The ubiquitous Clive Owen (Derailed) turns up in Spike Lee’s new joint, Inside Man, a heist movie that manages to squeeze the last little drops of inventiveness out of a tired genre.
This wonderfully varied cast come together in a film that initially had me worried – was I really up for another bank robbery? Hadn’t it all be done? I was soon thoroughly engrossed in the feature, however, as Inside Man keeps you guessing right until the end. Though written by Russell Gewirtz, it is still Lee’s joint from beginning to end, and it wouldn’t be a Spike Lee film without at least a casual reference to racial tension. In someone else’s hands, dabbling in a bit of post September 11 prejudice might have come off as awkward, but a great script and Lee’s confident direction mean that such moments are the most effective in the film. This film has a similar visual style to Summer Of Sam, rather than the almost comic book colouring of Lee’s earlier films like Do The Right Thing or Mo’ Better Blues.
Whilst thoroughly engrossing, Inside Man somehow isn’t perfect. The lack of background given for Owen’s character (or indeed any of the culprits) makes his character bland rather than enigmatic, even if his performance is strong. More significantly, as soon as I’d walked out of the theatre I couldn’t remember what had been so great about the film, nor did I feel I would ever watch it again. An entertaining use of two hours, but once the credits have rolled the film is definitely over – it doesn’t leave one with much to talk about.