Rating of
4/4
It's Not An American Story. It's An Irish One.
DivineTragedy92 - wrote on 06/02/10
Directed by Alan J. Pakula
Starring Brad Pitt, Harrison Ford, Treat Williams, Ruben Blades, Margaret Colin, Natasha McElhone
A slow burning drama that is criminally underrated. This film is a fantastic character drama. It tells a very captivating and compelling story about an IRA terrorist who has become lost in his world of corruption and violence, and a noble cop who takes the man under his roof only to discover his true identity. I found this film to be surprisingly tragic and heartbreaking, I wasn't expecting it to be such an emotional film. I was expecting an action film, and I'm glad that this was far from that. This film is a character study and not a mindless action film.
Brad Pitt portrays Frankie McGuire, who is sent to the US in order to buy weapons and is housed by a New York cop named Tom O'Meara, who is portrayed by Harrison Ford. Frankie uses the alias Rory Devaney and spends his time cleaning and fixing a broken down boat with his friend Sean. This boat is meant to be a vessel for the weapons they are to purchase from a sleazy man named Billy Burke, portrayed by Treat Williams. Frankie and Sean are to transport these weapons by sea. Tom and his family believe Frankie, or Rory as they know him, is working at a construction site while he is really preparing the boat and discussing a business plan with Burke. Things become complicated when a member of Frankie's IRA unit is killed and identities may have become exposed. The purchasing of the weapons must be postponed and Frankie is unable to give Burke his money. Of course, Burke doesn't like that and sends some of his henchman to Tom's house to locate the money. As a result of this, Tom becomes suspicious of Frankie and Frankie decides to take matters into his own hands as things become more and more complicated. Soon, Tom finds the money and discovers that Frankie isn't who he claims to be. Tom further complicated Frankie's situation after arresting him. Frankie escapes, killing Tom's partner in the process, but was unable to take the money with him. Tom discovers that Frankie is a wanted man and an extremely dangerous terrorist who is hunted by a variety of people. Frankie must fight against Burke, the British Secret Service, and Tom himself in order to survive and stay out of prison. Margaret Colin portrays the wife to Tom. Ruben Blades portrays Tom's troubled partner, and Natasha McElhone portrays a young Irish woman and love interest to Frankie. This film is directed by Alan J. Pakua. This film is a brilliantly crafted drama that is incredible to watch. I have to say that Brad Pitt is spectacular in this film. Even though his accent was questionable at times, he still delivered some of his finest work here. Pitt brings a lot of emotion and sensitivity to his character, despite the fact that he's playing a supposedly cold-blooded terrorist. Harrison Ford is superb here, like he usually is however Pitt outacts Ford by a long shot. Natasha McElhone is beautiful and delivers a spectacular performance in this film.
The Devil's Own is one of my favorite films and a truly powerful and even moving drama. Many people seem to complain about this film's innacurate portrayal of the IRA and that it romanticizes the group too much. I disagree, I liked everything about this film and there was never a dull second in it. This film is gripping from start to finish. This film is also very tragic. It definitely moved me. The Devil's Own is a masterpiece of filmmaking and a work of genius that is completely captivating. I love this film, it's truly spectacular...
