THE DEVIL'S OWN
A film review by Steve Rhodes
Copyright 1997 Steve Rhodes
RATING (0 TO ****): ** 1/2
Alan J. Pakula is a director with a somewhat uneven track record. His last film, THE PELICAN BRIEF, was a bomb, but others have met with great financial and critical success. Although he garnered an Oscar nomination for ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN, his SOPHIE'S CHOICE might be even better known. I am a special fan of one of his lesser recognized works, the thriller CONSENTING ADULTS.
As is popular these days, in his latest film, THE DEVIL'S OWN, he examines the Northern Ireland troubles. He takes a different approach with most of the story occurring in the United States.
(Someday, I would like to see a film from the British perspective. Here we are told from the IRA that the British do not really want peace, "They say the word peace, but at the end of the day, all they want is surrender." All of the films I have seen start with the assumption that the British are oppressing the people of Northern Ireland, hence the birth of terrorism as a natural and inevitable outgrowth. There are two sides to every issue. It would be refreshing to hear the other.)
The screenplay by Kevin Jarre and Robert Mark Kamen tells the story of two lives. In one, Tom O'Meara (Harrison Ford) is a hard working police sergeant in New York City. Although getting a little old to chase crooks, he still gives it his best shot. Ford looks so out of breath that you begin to worry that he may have a real-life heart attack. More than just an honest cop, Tom goes out of his way to be fair to thieves and to his fellow officers. His partner Edwin Diaz (Ruben Blades) will test this loyalty.
As O'Meara's name implies, his ancestors came from Ireland. Back in the old country, we meet Frankie the Angel (Brad Pitt). His father was gunned down in cold blood in front of Frankie's eyes when the lad was just 8-years-old. Frankie was hardened by this experience and soon became one of the IRA's most notorious killers.
Early on in the film we have a gun battle between the British soldiers and the IRA terrorists. Although the sequence bears remarkable resemblance to the house-to-house battles in France during World War II, the lighter-weight, automatic weapons, the sound effects editing, and the fast choreography of this part makes it the most successful aspect of the film.
Soon Frankie flees Ireland. In America these two people of Irish blood will have their destinies intertwined into a life and death struggle for each. That destiny forms the fabric upon which Pakula creates the film.
The movie has three acts plus the Irish prologue. The first takes the time to get to know the O'Meara family. We learn the minutia of living a middle class existence in Brooklyn and the day-to-day life of a Manhattan cop. Since Frankie, now known as Rory Devaney, comes under false pretenses to live with the O'Meara family, we learn that he has his tender side too.
All too often, films do not take the time to adequately setup the characters. In this show, we have just the opposite problem. It seemed that the show might run out of time before they ever got to the action. The slow first act ran over an hour whereas half that time would have been ample. If the people had been more interesting, I would love to have stayed the full hour in this act, but these were pleasant but not particularly compelling characters. They were strangely devoid of emotion. When they should have been angry, they got pensive instead.
The second act makes the picture. Brad Pitt struts his stuff and shows off his acting talent. His assignment is to buy Stinker missiles from an Irish-American gangster named Billy Burke (Treat Williams). Williams, playing a one dimensional slimeball, demonstrates that, when there is money is to be made, some opportunist will turn up to sell whatever is in demand. Burke, a full-time saloon keeper and part-time arms merchant, would sell to both sides if the profit was right.
The preposterous final act is mercifully brief. In a plot contrivance, things are wrapped up all too neatly.
The show has many extra delights. The Irish music is lovely. Megan Natascha McElhone from SURVIVING PICASSO plays Frankie's would be sweetheart Megan. My favorite character is that of New York Judge Peter Fitzsimmons (George Hearn). The judge entertains the upper crust of society, has a lavish house and servants, and, at the same time, supports the IRA's gun running. The judge is oblivious to the contradictions in his behavior.
"Don't look for a happy ending, Tom," advises Frankie. "It's not an American story. It's an Irish one." You can see the film and see if you think it is a happy ending or not. Personally, I would have preferred a bit more ambiguity.
THE DEVIL'S OWN runs about two hours. It is rated R for realistic violence and for some profanity. It would be fine for teenagers. (One dad had his 8-year-old son with him at the screening. I wondered and worried about how the child must have viewed the film's opening scene where a father just like his is murdered at the family dinner table. How long will the boy's nightmares last?) I admired Brad Pitt's acting and the strong second act enough to be able to recommend the picture, but it could and should have been much better. I give it ** 1/2.
**** = A must see film. *** = Excellent show. Look for it. ** = Average movie. Kind of enjoyable. * = Poor show. Don't waste your money. 0 = Totally and painfully unbearable picture.
REVIEW WRITTEN ON: March 20, 1997
Opinions expressed are mine and not meant to reflect my employer's.
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