Ben Affleck was best known for his starring roles before he started directing movies, including this award-winning crime thriller now streaming on HBO Max.
The second entry in Ben Affleck’s unofficial Boston Trilogy as a director, « The Town » — released between the phenomenal « Gone Baby Gone » and the unfortunate misfire « Live by Night » — is now streaming on HBO Max. Two years before his third directorial feature, « Argo », won Best Picture at the Oscars, Affleck delivered a quintessential Boston thriller loaded with grit, explosive violence, and respect for the place that raised him.
At its core, 2010’s « The Town » is an old-fashioned heist movie with neo-noir coating that follows a small, tight-knit group of criminals who make their living by robbing banks. They’re efficient and meticulous to a degree that suggests an upbringing immersed in crime — the kind of life where street smarts and illegal skills are handed down between generations. The leader of the crew is Doug MacRay (Affleck), a true Bostonian who’s been looking to get out of the game for years. He really wants to leave this life behind, but there’s always another « last job » where things go sideways.
