Ash Wednesday (2002 film)

Ash Wednesday
Directed by Edward Burns
Produced by Edward Burns
Margot Bridger
Written by Edward Burns
Starring Edward Burns
Elijah Wood
Rosario Dawson
Oliver Platt
Music by David Shire
Cinematography Russell Lee Fine
Edited by David Greenwald
Production
company
Malboro Road Gang Productions
Distributed by Focus Features
IFC Films
Release dates
  • May 11, 2002 (Tribeca)
  • October 11, 2002
Running time
99 minutes
Country United States
Language English
Spanish
Box office $2,942

Ash Wednesday is a 2002 crime drama film starring Edward Burns, Elijah Wood, and Rosario Dawson. The film is set in the Hell's Kitchen of the early 1980s and is about a pair of Irish-American brothers who become embroiled in a conflict with the Irish Mafia.

Plot

Hell's Kitchen on Ash Wednesday, 1983; rumors are flying that Francis Sullivan's (Edward Burns) younger brother Sean (Elijah Wood), dead for three years, has reappeared. If he wasn't killed by rivals, then old scores still need settling, putting both Francis and Sean in danger. An upstart is pressuring the local mob boss, who's Francis's protector; Sean's wife, Grace (Rosario Dawson), an Afro-Latino, believes she's a widow and has gotten on with her life, but Sean has come back for her. The parish priest, part of the initial deception, is frightened. Bad guys with guns are closing in. Can Francis get Sean and his wife out of the city, avoid a war between rival factions, and hold onto new-found morality? Will the cross of ashes on his forehead protect him?

Francis helps Sean reunite with Grace and his son, Sean Jr., and they head out of the city together in the back of a van, but Francis stays behind to stop Moran (Oliver Platt). The film closes with Francis wiping the cross of ashes from his forehead. When he steps outside of the pub minutes later, he is shot down. He dies and the sniper leaves the scene before the police arrives.

Cast

Critical reception and box office

The film received a 29% "rotten" rating on the website Rotten Tomatoes.[1] The film was only released in two theaters and grossed less than $3,000.

References

External links