Inside Man (2006)

Regista:

Spike Lee

Sceneggiatore (WGA):

Russell Gewirtz (written by)

Data di uscita:

24 marzo 2006 (USA)

Genere:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

Slogan:

It looked like the perfect bank robbery. But you can't judge a crime by its cover.

Plot:

A cop has to talk down a bank robber after the criminal's perfect heist spirals into a hostage situation.

Plot Keywords:

Pun In Title | Vulgarity | Snorricam | Nazi Collaborator | Tense

Premi:

5 wins & 7 nominations

Recensioni degli utenti:

With Inside Man, Spike Lee has crafted a very original and exciting thriller.

Cast

Denzel Washington	...	Detective Keith Frazier
Clive Owen	...	Dalton Russell
Jodie Foster	...	Madeleine White
Christopher Plummer	...	Arthur Case
Willem Dafoe	...	Captain John Darius
Chiwetel Ejiofor	...	Detective Bill Mitchell
Carlos Andrés Gómez	...	Steve
Kim Director	...	Stevie
James Ransone	...	Steve-O
Bernie Rachelle	...	Chaim (as Bernard Rachelle)
Peter Gerety	...	Captain Coughlin
Victor Colicchio	...	Sergeant Collins
Cassandra Freeman	...	Sylvia
Peter Frechette	...	Peter Hammond
Gerry Vichi	...	Herman Gluck

MPAA:

Rated R for language and some violent images.

Durata:

129 min

Nazionalità:

USA

Lingua:

Albanian | Inglese

Colore:

Colore

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sonoro:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Divieti:

Netherlands:12 | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Malaysia:U (edited version) | Hungary:16 | Italy:T | Denmark:11 | Malaysia:18PL | Argentina:13 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | Germany:12 | South Korea:15 | Hong Kong:IIB | Australia:MA | Singapore:PG (cut) | USA:R | UK:15 | Finland:K-15 | Mexico:B15 | Portugal:M/12 | Brazil:14 | Ireland:15A | Sweden:11 | Iceland:16 | Singapore:NC-16 (re-rating)

Luoghi delle riprese:

New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Universal Pictures

Curiosità:

The ringtone on P. Hammond's mobile at the start of the movie is Kanye West's "Gold Digger".

Errori:

Revealing mistakes: Obvious stunt double when Frazier and Russell fall down the stairs. Frazier has a shaved head while the stunt man has a full head of hair.

Citazioni:

[first lines]
Dalton Russell: My name is Dalton Russell. Pay strict attention to what I say because I choose my words carefully and I never repeat myself. I've told you my name: that's the Who. The Where could most readily be described as a prison cell. But there's a vast difference between being stuck in a tiny cell and being in prison...

Movie Connections:

Citato in "HBO First Look: The Making of 'American Gangster' (#14.27)" (2007)

Colonna sonora:

Gold Digger

With Inside Man, Spike Lee has crafted a very original and exciting thriller.

Spike Lee is one of the most consistent directors out there. Save for some more uneven pictures like She Hate Me and Girl 6, Lee's body of work is just plain impressive. And while Inside Man is not up there with Do The Right Thing, Clockers and 25th Hour, it is definitely an entertaining and intelligent thriller that does things a little differently than most cookie cutter thrillers you see in theaters nowadays.

A bank robbery in New York has gotten out of control, and it's up to police detective Keith Frazier (Denzel Washington) to act as hostage negotiator and get the bank personal and customers out safely before things turn even worse than they already are. This turns out to be a tough case, since the leader of the bank robbers, Dalton Russell (Clive Owen), turns out to be a very smart individual, who has everything planned to perfection, and who throws up surprise after surprise for Frazier and his men. But while the people around Frazier are slowly getting more and more nervous, he himself does not lose his mind, and begins a high stakes battle of wits with Russell. Things are further complicated, however, when the mayor of New York introduces a mysterious woman to Frazier. This woman (Jodie Foster) wants to protect something that is hidden in one of the safety deposit boxes inside the bank, and she will stop at nothing to force Frazier to let her inside the bank and make sure nothing happens to the contents.

This all sounds like an intriguing premise for a thriller, but the movie goes a few steps further than just having an interesting plot. Because while Inside Man does hit all the right notes when it comes to keeping you guessing about what is really going on, it is also very successful in mixing the grittier moments with comedy elements. At times, Inside Man is very funny, but in a way that does not deflate the tension. The dialogue is sharp, with the conversations between Frazier and Russell being especially fascinating, and both actors are at the top of their game in this new movie. Washington's Frazier is an intense but laconic individual, who has a permanent smirk on his face but who reads the bank robbers intentions better than anybody else, while Owen is charismatic and fascinating as the mastermind behind the bank robbery. I was a little disappointed however with Jodie Foster's role. While her part is potentially fascinating, she does not really get the chance to do anything with it other than look cool and act tough. Yes, we all know that she is very good at that, but with a bit more background story, and a bit more screen time, her part could have been even more interesting.

With Inside Man, Lee showcases an interesting way of directing thrillers. He ignores the usual build up that you see in thrillers, which consists of an introduction, a chronological development of the main intrigue, followed by a final act in which everything is wrapped up neatly (even flashing forward several times, thus revealing some important developments before they have happened), and this only serves to make Inside Man a movie that is more than your regular suspense movie. I enjoyed this original approach very much, even though he does take quite a long time to wrap things up at the end.