Inside Man Movie Review

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Written by: Russell Gewirtz
Directed by: Spike Lee
Starring: Denzel Washington, Clive Owen, Jodie Foster, Christopher Plummer, WIllem Dafoe, Chiwetel Ejiofor, James Ransone
Rated: R
Watch the trailer

Plot
A police detective, a bank robber, and a power broker enter high-stakes negotiations during the criminal’s brilliant heist and hostage situation.

Verdict
It’s a fun heist movie with a unique twist to the robbery. Throughout, we’re wondering how the heist crew is going to pull this off as the cops wonder what they’re really after. There’s also a deeper conspiracy just to make the main criminal look better in comparison, but this movie otherwise doesn’t get bogged down in details. This focuses on the cat and mouse between cop and criminal, and the result is quite crafty. This avoids any setup or background on the crew. We jump right into the heist, and it’s a smart plan that slowly unfolds throughout the movie. The plan itself is brilliant.
Watch It.

Review
I like how this opens. Dalton (Clive Owen) tells us what he did and what’s going to happen. The movie avoids setup or background, starting with the crew in the van driving to the bank they will rob. All we know is that this crew is good at what they do. Each step of this heist is more clever than the last, and that’s what makes this so much fun. It’s a great plan. The first time I watched this, I wondered what this plan was. Knowing the ending, the hints along the way make more sense. The crew separates the hostages, dressing them all in plain jump suits and blindfolding them so that no one knows anything.

Clive Owen plays Dalton Russell

Detectives Frazier (Denzel Washington) and Mitchell (Chiwetel Ejiofor) are excited to get a good case, but no one knows what’s going on inside the bank. Dalton’s crew has the bank locked down and have yet to issue any demands. Frazier is smart, and he soon realizes that the crew’s demands are a ruse.

This starts to inter-cut witness interviews amidst the action. That doesn’t help to clarify anything, other than the cops don’t seem to have determined a suspect. As we see how the crew herd the hostages, we discover why they put everyone in jump suits. It’s a clever plan. As the cops are trying to trick the crew, the crew is also misdirecting the cops mainly to waste time.

A sub plot involves bank board member Arthur Case (Christoper Plummer). This is an aspect of the movie that feels tacked on because it is. This was added in a script re-write. Case hires a broker to protect the contents of his safe deposit box in this bank. We don’t know yet what’s in the box or if it’s even a target. This box ends up being a crucial part of the plot.

Chiwetal Ejiofor, Denzel Washington, Willem Dafoe play Mitchell, Frazer, Darius

We’re never quite clear about the robbery plan. What we see generates a lot of questions, but Dalton arrogantly proclaims how great his plan is. It makes you wonder if his arrogance will be his downfall. Frazier attempts to test Dalton in their first encounter, but any theory Frazier deduced is soon debunked. Frazier claimed this crew was predictable and not a threat, but it doesn’t seem like that. When the cops finally breach the bank, they aren’t sure who are hostages and criminals as everyone is dressed alike claiming to be a victim. When the cops search the bank, they can’t find anything missing.

I like the robbery, and my only complaint about the movie is the Arthur Case angle. Dalton stated this robbery was only about money, but he does implicate Case. Is this about justice in general? I think the issue is that this sub-plot was added after the fact so it doesn’t mesh perfectly. Case is here just to have a bad guy that makes Dalton look better so we don’t feel bad rooting for a criminal. Dalton has one good deed to his name instead of being a greedy guy that outsmarted the cops. This gives the story some depth and the cops do at least catch somebody. either way, this heist is a lot of fun.