'The Town' is more then solid, excellent directing from Affleck, and great performances by everyone….a tight scrip…it's a dope movie. However, I kind of derailed my appreciation for the movie, by reading the novel it was based upon, Chuck Hogan, who comes close to surpassing Dennis Lehane as a Boston crime novelist. The novel goes in about twenty years deeper, and just expands the scope of the narrative so much….as novels usually do…but the movie was just so trimmed down, in comparison.
As for the Chris/ID getaway, and Ashley Judd's warning signs, that is one of the most emotionally resonating scenes in the film, and while it is veering into unbelievable territory, you can always explain it by simply a disconnect in information and chain of command, and the inefficiencies of the police department….who are only human after all. Look at these manhunts recently, from Chris Dorner to Eric Frein. It's possible the SWAT guy that had him had only glanced at Chris pic, or seen a grainy prison picture, or surveillance tape….