What are Lee and Benioff trying to do with this movie? If it were made five years ago, it might have stood as a philosophical reflection on freedom (which Brogan is about to lose) and responsibility (which he is about to face up to). Meanwhile, there is an interesting (if somewhat irrelevant) sub-plot in which Brogan's other friend Jakob, an English teacher played by Philip Seymour Hoffman, gets involved, despite his own modest nature, with his student Mary ( Anna Paquin).
The other most intriguing character is Frank Slaughtery (played by Barry Pepper), an old friend of Brogan, another sharp young man who is ruthless in his day job trading bonds on Wall Street but more philosophical and humane outside it. Brogan himself is an inscrutable character: Norton makes him sharp and taciturn but not unpleasant the enormity of what he faces breaks down his tough exterior to reveal a more delicate man. Although Benioff's dialogue is not outstanding, his characters and their stories have, on the whole, the power to grip the viewer.
BARRY PEPPER 25TH HOUR MOVIE
I found (others may disagree) that this movie was somewhat slow getting started, but once the seriousness of Brogan's situation kicks in, the story picks up. Unaware of who tipped him off, in despair at the life he is about to lose, and determined to make the most of his last day, we see him make up with his father (a hard-working Irish-American played by Brian Cox) and then meet up with two old friends (played by Pepper and Hoffman), who arrange for him a final night of real living before he is taken away and his life destroyed. The story follows the final days of the sharp young Manhattanite Monty Brogan ( Edward Norton) before his seven year jail sentence for selling drugs (on school property indeed). Rather, Lee uses the story as a metaphor for the attacks and for America, giving the movie a double significance.
The story itself, which was written in 2000 by novelist David Benioff, is independent of September 11. Not so much in the form of direct images: in only one scene do we see Ground Zero, and only once do we hear any characters mention the attack. Inescapably, the memory of September 11 hangs over this entire film. Lee is a New Yorker who has spent his movie career documenting the highs and lows of the city he obviously loves. But the difference - as no end of critics and enthusiasts have pointed out - is that this is the first major film to be set in New York since September 2001: Martin Scorsese's Gangs of New York may have been made first, but that was set in the 19th century. The theme of crime and violence in New York City is hardly a new one for a Spike Lee movie (remember Do the Right Thing, Clockers, and to an extent He Got Game). His final day of freedom plays out as a reflection on personal responsibility and on America itself.Ģ5th Hour is the latest film from Spike Lee, starring Edward Norton as a small-time drug dealer who is about to be put away for seven years after the police finally get to him. Synopsis: The life of a successful young Manhattanite is about to be torn apart after he is sentenced to seven years for selling drugs. Starring: Edward Norton, Barry Pepper, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Rosario Dawson, Anna Paquin Screenplay: David Benioff, based on his novel
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