May You Be In Heaven A Full Hour And Fifty-Seven Minutes...
May 26th 2008 18:03
Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead. There’s a lot to like about Sidney Lumet’s latest release, but the real kudos has to go to Kelly Masterson, for using such a perfectly apt Irish saying in the title to his screenplay. I knew nothing of the film before I saw it, but that title drew me right on in.
Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead stars Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Ethan Hawke, Marisa Tomei and Albert Finney in a story of desperation and betrayal, all within the confines of one ostensibly loving family.
Finding himself in trouble after embezzling from his employer to finance his drug habit, Andy Hanson (Hoffman) devises a scheme that will solve all his problems. He convinces his brother, Hank (Hawke) to rob a jewellery store, fully insured, a family business – which belongs to their family. Hank, weak-willed, and facing debt after an acrimonious divorce, eventually agrees, but makes the ultimately fatal decision to involve a friend who doesn’t play by the brothers’ rules…
What follows is a downward spiral, as tragedy strikes and deceptions are uncovered. The Hanson brothers make a bad situation worse as they attempt to cover up their crimes.
Andy’s wife, Gina (Tomei), tries to understand her husband and his demons as best she can, between her scheduled Thursday afternoon rendezvous with his brother.
Hank and Andy’s father, Charles (Finney), questions the capriciousness of fate and the errors of his past, before exacting his revenge.
Together they are a band of imperfect beings, who fall prey to the follies of human nature, taking one side-step too many in the quest for something more, or less, or just something else.
Hoffman is almost menacing as Andy, hiding his vulnerability under a façade of cold conviction, his designer life-style and slicked-backed hair a convincing cover for the indignity of his reality. Hawke on the other hand, unkempt and pathetic in the role of Hank, is almost slack-jawed in his inability to cope with the situation he was equally unable to stay away from.
Finney, with his gruff drawl, plays Charles with a single-mindedness which is most credible in giving the impression that his supposedly lesser-loved son, Andy, resembles him closest. Tomei shines in her portrayal of Gina, showing off her sexuality as a successful modern day Qetesh.
Though the film has moments of repetition, as the scenes partially replay from each character’s perspective, it is far from tedious. Instead, it is an effective and unsentimental tale chronicling the decline of a dysfunctional family, in circumstances only the devil himself could have foreseen.
Michaelie Clark
Finding himself in trouble after embezzling from his employer to finance his drug habit, Andy Hanson (Hoffman) devises a scheme that will solve all his problems. He convinces his brother, Hank (Hawke) to rob a jewellery store, fully insured, a family business – which belongs to their family. Hank, weak-willed, and facing debt after an acrimonious divorce, eventually agrees, but makes the ultimately fatal decision to involve a friend who doesn’t play by the brothers’ rules…
Amoral or unfortunate? Image courtesy of startribune.com
Andy’s wife, Gina (Tomei), tries to understand her husband and his demons as best she can, between her scheduled Thursday afternoon rendezvous with his brother.
Hank and Andy’s father, Charles (Finney), questions the capriciousness of fate and the errors of his past, before exacting his revenge.
Albert Finney as Charles Hanson - Image courtesy of screenrush.co.uk
Together they are a band of imperfect beings, who fall prey to the follies of human nature, taking one side-step too many in the quest for something more, or less, or just something else.
Hoffman is almost menacing as Andy, hiding his vulnerability under a façade of cold conviction, his designer life-style and slicked-backed hair a convincing cover for the indignity of his reality. Hawke on the other hand, unkempt and pathetic in the role of Hank, is almost slack-jawed in his inability to cope with the situation he was equally unable to stay away from.
Finney, with his gruff drawl, plays Charles with a single-mindedness which is most credible in giving the impression that his supposedly lesser-loved son, Andy, resembles him closest. Tomei shines in her portrayal of Gina, showing off her sexuality as a successful modern day Qetesh.
Marisa Tomei in one of her more modest scenes - Image courtesy of popentertainment.com
Though the film has moments of repetition, as the scenes partially replay from each character’s perspective, it is far from tedious. Instead, it is an effective and unsentimental tale chronicling the decline of a dysfunctional family, in circumstances only the devil himself could have foreseen.
Michaelie Clark
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