Before the Devil Knows You're Dead
Thriller Film by Sidney Lumet Stars Hoffman and Tomei.
Veteran director Sidney Lumet has come out of retirement to make this neatly constructed but rather bleak thriller, written by Kelly Masterson.
It stars Philip Seymour Hoffman as Andy Hanson, an executive with a large company who is struggling to pay for his spiralling drug habit, as well as keeping his attractive younger wife Gina (Marisa Tomei) in the manner to which she has become accustomed.
His younger brother Hank (Ethan Hawke) is equally hard up, falling behind with payments for child support and school fees to his bitterly unimpressed ex Martha (Amy Ryan). Hank is a loser – frequently unemployed and a heavy drinker – who has relied for too long on his charm and endearing looks to get by. To complicate matters further, he is having an affair with Gina and has fallen in love with her.
The story of a botched heist becomes a complex family drama.
Andy suggests to Hank that they rob the jewellery store in a suburban mall. As their plan takes shape, he reveals to Hank that the jewellery store is the one owned by their own parents. While Hank is initially horrified by the idea, to Andy it’s the perfect solution to their problems, and he persuades Hank to go ahead with the plan.
Too frightened to carry out the robbery himself, Hank employs his friend Bobby to hold up the jewellery store. But the plan goes disastrously wrong, and sets in motion a devastating spiral of events.
Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead - stylish and fast paced but relentlessly bleak
The film is told in a non-linear style with the narrative jumping back and forth neatly in time over the week when the robbery takes place. As the problems pile up and the solutions to those problems become more and more desperate, the film becomes increasingly fast-paced and intense and the humour of the early scenes evaporates.
The cast all give good, solid performances. Philip Seymour Hoffman is perfect as Andy; stressed and sweating and full of rage and resentment towards the parents who loved his younger brother more. Ethan Hawke is also convincing as the cute younger brother, so ineffectual even his nine year old daughter calls him a loser. Supporting actors Marisa Tomei, Albert Finney and Amy Ryan are all excellent and give the film complexity and texture. But although all the characters are interesting; they are not readily sympathetic, and some viewers might find that ultimately, it’s hard to care what happens to them.
