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I know that I said I would review Click, but too bad! It’s my blog. Not yours. So yeah… Inside Man:

Put simply, Inside Man is a heist thriller. No - don’t click away. Yeah, it’s a heist thriller but it has more to it. Directed by Spike Lee (this, I admit is my first Spike Lee film) it takes place at a bank on Wall Street in New York City. And you know what? It was actually filmed ON LOCATION. Unlike some… other films of late. It’s a very enjoyable movie, pretty much sums it up.

The movie starts out following a van through the sites of New York City to some really funky music. After exploring the city and the opening credits, the van finally comes to a stop in front of the bank, and 4 painters get out. The next couple of minutes are beautifully played out with the takeover of the bank. Then the hostage negotiators are called in (Denzel Washington and Chiwetel Ejiofor [from Serenity]) and the movie goes into motion. But that’s not all. Lets just say that someone has something in the bank that needs to be taken care of by someone else. I know, really, really, really, REALLY bad explanation.

Anyway, the direction by Spike Lee is great. The movie is beautifully shot, the scenes are amazingly well-thought out and the interesting-factor of the movie is 100%. It’s not interesting like Stealth is (think explosions, big explosions) but it’s interesting without being super violent or even soft in the violence. There’s just enough of it to keep you worried about the hostage’s lives.

The acting is great. Clive Owen as the lead bad guy person is great, the star of the movie. Denzel Washington is good and fits the witty, smart character but doesn’t add anything amazing. The same with Jodie Foster, only you keep on expecting her to do something, but she doesn’t. There’s a reason why she’s sent to the crime scene, but not much happens with her. Nevertheless, the acting is terrific and believable.

Finally, my favorite part that really made the movie work. You know what I mean, it is the most understated part of all movies: The soundtrack. Terrence Blanchard’s soundtrack is mostly composed of a lone trumpet, strings, and a very nice cool light drum beat that gives the movie an edge of coolness as well as a bit of a jazzy feel. The movie’s musical themes sound REALLY good on that trumpet, making the soundtrack one of the highlights of the movie.

The New York City lore is great. It’s always fun to see a movie with “true New Yorkers” being… well, New Yorkers. Lots of New York jokes, and it helps being on location there.

Wow, you know I’ve gone through an entire review of a Spike Lee film without mentioning the social and racial undertones? Well, there are some. It’s not as in-your-face like in Crash, so it’s definitely not the main focus of the movie, but it’s definitely about all of that stuff.

What didn’t I like? Not much, really. The twist ending wasn’t much of a twist, you saw it coming from a mile away. But that’s about it.

Overall, Inside Man is really just a very, very enjoyable movie with a great setup which plays out really well, especially the big twist at the ending. And don’t forget about it’s high attention span factor.

Note: I am introducing a new rating system… stars!!! It’s out of 4.

So I give Inside Man 4/4 stars.

It should be noted that this movie is Rated R, has some violent violence, and has a lot of cursing.