We Own the Night (B- or 2.5/4 stars)
'We Own The Night' is a crime drama written & directed by James Gray. Bobby Green (Joaquin Phoenix) is the manager of Brooklyn's drug-infested El Caribe nightclub (owned by Russian mafia). Bobby has changed his last name from Grusinsky to hide a connection to distinguished cops, Joseph (Mark Wahlberg) & Burt (Robert Duvall) ... his brother & father. You can see the problem, his bro/dad want to end the drug trade; and the Russian mob wants to take down the NYPD officers who are involved. Caught in the middle, Bobby is a ticking time bomb of mixed loyalties, frayed nerves, & fear of death. Phoenix & Wahlberg (plus an amazingly orchestrated car chase scene) are very good. But the mood is (too) grim. Robert Duvall stinks; and parts of the plot are bland & predictable.
Take a moment to remember what NYC was like in the late 80's ... a wasteland riddled with drugs, disease, prostitution, pollution, litter, graffiti; and crime was at its' peak. Cue the setting: Coney Island, El Caribe club,1988; Cue the music (Blondie's Heart of Glass); cue the 80's clothes & hairstyles; cue a sexy Amada (Eva Mendes) pleasuring herself on a leather couch as her boyfriend, Bobby, approaches her. What ensues is an extremely hot, steamy display of mutual affection ... before Bobby is needed downstairs & pulled away to greet his many friends & customers at the bar. Every night is a party for Bobby (sex, drugs, rock & roll). He knows that gangsters (and their ruling families) frequent his club. Bobby tries to stay distant, but he knows them too well, & dips his toes into the 'drug' well often enough to keep himself (and his club) circulating. Bobby knows this is an amoral lifestyle, but he hopes he's in a temporary den of iniquity.
He has aspirations of opening his own club in Manhattan; perhaps he (and his loyal, Amada) can escape this life and just. be. normal. Things get messy when the gangster(s) badly injure Police Lieutenant Joe Grusinsky, his brother. The next target is his father, a legendary deputy chief of police. Bobby's allegiances are tested, as he's now in a moral crossfire, AND a literal one. He knows that keeping his secret safe (from the mob) is more important than ever. Knowing that the only solution is taking the entire mob organization down, Bobby & (a recovered) Joe join forces to try to save each other, their father, & the entire police force.
Once fast, furious, haphazard (and with little cause to make a difference), Bobby faces the responsibility of a lifetime. Not unlike 2006's The Departed, this is a film in a similar vein of fast-talking cops, loyalties, betrayals, heavy violence & family honor. I don't think this film is quite as good, but it has its moments. One such moment is a wonderfully choreographed car chase in the middle of a rainy downpour. Shot from the point of view of the protagonists' driver, we feel like we're seeing, hearing, & even feeling the atrocities that are going on as the cars barrel down the slickened highway; it's quite thrilling to experience. The sibling rivalry/brotherly love displayed btwn. Phoenix & Wahlberg feels real. There are sparks of intensity, urgency, & intrigue amid the doom & gloom mood, but ...
While the family dynamics are fairly solid here, oddly enough (and to my dismay), the gruff performance put-on by Robert Duvall felt very forced; almost campy. Whenever he was onscreen, it detracted from the tone of the film. I type this in horror, but that's how I felt. Also, the screenwriting could have been tighter. The dialogue was fairly flat & void of an intangible 'something' that makes up a great film. The plot thickens, a demoralization of characters takes place, but very little is said that is profound, revelatory, or even plausible (in some instances). This makes it hard for an audience to stay 'attached' to a movie that displays lots of pauses/contemplations/ponderings. I liked a lot in 'We Own the Night'. It's entertaining enough, but it lacked something to make it snap, crackle & pop.
Take a moment to remember what NYC was like in the late 80's ... a wasteland riddled with drugs, disease, prostitution, pollution, litter, graffiti; and crime was at its' peak. Cue the setting: Coney Island, El Caribe club,1988; Cue the music (Blondie's Heart of Glass); cue the 80's clothes & hairstyles; cue a sexy Amada (Eva Mendes) pleasuring herself on a leather couch as her boyfriend, Bobby, approaches her. What ensues is an extremely hot, steamy display of mutual affection ... before Bobby is needed downstairs & pulled away to greet his many friends & customers at the bar. Every night is a party for Bobby (sex, drugs, rock & roll). He knows that gangsters (and their ruling families) frequent his club. Bobby tries to stay distant, but he knows them too well, & dips his toes into the 'drug' well often enough to keep himself (and his club) circulating. Bobby knows this is an amoral lifestyle, but he hopes he's in a temporary den of iniquity.
He has aspirations of opening his own club in Manhattan; perhaps he (and his loyal, Amada) can escape this life and just. be. normal. Things get messy when the gangster(s) badly injure Police Lieutenant Joe Grusinsky, his brother. The next target is his father, a legendary deputy chief of police. Bobby's allegiances are tested, as he's now in a moral crossfire, AND a literal one. He knows that keeping his secret safe (from the mob) is more important than ever. Knowing that the only solution is taking the entire mob organization down, Bobby & (a recovered) Joe join forces to try to save each other, their father, & the entire police force.
Once fast, furious, haphazard (and with little cause to make a difference), Bobby faces the responsibility of a lifetime. Not unlike 2006's The Departed, this is a film in a similar vein of fast-talking cops, loyalties, betrayals, heavy violence & family honor. I don't think this film is quite as good, but it has its moments. One such moment is a wonderfully choreographed car chase in the middle of a rainy downpour. Shot from the point of view of the protagonists' driver, we feel like we're seeing, hearing, & even feeling the atrocities that are going on as the cars barrel down the slickened highway; it's quite thrilling to experience. The sibling rivalry/brotherly love displayed btwn. Phoenix & Wahlberg feels real. There are sparks of intensity, urgency, & intrigue amid the doom & gloom mood, but ...
While the family dynamics are fairly solid here, oddly enough (and to my dismay), the gruff performance put-on by Robert Duvall felt very forced; almost campy. Whenever he was onscreen, it detracted from the tone of the film. I type this in horror, but that's how I felt. Also, the screenwriting could have been tighter. The dialogue was fairly flat & void of an intangible 'something' that makes up a great film. The plot thickens, a demoralization of characters takes place, but very little is said that is profound, revelatory, or even plausible (in some instances). This makes it hard for an audience to stay 'attached' to a movie that displays lots of pauses/contemplations/ponderings. I liked a lot in 'We Own the Night'. It's entertaining enough, but it lacked something to make it snap, crackle & pop.