We Suggest: Before the Devil Knows You're Dead

Hello, this article will be our chance to give you a suggestion. Need a movie to rent this weekend? A movie night with some friends? A comfort movie after a breakup because that heart of yours is broken? No matter what the reason may be, these are all films that come from OUR suggestion boxes. Whether you watch them or not is up to you. Whether you like them or not, is something we won’t generally criticize, to each his own.

Title: Before the Devil Knows You’re DeadDirector: Sidney LumetYear: 2007

Starring: Ethan Hawke, Philip Seymour HoffmanMPAA Rating: R

Probably one of the best films to come out in 2007 was Sidney Lumet’s Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead. Starring the incomparable Philip Seymour Hoffman and Ethan Hawke.

He was one of the greatest directors and one of my favorites. His first film ever, back in 1957, 12 Angry Men starring the legendary Henry Fonda, to this day, is one of my favorite films. And this is one of the final feature films of Lumet’s career before he, unfortunately, passed away in April of 2011, one of my favorites as well.

The premise is simple. Hawke plays Hank Hanson, a man who is, as of now, desperate for the money to pay for his daughter’s tuition to a private school she wants to go to. Hoffman plays Andy, a financial exec who gets an idea to make a few extra bucks by robbing a jewelry store. He recruits Hank to head the robbery, but on the day of the robbery, it goes awry. Pretty soon, both of their lives come unfolded, and their families tearing apart at the seams as secrets and lies start to unfold.

So what is it that makes this film so fantastic? You have Hoffman’s amazing acting ability shining throughout. Hawke and he mesh so well together on screen, it almost feels natural. Marisa Tomei plays a supporting character, and at times, a nude supporting character. Hooray!