ellen_datlow | The best suspense/horror movie of the year

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The best suspense/horror movie of the year

I just came back from seeing a movie that blew me away. It had me on the edge of my seat from the first scene and never let me go--suspense verging on horror. It's Sidney Lumet's Before the Devil Knows You're Dead and it's really impressive. Philip Seymour Hoffman and Ethan Hawke brilliantly play two brothers, both desperately in need of money. They decide to rob a jewelry store and everything goes wrong. By the end of the movie you realize that things were very wrong from wayyyy back before the robbery.

Although the cinematography is nothing special, the script is. The screenplay was written by a newcomer, Kelly Masterson, who seems to have no previous screen writing credits. According to Wikipedia he tried to get the screenplay made for seven years before Lumet took a chance. It's paid out. Grim grim grim. Run out and see it before it disappears.

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It's charming, though the female lead is rather flat.

Helen,
That's funny--I thought Claire Danes was better than I'd ever seen her.

but in my mind that's not saying much (she's never really impressed me as an actress). ;-)

Exactly, which is why I was so impressed with her this time. I thought she was very good in the role.

See? I did it again here--I mean "Karen"-- sorry about that.

In truth, I have some issues with the book, enough so that I avoided seeing it. My next movie (which isn't really quite sunshine and kittens but is more snow and polar bears) will be The Golden Compass.

I'm excited about that one. At last, a populist voice for a most repressed community.

I wouldn't exactly call Pullman a populist, at least not in this country, and the more theological bits at the end of the book have been moved over to the beginning of the second movie.

but @ least it's a voice more than a few people are hearing.

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The best suspense/horror movie of the year

have you seen "Stardust?"

Re: have you seen "Stardust?"

that may well be...

Re: that may well be...

Re: have you seen "Stardust?"

Re: have you seen "Stardust?"

YES!!

Re: YES!!

Yeah....