Before the devil knows you've moved

I moved about two months ago and just last night set up my TV. (No, I didn't move to Elk Grove.)

I don't have cable and don't plan on having it, but I put the ol' tele on top of a stand in my bedroom, hooked up the DVD player and took in Sidney Lumet's Before The Devil Knows You're Dead, which is an expert drama/crime film with the P.S. Hoff and the Hawke (as in Ethan). Albert Finney plays their father, Marisa Tomei gets all nekkid (including a doggy-style opening sequence that really sets the mood well).

Devil is told out of order, has some tricks up its sleeve but more or less plays it straight. AN let me know what was going to happen before it happened, anyway, 'cause that's how she watches movies sometimes, which is fine with me.

My major beef with the film is that it belabors things and is probably a good 30 minutes too long.
I really dug the Hoff as Andy, the high-roller of the two brothers. He kicks it off unlikeable but manages to dig deeper into the jhole role and it's a great performance. But that's the Hoff's game, right? Remember Owning Mahoney, where he gambles ... but then takes it deeper.

Ethan Hawke like to push the melodrama, and in general it works here because he's playing the alcoholic loser brother.

Albert Finney is solid, traumatized throughout. He makes it look likes his face is going to either melt or explode, so obviously he has the pro chops.

Lumet's on his game but the material is really one-dimensional, which is fine but they try to make wine out of water with it. Strip it down, read some Euripedes or something. Lumet's all about style, so I think if Devil wasn't weighed down by its length then its flair and smarts would more readily shine through.

Either way, I'd recommend it.