My Take on the Movies
A Mini-Review of
INSIDE MAN
By: A. L. "Toni" Anderson

Academy Award winner Denzel Washington stars in Inside Man (2006), the latest, very highly anticipated Spike Lee Joint. The film can be classified as part heist, part mystery, and all riveting. It is the fourth project on which these two wizards of the modern film world have collaborated. The musical score is once again composed by the acclaimed New Orleans native, trumpeter Terence Blanchard.

Detective Keith Frazier (Washington) is a wise-ass brother with a less-than-perfect home life. He is under suspicion at work for a check cashing scheme, but when the Manhattan Trust Bank is literally taken over by Dalton Russell (Clive Owen) and crew, Frazier is the man. He deftly matches wits with the criminal mastermind in rapid-fire, point-counterpoint fashion. The stakes are high, but Frazier is down for the challenge.

Madeleine White (Jodie Foster), whose function is never clearly defined, is called in for her “special skills” by the bank’s CEO Arthur Case (Christopher Plummer), and suddenly one wonders “what is really going on!?” There are more twists than a salted pretzel, and the balance of power keeps shifting as the tables are turned and turned again. Both the audience and Detective Frazier are kept guessing until the somewhat surprising conclusion.

The cast is capably rounded out with major roles played by Willem Dafoe (Spiderman I and II) and Chiwetel Ejiofor (Four Brothers) and lesser roles by Peter Gerety (Syriana) as an NYPD captain, Cassandra Freeman (Numb3rs) as Frazier’s girlfriend Sylvia, and newcomer Carlos Andrés Gómez.

The dialogue is witty, for starters, and the multi-layered plot is unveiled in small slices, as it should be in any good thriller. The evidence of Denzel’s talent becomes more apparent with each successive performance, and here he is at the top of his game. Lee’s directorial talents are likewise improving with time and experience, although he still clings to certain of his trademark devices. The film’s action is constant, sometimes moving so quickly that a momentary blink may cause one to miss something crucial.

The social commentary that is so much a part of all of Lee’s work since the beginning is evident, but more subtly exhibited than in past works. Lee is never short on opinions, but he has become adept at displaying them in a less blatant manner.

Inside Man works on many levels, and it is certainly worth the price of admission. Judging by reactions in the packed theater where I saw the film, I’d say Spike has a hit on his hands. I could easily see this film again, just Denzel and me, alone in the dark!

♠ ♠ ♠ ♠ ♠

Don’t miss Cathy Hughes’s interview with Spike Lee, currently being shown on TV One’s One on One.

[© 03/25/2006] By: A. L. "Toni" Anderson