Before the Devil Knows You're Dead

Two desperate brothers (Philip Seymour Hoffman and Ethan Hawke) plan a robbery that goes horribly wrong.

Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead is a textbook example of how to tell a story. Director Sidney Lumet pairs a solid script with a great cast and tops it off with flawless execution.

A good storyteller never tells us anything he can show us and, at 82, Lumet has learned this lesson well. There isn’t an ounce of expositionary dialog, yet Lumet efficiently conveys volumes about his characters, so much so that by the time the credits roll, you feel like you know their entire life stories.

The cast responds to Lumet’s talent. Ethan Hawke gives the best performance of his career, as does Philip Seymour Hoffman. Backing them up, Marisa Tomei and Albert Finney do a lot with comparatively thin roles.

This is a dark story, yet it never feels oppressively dark. Its characters are desperate and unpleasant, yet they somehow remain sympathetic, and the ending is remarkably satisfying despite being somewhat open-ended.

While it may not be the most complex, or multi-layered, story, Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead is a solid story told perfectly.