Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (2007)

When two brothers organize the robbery of their parents' jewelry store the job goes horribly wrong, triggering a series of events that sends them, their father and one brother's wife hurtling towards a shattering climax.

Director:

Sidney Lumet

Writer:

Kelly Masterson

Stars:

Philip Seymour Hoffman, Ethan Hawke, Albert Finney

15 wins & 13 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Philip Seymour Hoffman	...	Andy
Ethan Hawke	...	Hank
Albert Finney	...	Charles
Marisa Tomei	...	Gina
Aleksa Palladino	...	Chris
Michael Shannon	...	Dex
Amy Ryan	...	Martha
Sarah Livingston	...	Danielle
Brían F. O'Byrne	...	Bobby
Rosemary Harris	...	Nanette
Blaine Horton	...	Justin
Arija Bareikis	...	Katherine
Leonardo Cimino	...	William
Lee Wilkof	...	Jake
Damon Gupton	...	Doctor

Storyline

Needing extra cash, two brothers conspire to pull off the perfect, victimless crime. No guns, no violence, no problem. But when an accomplice ignores the rules and crosses the line, his actions trigger a series of events in which no one is left unscathed.

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Plot Keywords:

gun | robbery | money | thief | hidden gun | 

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Taglines:

No one was supposed to get hurt.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for a scene of strong graphic sexuality, nudity, violence, drug use and language

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

26 September 2007 (France)

Also Known As:

Antes que el diablo sepa que has muerto

Filming Locations:

47th Street, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$18,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£118,510 (UK) (11 January 2008)

Gross:

$7,083,025 (USA) (7 March 2008)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Capitol Films, Funky Buddha Productions, Unity Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min 123 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS Dolby Digital DTS (as dts)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Philip Seymour Hoffman and Ethan Hawke are both in real-life old friends of Marisa Tomei.

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Goofs

When Andy is wrestling Justin for the gun, he has Justin pinned to the ground with his body and their hands fight for the gun. When Hank rushes over to help, only two second later, he is shown pulling Justin off of Andy.

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Quotes

Henry 'Hank' Hanson: You're a prick.
Andrew 'Andy' Hanson: I always was.

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Connections

Referenced in Richard Roeper & the Movies: Jack Goes Boating (2010)

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Soundtracks

"This Too Shall Pass"
Written by Lonnie Rutledge
Performed by Lonnie Rutledge (as Lonnie)

User Reviews

Lumet does Tolstoy

Sydney Lumet hasn't had a box office hit in 20 years and yet at 83 has managed to churn out a tight, well-cast, suspenseful thriller set in his old stamping ground, New York City. (How he got insurance, let alone the budget after all those flops, is a mystery also). The story is a pretty grim one and the characters are not particularly likable but it held me on the edge of my seat till the final scene.

Two brothers with pressing financial problems conspire to rob a suburban jewelry store owned by their elderly parents. The only victim is going to be the insurance company. The robbery goes awry and two people die. Most of the film is concerned with the aftermath. The action is non-linear and seen from the main character's differing points of view, but it is not difficult to follow. What is not so easy to work out is the back story – how did the brothers get into such a mess? There are clues – the younger brother being the baby of the family is his fathers' favorite while the older brother seems to be carrying a lot of baggage about his relationship with his father, and vice versa, but that hardly accounts for him becoming a heroin-using murdering embezzler.

As the scheming older brother, a corpulent Philip Seymour Hoffman dominates the film, but he is well supported by Ethan Hawke as his bullied, inadequate younger brother. Albert Finney as their father seems to be in a constant state of rage but then the script calls for that. Marisa Tomei as the older brother's cheating wife at the age of 42 puts in the sexiest performance I've seen in many a year. The film literally starts with a bang, but we are out of that comfort zone pretty quickly.

I don't know the origins of this story by first time scriptwriter Kelly Masterton but I suspect that like Lumet's great 70's film "Dog Day Afternoon" it is based on fact – it's too silly to be untrue. Lumet is just about the last of those immensely versatile old-time craftsman studio directors who with immense speed were able to direct just about anything that was put in front of them. Some great films were produced that way as well as some classic turkeys. This isn't a classic of either sort – it's a well-crafted piece of downbeat entertainment. It will probably leave you feeling that you were lucky not be a member of a family as dysfunctional as this one, but still wondering as to how they got that way. We do know the parents were happy but we see so little of the mother and hear so little about her it is impossible pick up on her relationship with the boys. (There is also a daughter whose presence seems redundant). Well, like Tolstoy, we have to conclude that "each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way".