March 26, 2006 -- “Inside Man” would seem to be an aytypical Spike Lee movie. It looks more commercial than most, more Hollywood. Indeed, it opened at number one at the national box office over the weekend, a feat matched by few other Spike Lee films. Upon closer examination, however, this film bears the unmistakeable influence of Lee, one of America's finest filmmakers. Like other Lee films, it focuses on American prejudices and the power struggles within its class structures.

At the center of this racial and economic storm, as it has been in three previous Lee films, is award-winning actor Denzel Washington of “Man on Fire,” who this time plays Keith Frazier, a crafty police detective and hostage negotiator. Frazier is assigned to deal with a hostage situation at a Wall Street bank. He quickly realizes this is no ordinary bank robbery. The spokesman for the bank robbers, Dalton Russell (Clive Owen of “Closer”) is demanding a bus and an airplane for his getaway, something virtually unheard of in bank robberies. Deadlines pass and yet the robbers execute no hostages. Indeed, they let some hostages go. The bank robbers seem to be in no hurry to leave the bank.

In the midst of the robbery, a mysterious woman arrives, Madeline White (Jodie Foster of “Panic Room”). White has the political connections to force police cooperation. She is able to arrange face-to-face negotiations with Russell, but refuses to give much information to Frazier. The detective discovers there is something in the bank that a very powerful person does not want found. Frazier is beginning to discover that a mysterious off-the-records safe deposit box holds the key to the entire mystery of the bank robbery. Frazier, told to back off the investigation by his superiors, is like a bulldog. He won't let go of his investigation. It leads him to the highest halls of power in the city.

The carefully-constructed story revolves around a very elaborate and complex heist, the details of which are not fully revealed until the end of the film. The film uses misdirection to throw the viewer off the track. It is very slickly done. Not all questions are answered by the film. Who is Russell, for instance, and how did he discover the secret of the safe deposit box? How come the police are not smart enough to follow some of these likely suspects after their release from custody?

The acting is very good by a superb cast, including Chiwetel Ejiofor of “Serenity,” who plays Detective Bill Mitchell, and Willem Dafoe of “Spider-Man” who plays Police Captain John Darius. The film is well-constructed with the usual clash of cultures and classes one expects from a Spike Lee film. One example of Lee's touch is a scene with bank employee who refuses to answer police questions until he gets his turban back. The man, a Sikh, complains about being harassed by police because of his appearance. Frazier retorts, “But I bet you can get a cab.” The pacing is a bit slow, but the mystery pulls you through it. The music over the opening and closing credits is striking. The music comes from India and is called “Chaiyya Chaiyya Bollywood Joint,” written by AR Rahman, Gulzar, Panjabi MC and is performed by Sukhwinder Singh, Sapna Awasthi featuring Panjabi MC. This film rates a B.

Click here for links to places to buy or rent this movie in video and/or DVD format, or to buy the soundtrack, posters, books, even used videos, games, electronics and lots of other stuff. I suggest you shop at least two of these places before buying anything. Prices seem to vary continuously. For more information on this film, click on this link to The Internet Movie Database. Type in the name of the movie in the search box and press enter. You will be able to find background information on the film, the actors, and links to much more information.

Copyright © 2006 Robert Roten. All rights reserved.
Reproduced with the permission of the copyright holder.

Robert Roten can be reached via e-mail at .