We Own the Night
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| We Own the Night | |
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| Directed by | James Gray |
| Produced by | Marc Butan Joaquin Phoenix Mark Wahlberg Nick Wechsler |
| Written by | James Gray |
| Starring | Joaquin Phoenix Mark Wahlberg Eva Mendes Robert Duvall |
| Music by | Wojciech Kilar |
| Cinematography | Joaquín Baca-Asay |
| Editing by | John Axelrad |
| Release date(s) | October 12, 2007 |
| Running time | 117 min. |
| Country | USA |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
We Own the Night is a crime drama film written and directed by James Gray and starring Joaquin Phoenix, Mark Wahlberg, Eva Mendes and Robert Duvall. It is the third film directed by Gray, and the second film to feature Joaquin Phoenix and Mark Wahlberg acting together, the first being The Yards, which was also directed by Gray. The film's title comes from the motto of the NYPD's Street Crimes Unit, which disbanded in 2002.
The film premiered May 25, 2007 at the Cannes Film Festival. It was released October 12, 2007 in the United States and Canada. It was released in the United Kingdom on December 14, 2007 and was released in Australia on February 28, 2008.
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[edit] Plot
The film is set in Brooklyn, New York in 1988. Bobby Green (Joaquin Phoenix) is the manager of a nightclub in Brighton Beach that is frequented by Russian gangster and drug lord Vadim Nezhinski (Alex Veadov). Bobby has distanced himself from his police chief father Burt Grusinsky (Robert Duvall) and his police captain brother Joseph Grusinsky (Mark Wahlberg), preferring to remain on the sidelines and enjoy a hedonistic life with his girlfriend Amada (Eva Mendes). When police forces led by Joseph make a raid on Bobby's nightclub, hoping to net Vadim, Bobby refuses to cooperate. The incident strains his relationship with his father and brother even more, to the point that he and Joseph exchange blows.
The police are unsuccessful in capturing Vadim, who decides to retaliate by having Joseph killed. The assassination attempt is botched and Joseph survives, although he suffers a shot to the head that leaves him hospitalized for months. Bobby visits his brother in the hospital and, undergoing a change of heart, resolves to help his father and the police in their fight against Vadim. Despite Burt's apprehension, Bobby works undercover for the police inside Vadim's drug-smuggling operation.
Burt is killed by Vadim's men not long afterwards. Joseph and Bobby, who has taken the police exam and become an official member of the force, work together to bring Vadim down. The highlight being that Bobby personally kills Vadim in a raid. The film ends with Bobby graduating and becoming a full-time police officer.
[edit] Cast
- Joaquin Phoenix - Robert "Bobby" Green/Grusinsky
- Eva Mendes - Amada Juarez
- Mark Wahlberg - Captain Joseph "Joe" Grusinsky
- Robert Duvall - Deputy Chief Albert "Burt" Grusinsky
- Alex Veadov - Vadim Nezhinski
- Dominic Colon - Freddie
- Danny Hoch - Louis "Jumbo" Falsetti
- Oleg Taktarov - Pavel Lubyarski
- Moni Moshonov - Marat Buzhayev
- Antoni Corone - Michael Solo
- Craig Walker - Russell De Keifer
- Tony Musante - Captain Jack Shapiro
- Yelena Solovey - Kalina Buzhayev
- Coati Mundi - Himself
Former New York Mayor Ed Koch made a cameo as himself.
[edit] Critical reception and box office
The film received mixed reviews from critics. As of 27 February 2008 on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, 54% of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 88 reviews.[1] On Metacritic, the film had an average score of 60 out of 100, based on 31 reviews.[2]
In its opening weekend in the United States and Canada, the film grossed $10.8 million in 2,362 theaters, ranking #3 at the box office.[3]
The film grossed a total of $51.0 million worldwide — $28.5 million in the United States and Canada and $22.5 million in other territories.[4]
The film was a commercial success in the United States, since Sony Pictures only paid $11 million for the rights to distribute this film.[[1]]. (Sony Pictures released this film through their division Columbia Pictures.
[edit] Reception at DVD market
The film has been a hit in the United States DVD market, as it has brought in more than $20 million in DVD sales [2] and more than $32 million in DVD rentals [3].
[edit] References
- ^ We Own The Night - Rotten Tomatoes. Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved on 2007-10-15.
- ^ We Own the Night (2007): Reviews. Metacritic. Retrieved on 2007-10-15.
- ^ We Own the Night (2007) - Weekend Box Office Results. Box Office Mojo. Retrieved on 2008-03-05.
- ^ We Own the Night (2007). Box Office Mojo. Retrieved on 2008-03-05.
