This is one of those films that I just kind of adore. I've seen it twice now, once in the theatre and once on Blu-Ray last night, and to me it's just a great example of a visionary director taking something simple and commercial and just imbuing it with so much energy and style that it transcends the material. I liken it a little to Shutter Island where essentially it's a showcase for directorial style, although I think Inside Man has an overall tighter script and story than Shutter Island had.
There are so many great elements at work here. The script is fantastic, full of fantastic wry dialogue and built around a heist concept which feels almost logical. The film is just filled with likeable characters and snappy humour, I mean I could watch a TV show about Washington and Ejiofor just hanging out and solving crimes. They are so great in their roles and they play off each character perfectly. But the film is full of great little one shot characters, each of the hostages have their own little quirks and moments to shine and even random ancillary characters like the Albanian girlfriend are given a standout little moment (love her derisive glare when she's asked to stop smoking). It's a film which feels populated by real people (love the scene where after the cops work out a riddle they start arguing over whether trains actually go through Grand Central). It's surprising as well because the only other film the writer has written is Righteous Kill which by all accounts is supposed to be terrible.
I also love the score for the film, just feels like a real 70s throwback with some occasional almost Bondish themes coming through.
