Before the Devil Knows You're Dead

Fifty years ago Twelve Angry Men was released. It was directed by Sidney Lumet, and now in 2007 he is still going at 83 years old with Before the Devil Knows You're Dead, a crackling good entertainment. I don't want to belabor that this film was directed by an octogenarian, though, because it would be a fine achievement for a director of any age.

The story concerns one of Hollywood's great plots: the caper gone awry. Philip Seymour Hoffman and Ethan Hawke are brothers. Hoffman's Andy Hanson is an accountant in a real estate firm and is proud that he has worked his way up to a six-figure income. Ethan Hawke's Hank is a weak-minded loser, who is behind in his child support payments. Though they would seem to be in different financial worlds, Andy has had in his hand in the till at his office, and faces an IRS audit. His solution? Rob his parents' jewelry store.

Andy convinces Hank that it is a fool-proof plan (in fact, this film reminded me somewhat of A Simple Plan, also about brothers and a series of stupid decisions). But of course in films like this nothing is fool-proof, and Hank's timidness leads him to bring in a third partner that escalates into disaster. The robbery is one of the first scenes we see, and then the film is told in a non-linear fashion. The screenplay, by Kelly Masterson, is an intricate affair, and it's not surprising that a few of the balls being juggled are dropped (there is a perplexing scene involving a CD that Hank leaves behind in a rental car, for example).

As their plan unwinds, it is great fun to watch the skills of Hoffman and Hawke, particularly Hoffman, who comes unglued and violent. He is an unctuous character, and lurches through the film like a desperate bear. He is also a man who feels disconnected from his father, played by Albert Finney. Andy describes it as being left out of the club, as his parents seem to favor the baby Hank, even though, as Andy points out, Hank is the bigger fuck-up. Andy is a classic mess, with a drug habit (he visits a high-end shooting gallery), and the role is somewhat reminiscent of his previous work in Owning Mahowny, but Andy makes Mahowny seem like a piker. Hawke is also very good as the spineless brother, though he has less layers to play--mostly he's stuck on needy and frantic.

Marisa Tomei is also in the cast, as Andy's brother, who is having an affair with Hank. Her role is kind of odd, very underwritten. Also, and I'm not complaining, she is topless in almost all of her scenes (the very first scene features her and Hoffman buck naked, a rather jarring image). Even when she is in a mourning dress she displays decolletage. In this age of actresses very reluctant to bare all, it's refreshing to see a film that deals honestly with nudity, but I wish she had more of a character.

Though this film is very entertaining, it's not quite on the top level. As stated, there are a few plot threads that are not wrapped up to my satisfaction, and I was a bit put off by the ending, an encounter between Finney and Hoffman that is supposed to be full of great drama but to me was a bit flat. So I wouldn't put this film in a top-ten list, but it is fun nonetheless.