Ben balances love and action in bank heist flick

“The Town”

Directed by: Ben… “The Town”

Directed by: Ben Affleck

Starring: Ben Affleck, Rebecca Hall, Jon Hamm, Blake Lively

Grade: A

Getting into the “family business” takes on a whole new meaning in the Boston neighborhood of Charlestown.

The area has produced more bank robbers and armored-car thieves than any part of the United States — these criminal acts being skills fathers pass on to their sons, according to the trailer. Now it’s provided the perfect backdrop for Ben Affleck’s gritty crime thriller, “The Town.”

Three years after his acclaimed directorial debut in “Gone Baby Gone,” Affleck has returned to Boston to get behind — and this time also in front of —  the camera once again.

Affleck plays the film’s unlikely protagonist, Doug MacRay, who is trapped in a rotating cycle of robberies bestowed upon him by the community of Irish-American bosses. Together with his three cohorts — affectionately dubbed “Skeletors,” — he terrorizes Boston by day and outwits the FBI by night. Despite the best efforts of Bureau agent Adam Frawley — played by Jon Hamm of “Mad Men” — to ensnare the criminals, they continue to elude him.

But the two-hour film isn’t just a series of car chases and shootouts. A conflicted love interest in Claire Keesey (Rebecca Hall) lends a sense of humanity to Affleck’s character, reminding audiences that behind the mask of a bank robber is the face of a good man.  And if I dare say it, feelings of sympathy outweighed negative feelings like fear and judgment.

Simply put, it is an entertaining crime film. Think: part “Inside Man,” part “The Departed,” with an infusion of Affleck devotion both to the project and the city itself. Affleck was raised in Cambridge, Mass., wears Boston attire in the majority of the scenes and shows off the city skyline whenever he can. From the depiction of family crime circles to the perfected accents, it’s obvious Affleck poured himself into the film.

Relative newcomer Blake Lively — known as aprincess of the Upper East Side to many fans — has traded riches for rags to play MacRay’s tossed-aside ex-girlfriend and drug-dealing single mom, Krista Coughlin. Judging by her small but pivotal role, I wouldn’t be surprised if we see her start to break away from the “Gossip Girl” blond bombshell stereotype.

“The Town” strikes a fair balance between action scenes and the main characters’ developing relationship, meaning this film isn’t just suited for a guys’ night out. The action comes at a surprising pace, pulling audiences to the edges of their seats. However, as loudly and suddenly as it comes in, it quickly dissipates to be replaced by a brooding Affleck, conflicted by his obligations to “the family” and his desire to start a new life.

I left “The Town” wondering to myself, “Was that really the same Ben Affleck of the ‘Gigli’ and ‘Jersey Girl’ abominations? Did that man actually don red spandex for one of his films? Is it true he was nominated for a Razzie Award in the category of ‘Worst Actor of the Decade?’”

The answer to all three is “yes,” but “The Town” serves as a bridge from his past follies to his future potential as a filmmaker. As Affleck develops himself as a director I believe we will only see better from him.