Alphabetically, the first film on Disney plus at the moment, that I hadn't reviewed was Spike Lee's "25th Hour", and adaptation of David Benioff's novel mixed in with guttural honest reactions to the events of September the 11th. It does, perhaps feel a bit overlong, and there are plenty of aspects of the story that could be cut, but it's a character piece and the performances are really strong.
Monty Brogan (Edward Norton) has one last night of freedom before he's due to hand himself in for a seven-year jail term he's received for drug trafficking. He works on getting his affairs in order, whilst going on a night out with his friends Frank (Barry Pepper) and Jacob (Phillip Seymour Hoffman). He has a meal with his father (Brian Cox) and tries to steady his relationship with girlfriend Naturelle (Rosario Dawson) who he partially suspects may have had something to do with his arrest.
There isn't really a whole lot of plot to "25th Hour". There's a whole bunch of subplots, ideas and themes but ultimately, it's a character study. Monty Brogan isn't particularly likable, despite his decision to save a dog in an early scene. He's a drug dealer, as we know, with links to the Russian mob. When he first meets her, his girlfriend Naturelle is frankly worryingly young - still at school even. Throughout the film he's re-evaluating his life and wondering if he's made the wrong decisions. His friends have their own problems, but neither of them are facing jail the next night.
The film is another of Lee's love letters to New York, this one though was his first after 9/11 and you can feel the anger, defiance and pain in the film - particularly in the films most memorable scene - in which Brogan launches into a foul mouthed tirade about the various nationalities and ethnic groups of the city, before turning it around on himself.
I am the sort of person that's attracted to stories above all, so in that regard I wouldn't describe "25th hour" as being one of my favourite films - but you can't argue with the quality of the performances.
Monty Brogan (Edward Norton) has one last night of freedom before he's due to hand himself in for a seven-year jail term he's received for drug trafficking. He works on getting his affairs in order, whilst going on a night out with his friends Frank (Barry Pepper) and Jacob (Phillip Seymour Hoffman). He has a meal with his father (Brian Cox) and tries to steady his relationship with girlfriend Naturelle (Rosario Dawson) who he partially suspects may have had something to do with his arrest.
There isn't really a whole lot of plot to "25th Hour". There's a whole bunch of subplots, ideas and themes but ultimately, it's a character study. Monty Brogan isn't particularly likable, despite his decision to save a dog in an early scene. He's a drug dealer, as we know, with links to the Russian mob. When he first meets her, his girlfriend Naturelle is frankly worryingly young - still at school even. Throughout the film he's re-evaluating his life and wondering if he's made the wrong decisions. His friends have their own problems, but neither of them are facing jail the next night.
The film is another of Lee's love letters to New York, this one though was his first after 9/11 and you can feel the anger, defiance and pain in the film - particularly in the films most memorable scene - in which Brogan launches into a foul mouthed tirade about the various nationalities and ethnic groups of the city, before turning it around on himself.
I am the sort of person that's attracted to stories above all, so in that regard I wouldn't describe "25th hour" as being one of my favourite films - but you can't argue with the quality of the performances.