and a willing for the character to succeed in all of his ventures whether they be good or bad ill intentioned with is amazing how that is done. The script by Affleck as well is also good has elements of humour where there needed and are not overused especially in film like this which is mainly darkish. The dialogue between characters can be tense and meaningful at times and then heartfelt and emotional the next. There is a really good balance of emotion in the dialogue at any given seen or time in the film and is a testament to Affleck's talent. Then there is the directing of the film which is also good by Affleck, I could be wrong but this is his most adventurous project so far. What I mean by that is the scope of this film which is far greater than Argo, The Town or Gone Baby Gone. The action and the production design of the film is immaculate from start to finish, this attention to detail and scope all begins with Affleck's vision, he deserves a lot of credit for taking on such a huge undertaking with the film.
The Cast as a whole excluding Affleck were all good as well, from the more well established actors like Sienna Miller, Chis Cooper and Brendan Gleeson to the more surprising ones is Elle Fanning. All of the them gave good performances all of which you could understand there motives of what they are doing in the film. From the harshness of Brendan Gleeson as Affleck's father, being this overbearing cop who doesn't care what his son gets up to but that he must pay the consequences. Sienna Miller playing this sweet woman who has also been engulfed by the mob world and wants to deserted escape from it, she is the heart of the film for the short amount of time she is in it. Chris Cooper is always dependable actor and much like Affleck extremely underrated he never has a bad performance. The bigger surprise of the film is Fanning, she is the emotional heart of the second half of the film. Fanning going from a chief of polices's sweetheart daughter who would become a movie star to a fanatical religious speaker. It shows a fantastic range to her talent and should definitely great better roles if she's does this more often.
The final action scene of the film is truly brilliant, fantastically shot and choreographed. Heart pounding from star to finish and is a real call back to old mobster films this is the best part of the film and something that should be praised about, brilliant from Affleck.
Lastly there are some negatives of the film, I believe that the film can now and then get a bit sluggish and can be quite slow in moving from one story line to another. All the story itself can be a bit to slow and then all of a sudden really fast during the action scenes, it doesn't work all the time unfortunately. Its not as good as Argo, The Town or Gone Baby Gone but is a fine achievement by Affleck and shows the diversity in his work. It does nothing to damper his talent but it also doesn't increase it either really, 70 % out of 100 its a good film with good performances all round with really good action scenes. It can sometimes though can fall a little flat but its worth going to see, still gives me confidence in Ben Affleck directing, acting and writing a Batman film!