We Own the Night [2007]

Although this movie may seem to be something that is going to be remembered, I don’t think it will happen. Sure, some 20-30 years from now, you will be able to find and watch it, but that will be the case with most movies. It’s pretty mediocre, interesting enough for one viewing and maybe a second one with the someone, but it does not have that replay value that it should. They started off with a couple of premises that didn’t cut deep enough, but were quite superficial. This way, you don’t get that organic and eventually orgasmic story, not to mention specific events. These specific events now have to be generated (explained) using tools that make little sense, or you could say that the character’s decision making skills are really low. James Gray is a talented director and he made a movie that looks and sounds great, building tension with ease and releasing it in style.

A classic tale of a fucked up cop family, where we have one strong father figure and two brothers who have taken different paths in life. And from this the story derives its main strength. Add to this the crime element and you got yourself a double-layered cake.  The cast is usually good, with the accent on Joaquin Phoenix and Robert Duvall, I really did not like Marky Mark here… It looked like he’s slowly becoming more and more familiar with so called “serious roles”. And one detail is also interesting Joaquin Phoenix would get into character by hurling insults at ‘Robert Duvall between takes. This upset Duvall greatly and Wahlberg had to restrain him. If you like cop and crime flicks this one would do. Enjoy…

Director: James Gray

Cast: Joaquin Phoenix, Eva Mendes, Mark Wahlberg, Robert Duvall, Alex Veadov

Fun Stuff: The car chase scene has been shot on an entirely sunny day and the rain had been put in digitally later.

Rating:

IMDb Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0498399/