Lucky Number Slevin (2006)

A case of mistaken identity lands Slevin into the middle of a war being plotted by two of the city's most rival crime bosses: The Rabbi and The Boss. Slevin is under constant surveillance by relentless Detective Brikowski as well as the infamous assassin Goodkat and finds himself having to hatch his own ingenious plot to get them before they get him.

Director:

Paul McGuigan

Writer:

Jason Smilovic

Stars:

Josh Hartnett, Lucy Liu, Morgan Freeman

4 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Josh Hartnett	...	Slevin Kelevra
Bruce Willis	...	Mr. Goodkat
Lucy Liu	...	Lindsey
Morgan Freeman	...	The Boss
Ben Kingsley	...	The Rabbi (as Sir Ben Kingsley)
Michael Rubenfeld	...	Yitzchok
Peter Outerbridge	...	Dumbrowski
Stanley Tucci	...	Brikowski
Kevin Chamberlin	...	Marty
Dorian Missick	...	Elvis
Mykelti Williamson	...	Sloe
Scott Gibson	...	Max
Daniel Kash	...	Bodyguard #1
Dmitry Chepovetsky	...	Bodyguard #2
Sam Jaeger	...	Nick Fisher

Storyline

In an airport waiting room, a man in a wheelchair tells a stranger a story about a fixed horse race in 1979 that resulted in a family's deaths. In Manhattan, two bookies and the son of a Mob boss die. A young man just out of the shower answers the door to a neighbor woman and explains that he's visiting, has had a bad week, including being mugged, and doesn't know where his pal, who lives there, is. The neighbor is chatty; she's a coroner. Two thugs arrive and, believing the visitor to be the guy who lives there, take him to see the boss with the dead son, who tells him to kill the son of his Mob rival. Mistaken identity? What connects the threads? Cops are watching.

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Plot Keywords:

death | mistaken identity | morgue | revenge | love | 

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Taglines:

Wrong Time. Wrong Place. Wrong Number.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violence, sexuality and language

Details

Official Sites:

Metropolitan Films [fr] Official site

Country:

Germany USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 April 2006 (USA)

Also Known As:

Lucky # Slevin

Filming Locations:

Cité du Cinéma, Montréal, Québec, Canada

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$382,650 (Australia) (10 November 2006)

Gross:

$871,360 (Australia) (17 November 2006)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Weinstein Company, The, Ascendant Pictures, FilmEngine

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Lucy Liu said in a making of feature that she had more fun making this movie than any of her other movies.

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Goofs

Lindsey's socks when she leaves the room after getting the sugar are white. When she comes back to the room her socks change from white to red.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Soldier: He's clean.
Benny Begin: So, why are you here? Hm?

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Connections

References North by Northwest (1959)

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Soundtracks

"In Dreams, Perhaps"
Written by Rob Jenkins (as Jenkins) / Andrew Hulme (as Hulme) / Roger Horberry (as Horberry) / Cliff Martinez (as Martinez)
Performed by O Yuki Conjugate
Published by O Yuki Conjugate 2005

User Reviews

Wow! Great Noir Caper Flick

2006 Sundance Film Festival From the opening scene in Lucky Number Slevin, you will be straining to keep up. People are getting killed left and right, and it's never clear until the end of the movie how they are all connected. But you know it fits somehow and Scottish director Paul McGuigan (Wicker Park) manages to keep you guessing while firmly grabbing your attention and holding it with hardly a second to take a breath.

In the film noir tradition, but with the intense and graphic violence of the Lock Stock and Layer Cake genre, Slevin is really a caper movie, and frankly reminded me more of The Sting than anything else. It dances nimbly from grisly stomach-churning action to clever and light-hearted banter. This could only be accomplished by a truly incredible cast, led by Josh Hartnett in an outstanding performance, great work by Lucy Liu, Bruce Willis doing his thing, and supported by the always excellent Morgan Freeman and Ben Kingsley. There's even a little time for Stanley Tucci.

Liu plays Lindsay, the next-door-neighbor/natural sleuth/coroner/love interest who discovers Slevin in her neighbor Nick's apartment. They mystery that immediately engages her is what happened to Nick, who never shows up. However, plenty of people do show up, mistaking Slevin for Nick, and before long he is neck deep in murder contracts, called debts and warring gang factions. Hartnett plays the role to perfection. I've never seen him this good. He is both convincing and empathetic as a glib, fearless victim of mistaken identity, yet filled with confidence that he can make his plan work.

This is a terrific film, assuming you can stomach the bloody violence. The pieces fit neatly together (well, I have one bone to pick with the scriptwriter, but it would be revealing too much to share it). I highly recommend Lucky Number Slevin.