We Own the Night (2007)

A New York City nightclub manager tries to save his brother and father from Russian Mafia hitmen.

Director:

James Gray

Writer:

James Gray

Stars:

Joaquin Phoenix, Mark Wahlberg, Eva Mendes

1 win & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Joaquin Phoenix	...	Bobby Green
Eva Mendes	...	Amada Juarez
Danny Hoch	...	Jumbo Falsetti
Alex Veadov	...	Vadim Nezhinski
Oleg Taktarov	...	Pavel Lubyarsky
Dominic Colón	...	Freddie (as Dominic Colon)
Joseph D'Onofrio	...	Bloodied Patron (as Joe D'Onofrio)
Elena Solovey	...	Kalina Buzhayev
Moni Moshonov	...	Marat Buzhayev
Mark Wahlberg	...	Joseph Grusinsky
Maggie Kiley	...	Sandra Grusinsky
Paul Herman	...	Spiro Giavannis
Robert Duvall	...	Burt Grusinsky
Antoni Corone	...	Michael Solo
Craig Walker	...	Russell De Keifer

Storyline

Brooklyn, 1988. Crime is rife, especially drugs and drug violence. A Russian thug is building his heroin trade, while everyone laughs at the cops. Brothers have chosen different paths: Joe has followed his father Bert into New York's Finest; he's a rising star. Bobby, who uses his mother's maiden name, manages a club. Bobby too is on the rise: he has a new girlfriend and a green-light to develop a Manhattan club. Joe and Bert ask him to help with intelligence gathering; he declines. Then, Joe raids Bobby's club to arrest the Russian. From there, things spiral out of control: the Russian puts out a hit on Joe, personal losses mount, and Bobby's loyalties face the test.

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Plot Keywords:

brother brother relationship | female masturbation | sex | female stockinged legs | pantyhose | 

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Taglines:

One family on opposite sides of the law... Two brothers about to collide.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violence, drug material, language, some sexual content and brief nudity

Details

Official Sites:

Sony Pictures [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English Russian Spanish

Release Date:

12 October 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

La nuit nous appartient

Filming Locations:

East Village, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$21,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$10,826,287, 14 October 2007, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$28,563,179, 15 November 2007

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$54,926,886, 31 December 2007

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures, 2929 Productions, Industry Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min

Sound Mix:

DTS SDDS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

During filming, Eva Mendes reportedly asked James Gray if he'd change her character's name to honor her late grandmother Amada, whom she never met.

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Goofs

Bobby's scarf is missing during and after the scene in the church.

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Quotes

Joseph Grusinsky: Why don't you go back to your little Puerto Rican girlfriend?
Bobby Green: I will go back to my fucking Puerto Rican girlfriend!
Joseph Grusinsky: Yeah?
Bobby Green: Yeah, you keep thinking about my girlfriend while you're fucking your fat fucking wife!
Joseph Grusinsky: You motherfucker!
[darts for Bobby]
Bobby Green: Get the fuck off of me! You motherfucker!
Joseph Grusinsky: Get off of me! You motherfucker.
[is taken off of Bobby]
Joseph Grusinsky: I'm done with you!
[...]

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Connections

References Lost Highway (1997)

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Soundtracks

I'll Be Seeing You
Written by Sammy Fain, Irving Kahal
Performed by Jackie Gleason
Courtesy of Capitol Records
Under license from EMI Film & Television Music

User Reviews

A Plot Threadbare from Overuse

WE OWN THE NIGHT is the quote from the lower portion of the badge on the uniforms of NYPD police family Deputy Chief Bert Grusinsky (Robert Duvall) and one of his two sons Capt. Joe Grusinsky (Mark Wahlberg): the other son Bobby (Joaquin Phoenix) did not follow the family tradition of police work but instead is involved in nightclubs - and yes there is a schism of resentment. Bobby has distanced himself further from his family by changing his last name to 'Green', living with a Puerto Rican girl Amada (Eva Mendes), and bonding to a wealthy Russian family who owns the nightclub where Bobby works - a front for a drug dealing business. Writer/Director James Gray ('The Yards' and 'Little Odessa') has a feel for this underbelly of New York City and captures the 1988 mood of life in the city and beneath the city with style. The problem with the story is that it has been done so many times that it is simply stale yesterday's lunch. Two brothers at opposite end of the family spectrum require a major tragedy to bring them together, and to offer any more information to this fairly thin plot would be a disservice to those who plan to see the film.

The cast is strong, partly because each of them has played similar roles countless times and have the ideas down pat. It should be noted that two of the producers of the film are Mark Wahlberg and Joaquin Phoenix, probably a reason the film was made... There are some exciting moments and enough surprises and tense times to keep the adrenaline rolling, the smaller roles are very well cast, and one of the shining attributes of the film is the gorgeous Russian liturgy inspired musical score by Wojciech Kilar. It is not a bad film; it is just too much in the same mold as countless other New York police dramas. Grady Harp