Before the Devil Knows You're Dead answers a question you didn't know you were supposed to ask: can an art house action film be enjoyable? In this case, the answer is no. A tragic tale of two brothers (Ethan Hawke and Phillip Seymour Hoffman) desperately in need of money, this film attempts to combine the action of a jewelry store robbery with a character study of the subjects' shattered lives, but somehow fails on both counts.
The film should be incredible. Shot with a beautifully grainy, washed out cinematography, it features impeccable acting: Ethan Hawke successfully
causes the audience to hate him, and Marisa Tomei reveals her seductive side. Most impressively, director Sidney Lumet accounts for every character - anyone introduced serves an important role by the end, a feat few films are able to boast.
Yet Lumet tries to make his movie too many things. The opening scenes, heavy on sex and gunshots, prime viewers for a gripping action/thriller. After the robbery occurs, however, the film abruptly shifts gears and recounts the preceding days from various characters' viewpoints in an attempt to develop their personas. This technique is ill-advised, and the audience is unable to accept the sudden switch in format. Though the plot is eventually reintroduced, it is withheld too long, and the viewer's interest wanes. The climax is unable to recover the initial high, leaving the film to sit as a failed, but interesting, experiment in blurring genres.
