Before the Devil Knows You're Dead
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Before the Devil Knows You're Dead | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster |
|
| Directed by | Sidney Lumet |
| Produced by | Michael Cerenzie Brian Linse William S. Gilmore Paul Parmar |
| Written by | Kelly Masterson |
| Starring | Philip Seymour Hoffman Ethan Hawke Albert Finney Marisa Tomei Rosemary Harris Aleksa Palladino Brian F. O'Byrne Michael Shannon |
| Music by | Carter Burwell |
| Cinematography | Ron Fortunato |
| Editing by | Tom Swartwout |
| Distributed by | Capitol Films THINKFilm |
| Release date(s) |  26 September 2007 |
| Country |  United States |
| Language | English |
| Allmovie profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Before the Devil Knows You're Dead is a 2007 film written by Kelly Masterson and directed by Sidney Lumet. It stars Philip Seymour Hoffman, Ethan Hawke, Marisa Tomei, and Albert Finney. The title comes from the Irish saying: "May you be in heaven a full half hour before the devil knows you're dead."
The film goes back and forth in time many times, often showing scenes repeatedly, from various points of view.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
Andy Hanson (Philip Seymour Hoffman), a finance executive in desperate need of money to cover funds he embezzled from his employer, convinces his also-strapped brother Hank (Ethan Hawke) to rob their parents' jewelry store. Andy argues that he cannot go himself because he has been in the neighborhood recently, and could therefore be recognized. They assume that only the old woman who works for their parents will be in the store. Andy argues that only a toy gun is needed and that it is a victimless crime, because the insurance will repay their parents.
Without consulting Andy, Hank hires an acquaintance, Bobby Lasorda (Brian F. O'Byrne), to help him in the robbery. In fact, Bobby will do it himself (with a real and loaded gun); Hank just needs to wait in the car. The brothers' mother Nanette (Rosemary Harris) happens to be in the store herself and also has a gun. The robbery goes awry, and both Bobby and Nanette are shot. Bobby dies at the scene; Nanette dies later in the hospital after her husband Charles (Albert Finney) agrees to take her off life support.
Bobby's brother-in-law (Michael Shannon) demands financial compensation for Bobby's death; because they have no money, Andy and Hank rob and kill Andy's drug dealer to obtain the demanded money, and Andy also kills a client who happens to be present.
Hank has secretly been having an affair with Andy's wife, Gina (Marisa Tomei). Hank and Andy labor to try to get away with their botched crime, but ultimately their father Charles discovers Andy's involvement and tracks them as they make their final desperate moves.
[edit] Production
Lumet made the decision to shoot Before the Devil Knows You're Dead on high definition video after experimenting with the format on the TV series 100 Centre Street. At a press conference at the 2007 New York Film Festival, Lumet called shooting on film "a pain in the ass," and predicted that as soon as distributors and exhibitors can agree on a digital projection format, photographic film will be rendered obsolete.[1] Filming of the primary robbery scene in the movie took place at the Bay Terrace Shopping Center in Bayside, New York in Queens.[2]
[edit] Cast
- Philip Seymour Hoffman as Andy Hanson
- Ethan Hawke as Hank Hanson
- Albert Finney as Charles Hanson
- Marisa Tomei as Gina Hanson
- Rosemary Harris as Nanette Hanson
- Aleksa Palladino as Chris Lasorda
- Michael Shannon as Dex
- Brian F. O'Byrne as Bobby Lasorda
- Amy Ryan as Martha Hanson
- Paul Butler as Detective Barrett
- Meredith Patterson as Andy's Secretary
- Blaine Horton as Justin
[edit] Release
The film premiered September 6, 2007 at the Deauville Festival of American Cinema in France.[3] It was also shown at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 13, 2007.[3] It opened in France on September 26, 2007.[3]
The film was shown October 12, 2007 at the New York Film Festival[3] and opened in limited release the United States on October 26, 2007 in two theaters, grossing $73,837 its opening weekend.[4]
As of January 13, 2008, the film had grossed over $7.0 million worldwide.[5]
The film was released on DVD and Blu-ray on April 15, 2008.
[edit] Critical reception
The film received very positive reviews from critics. As of January 18, 2008 on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, 88 percent of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 135 reviews.[6] On Metacritic, the film had an average score of 84 out of 100, based on 36 reviews.[7]
Time magazine's Richard Schickel named the film one of the top 10 films of 2007, ranking it at #3, saying “At one level the movie is a wonderfully intricate exploration of family dysfunction. At another, it's a coolly controlled examination of increasingly insane criminal ineptitude. Either way you look at, this is a hypnotizing film from one of our great masters.”[8] Roger Ebert gave the film four stars, calling it "superb" and saying "The Japanese name some of their artists Living Treasures. Sidney Lumet is one of ours."[9]
[edit] Top ten lists
The film appeared on many critics' top 10 lists of the best films of 2007.[10]
|
|
[edit] References
- ^ "NYFF 2007: Sidney Lumet Joins the Death of Celluloid Brigade"
- ^ Bay Terrace Shopping Center retrieved on May 03, 2008
- ^ a b c d http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0292963/releaseinfo Retrieved 2007-10-30
- ^ Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (2007) - Weekend Box Office Results. Box Office Mojo. Retrieved on 2007-10-30.
- ^ Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (2007). Box Office Mojo. Retrieved on 2007-10-30.
- ^ Before the Devil Knows You're Dead - Rotten Tomatoes. Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved on 2007-12-31.
- ^ Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (2007): Reviews. Metacritic. Retrieved on 2007-12-31.
- ^ Schickel, Richard; “The 10 Best Movies”; time.com
- ^ :: rogerebert.com :: Reviews :: Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (xhtml)
- ^ Metacritic: 2007 Film Critic Top Ten Lists. Metacritic. Retrieved on 2008-02-25.
[edit] External links
- Before the Devil Knows You're Dead at the Internet Movie Database
- Before the Devil Knows You're Dead at Metacritic
- Before the Devil Knows You're Dead at Rotten Tomatoes
- Before the Devil Knows You're Dead at Box Office Mojo
- Before the Devil Knows You're Dead at Allmovie
- Before the Devil Knows You're Dead at close-upfilm.com
- Before the Devil Knows You're Dead Trailer at MoviesBox.us
