Robbery, drugs and murder

Full of twists, turns, recaps, shoot-outs and at least one bare butt, "Before the Devil Knows You're Dead" is a jack of all trades. The title comes from an old Irish proverb that ends " ... may you be 40 years in heaven, before the devil knows you're dead." The title is appropriate considering that every character in the film does something evil or is just plain stupid or both. \nThe movie opens with possibly one of the most uncharacteristic and memorable first scenes in film history. It introduces us to Andy (Philip Seymour Hoffman) and his wife Gina (a still-lovely Marissa Tomei), who are engulfed in lavish surroundings, and sets up the film's theme: the pursuit of pleasure, and how far one will go to achieve it. \nInitially, Andy seems like a good guy. He has a hot wife, a nice house and access to large sums of money at work. He's the perfect white-collar criminal. But he wants more, so much so that he enlists his innocent brother (Ethan Hawke) to placidly rob a mom-and-pop jewelry store, which happens to be owned by their parents. \nEverything that can go wrong does. But for however many crimes occur throughout the course of the film, the plot moves at an awkward pace. \nIt's hard to question Sidney Lumet (four-time Oscar-nominated director who did the 1970s masterpieces "Serpico," "Dog Day Afternoon" and "Network"), but his multiple plotline-overlaps and perspective changes make the story progress sluggishly. Quentin Tarantino used the same technique brilliantly toward the end of "Jackie Brown," but it feels hackneyed in "Before the Devil." At one point it is painfully obvious who Gina is talking to on the phone; only later is the "surprise" ruined. Lumet does, however, deserve credit for managing to piece together a very intricate crime scheme turned wrong. \nThe acting of Hoffman, Hawke and Finney is exceptional. The only drawback is that we just get to see the protagonists' emotional development (or lack thereof) toward the last quarter of the film. Regardless, the evil and purely selfish nature of the characters is enough to make for a hectic narrative. The exciting climax very closely resembles an old Jack Nicholson film. \nPlot recaps aside, "Before the Devil Knows You're Dead" is a crime film with an intensity and style all its own.