cinemabon
08-16-2006, 08:28 PM
“Inside Man” by Spike Lee
When hearing the name of director, Spike Lee, the thought of social commentary through film comes to mind. One only has to remember films like “Do the right thing” or “Malcolm X” to recall Lee’s impact on the film industry. The action thriller is relegated to other directors, and in the case of bank heists, the most famous, “Dog Day Afternoon,” to director Sidney Lumet. “Inside Man” is a homage to Lumet by Lee, as he even goes so far to as to find original cast members from the film and places them in bit parts.
When producer Brian Grazer approached Lee with the project, many of his studio friends told him that he and Lee would not get along. Nothing could have been further from the truth. Grazer not only interested Lee, but the director brought with him his avant-garde style of filmmaking and many of his friends, like Denzel and Defoe, increasing the pool of talent. Grazer brought in actors such as Foster, Owen, and Plummer to round out the principle leads. With talent like that, the level of acting seen in many scenes is raised considerably.
What should have been an interesting character study, instead becomes a confusing plot for audiences to follow, and the actors to drudge through. Such as it is, a bank robbery immediately turns into a hostage situation, on purpose (as opposed to Dog Day, which happened inadvertently). In a series of flashbacks, the hostages rule out those participating in the heist as suspects. Even more confusing is the character of Jodie Foster. She apparently has nothing to do with anything, other than being some sort of power broker. Her scenes involve confrontation between all the leads, usually with some sort of bizarre twist.
Lee wanted the ending to be a revelation to the audience. Instead, many filmgoers and critics were relieved the film had finally reached its long drawn-out anti-climax, with first a faux/fantasy ending, followed by the real ending… oops, then another… and finally another.
Even as the credits roll, we’re still not certain what the contents of box 392 are supposed to be. Lee and writer Russell Gewirtz (first screenplay) only vaguely tell us it is some terrible crime Plummer is supposed to have committed, only the dossier with the Swastika on the outside is never mentioned again. During the commentary, Lee refers to Hitchcock at this point and his ‘McGuffin’ as a deliberate mislead of the audience. This additional information only tends to confuse the already muddied plot with more superfluous information.
The DVD looks sharp with the usual extras, commentary, deleted scenes, and a great one on one with both Denzel and Spike discussing past works (the only redeeming quality about the DVD). DOP Matthew Libatique’s camera work is frenetic at times, switching between hand-held and steady cam for ‘in-your-face’ approach that has become the standard for this bill of fare. The fast paced cutting and minimal score are reminders that the MTV generation has infiltrated the film industry with their style of filmmaking, making the rest of us watch or else. The only Lee social commentary comes at a humorous moment near the middle when a Sheik is mistaken for being ‘Arab’ and complains about being harassed at the airport, which Washington quickly blurbs back, “Yes, but at least you can get a cab.” The two hour, nine minute film runs long and is worth one night’s rental, but not a collector’s piece.
When hearing the name of director, Spike Lee, the thought of social commentary through film comes to mind. One only has to remember films like “Do the right thing” or “Malcolm X” to recall Lee’s impact on the film industry. The action thriller is relegated to other directors, and in the case of bank heists, the most famous, “Dog Day Afternoon,” to director Sidney Lumet. “Inside Man” is a homage to Lumet by Lee, as he even goes so far to as to find original cast members from the film and places them in bit parts.
When producer Brian Grazer approached Lee with the project, many of his studio friends told him that he and Lee would not get along. Nothing could have been further from the truth. Grazer not only interested Lee, but the director brought with him his avant-garde style of filmmaking and many of his friends, like Denzel and Defoe, increasing the pool of talent. Grazer brought in actors such as Foster, Owen, and Plummer to round out the principle leads. With talent like that, the level of acting seen in many scenes is raised considerably.
What should have been an interesting character study, instead becomes a confusing plot for audiences to follow, and the actors to drudge through. Such as it is, a bank robbery immediately turns into a hostage situation, on purpose (as opposed to Dog Day, which happened inadvertently). In a series of flashbacks, the hostages rule out those participating in the heist as suspects. Even more confusing is the character of Jodie Foster. She apparently has nothing to do with anything, other than being some sort of power broker. Her scenes involve confrontation between all the leads, usually with some sort of bizarre twist.
Lee wanted the ending to be a revelation to the audience. Instead, many filmgoers and critics were relieved the film had finally reached its long drawn-out anti-climax, with first a faux/fantasy ending, followed by the real ending… oops, then another… and finally another.
Even as the credits roll, we’re still not certain what the contents of box 392 are supposed to be. Lee and writer Russell Gewirtz (first screenplay) only vaguely tell us it is some terrible crime Plummer is supposed to have committed, only the dossier with the Swastika on the outside is never mentioned again. During the commentary, Lee refers to Hitchcock at this point and his ‘McGuffin’ as a deliberate mislead of the audience. This additional information only tends to confuse the already muddied plot with more superfluous information.
The DVD looks sharp with the usual extras, commentary, deleted scenes, and a great one on one with both Denzel and Spike discussing past works (the only redeeming quality about the DVD). DOP Matthew Libatique’s camera work is frenetic at times, switching between hand-held and steady cam for ‘in-your-face’ approach that has become the standard for this bill of fare. The fast paced cutting and minimal score are reminders that the MTV generation has infiltrated the film industry with their style of filmmaking, making the rest of us watch or else. The only Lee social commentary comes at a humorous moment near the middle when a Sheik is mistaken for being ‘Arab’ and complains about being harassed at the airport, which Washington quickly blurbs back, “Yes, but at least you can get a cab.” The two hour, nine minute film runs long and is worth one night’s rental, but not a collector’s piece.