Writer and director James Grey proves that third time’s the charm in his film We Own the Night, starring Joaquin Phoenix and Mark Wahlberg as brothers caught on opposite sides of a drug war waged on the streets of New York City.
Bobby Green (Phoenix) is a nightclub manager and rebellious son of Police Chief Burt Grusinsky, performed by Robert Duvall.
Green is forced to choose whether to fight alongside his father and brother, police officer Joseph Grusinsky, (Wahlberg), or whether to side with his Russian cronies.
This is a gripping tale of casualties made in the
seemingly endless struggle for a safe and sovereign New York. Phoenix (Walk the Line) and Walberg (The Departed) pair up to offer a stellar performance in this hybrid film of action, drama, and some romance. They previously played in The Yards.
Through the use of close-ups and the amplification of simple sounds, the audience is drawn in closer and given an intimate look into the characters’ reactions at each winding turn of the plot.
The dialogue, cunning and clever, nearly disrupts the viewer’s suspension of disbelief, but completes it as a finely tuned piece of entertainment rarely seen in today’s cinema.
Brilliantly written and uniquely directed, We Own the Night establishes Grey as one of Hollywood’s best.
Grossing an estimated $11 million, this film has claimed the number four spot in the box office charts on its third day at the theatres.
Both violent and heartfelt We Own the Night is daring and original. It’s a perfect movie for date night and an absolute must-see.
