Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (Sidney Lumet, 2007)

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tavernier
Joined: Sat Apr 02, 2005 7:18 pm

#26 Post by tavernier » Tue May 27, 2008 11:03 am

Dylan wrote:Marisa Tomei adds as much depth as humanly possible to the insulting cliche of a role she was handed (she's such a great actress and astonishing natural beauty that she deserves so much more than this... I hope she has a good role coming her way sometime soon).
She's astonishing in three different roles in the current Broadway revival of Caryl Churchill's masterpiece, Top Girls, if you can get to New York to see it.

flyonthewall2983
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Re: Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (Sidney Lumet, 2007)

#27 Post by flyonthewall2983 » Mon Mar 02, 2020 5:28 pm

Watched this last night and I liked it a lot. I won't directly address some of the naysayers here since most of them went AWOL but I think it holds up better for some of the criticisms it gets. The main characters are not accomplished criminals by any stretch, and given the amount of drugs at least one of them does the fact this is a tragedy of errors isn't so far-fetched to me. I'm on the fence about the way the story unfolds as it felt a little too clever but it didn't distract me a whole lot from being invested in what's going on. Tomei's character is unarguably the weakest link here, written in a way which lives up to every cliche about women in these kinds of films.

A story like this probably has more resonance in the disjointed time we live in now even compared to what shape we were in in 2007, but I doubt anyone involved here saw it as a larger socio-economical allegory. Watching Andy strung out has of course taken on a whole new meaning few could have forseen and who only knows what went on in Hoffman's mind perhaps reenacting moments in his life he thought he was behind. Andy is complex and prickly but there were moments where I felt for him, particularly in the car.

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bearcuborg
Joined: Fri Sep 14, 2007 2:30 am
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Re: Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (Sidney Lumet, 2007)

#28 Post by bearcuborg » Mon Mar 02, 2020 7:38 pm

I can’t say I’m eager to see this again, as I found it pretty insufferable in the theater. But if I do, I’d definitely come back here to read your post once again. Interesting take.

Maybe because it came so soon after the spectacular Find Me Guilty that I found it suffered in comparison as a lesser version of - A Simple Plan - wherein every character makes the worst possible decisions.

flyonthewall2983
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Re: Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (Sidney Lumet, 2007)

#29 Post by flyonthewall2983 » Tue Mar 03, 2020 1:37 am

I probably would have not related to it as much when it came out either, and cited any number of movies I felt it follows in the thematic footsteps of too. And that would have extended to the rather low-grade digital look it has, but now I even find some charm in that because that's a look you just don't see very much in that realm now. That in and of itself has it's positives but the rough look this has instantly dates it to 2007, which has it's own weird sort of charm to me now. I think they call it nostalgia.

I'd also chalk up my appreciation to being a little older and going through the shit life throws at you too. Nothing so directly seen here, but enough of the drama in my family has seeped into my world view and a story like this, warts and all, suddenly has more resonance.

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tehthomas
Joined: Thu Sep 22, 2016 1:45 pm

Re: Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (Sidney Lumet, 2007)

#30 Post by tehthomas » Tue Mar 03, 2020 9:40 pm

Finally got around to watching this the other night as it is currently streaming on HBO. As a big fan of Lumet and PSH I am bit embarrassed that it took me this long.

This is a enjoyable crime drama. PSH, Finney and Shannon are excellent. But Hawke and Tomei are annoying.. or should I say, their characters are. The editing and production style are a turn offs. And those weird flashback cuts.. eek.

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