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25th Hour
25th Hour
Actors: Edward Norton, Barry Pepper, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Rosario Dawson, Anna Paquin
Director: Spike Lee
Genres: Indie & Art House, Drama, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Mystery & Suspense
R     2003     2hr 15min

Academy Award(R)-nominee Edward Norton (Best Actor, 1999, AMERICAN HISTORY X) heads an amazing all-star cast in the critically acclaimed Spike Lee (SUMMER OF SAM, DO THE RIGHT THING) film 25th HOUR. In 24 short hours Monty...  more »

     

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Movie Details

Actors: Edward Norton, Barry Pepper, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Rosario Dawson, Anna Paquin
Director: Spike Lee
Creators: Edward Norton, Spike Lee, Jeff Sommerville, Jon Kilik, Julia Chasman, Nick Wechsler, David Benioff
Genres: Indie & Art House, Drama, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Mystery & Suspense
Sub-Genres: Indie & Art House, Family Life, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Mystery & Suspense
Studio: WALT DISNEY VIDEO
Format: DVD - Color,Widescreen,Anamorphic - Closed-captioned
DVD Release Date: 05/20/2003
Original Release Date: 01/10/2003
Theatrical Release Date: 01/10/2003
Release Year: 2003
Run Time: 2hr 15min
Screens: Color,Widescreen,Anamorphic
Number of Discs: 1
SwapaDVD Credits: 1
Total Copies: 0
Members Wishing: 0
MPAA Rating: R (Restricted)
Languages: English

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Member Movie Reviews

Megan K. from ATHENS, GA
Reviewed on 4/23/2011...
The plot of the movie seems a little bit far fetched to me: the county letting a man who has been convicted, turn himself in? Definitely does not seem plausible to me. Some points of this movie were really well done. Ed Norton, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, and Berry Pepper all did really great jobs. They had fantastic chemistry and some of the subplots thrown in around their characters were really interesting. Anna Paquin's character was annoying, but I liked the point they had in putting her in the story. I also could have done without Rosario Dawson. There was one cute moment between her and Ed Norton's characters when they're taking a bath together; other than that though, she didn't add anything to the story.
There is one scene where Ed Norton's character goes on a rant in a bathroom mirror about race and his family and his friends that was interesting, but out of place. It seemed more like a American History X excerpt than a scene from the movie. The idea of him talking to himself was interesting, but I wish it had been created into a theme through out the movie instead of a one time occurrence.
1 of 1 member(s) found this review helpful.
Wendy H. (grandma) from DELPHOS, OH
Reviewed on 4/5/2011...
good movie
0 of 1 member(s) found this review helpful.
Kelsy B. from HIGHLAND, CA
Reviewed on 2/11/2010...
i really like this movie... the story line is really different then most movies out there.
0 of 2 member(s) found this review helpful.
Jennifer L. from YONKERS, NY
Reviewed on 1/19/2008...
Couldn't complete viewing - - too self indulgent and involved. Too much talking and thinking; too little action
1 of 5 member(s) found this review helpful.

Movie Reviews

Lee and Benioff Make Neo Noir Classic
Mark D Burgh | Fort Smith, AR United States | 08/05/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)

"Spike Lee's film of Michael Benioff's novel 25th Hour is one of the strongest of the neo-noir films of the last few years, and one of the few films to address the corruption of dealing drugs and the breakdown of culture symbolized by the WTC site. Edward Norton plays Montgomery Brogan, a heroin dealer who must report to the Otisville Federal Prison in the morning. Monty's life until this point has been a dream; he lives with a beautiful woman, drives a cool car, and gets into all the clubs, but financing this life is heroin and the Russian Mafia.

Edward Norton gives a typical strong performance - I'd love to see him and Johnny Depp in a film - making Monty a rich character who understands his own self-delusions. Barry Pepper and the ever wonderful Phillip Hoffman play Monty's more conventional friends, Slattery and Alinsky, the former a Wall-Street cowboy, and the latter a repressed English teacher in love with one of his students. Rosanna Dawson plays Monty's woman with understated power and sorrow.

Monty's final day of freedom plays out in clubs, parks, bars, and his memories, which Spike Lee weaves seamlessly in and out of the narrative, sparing us a moralistic explanation for Monty, a nice boy, ending up becoming a drug dealer, but showing us instead the parts of Monty's life that mean something to him: finding an abused pit bull, meeting Naturale, getting busted and interrogated by arrogant DEA agents.

The rant that Monty gives to his reflection is right out of David Benioff's book, nearly word-for-word, so stop blaming Spike Lee, and besides it's a great set piece, expressing Monty's self-loathing at the city which will go on despite him. Lee follows up this tour-de-force with all the people Monty cursed waving good-bye to him as he leaves New York, one of the most wonderful cinematic poems I've seen.

Monty is himself the City, broken, confused, and angry; beautiful, Monty wants to make himself ugly to protect himself from gang rape in prison, and he calls on his friends Slattery and Alinsky to beat him, horrifying them both.

Again, the flight of fantasy at the end of the film is right out of Benioff's book and not something Spike Lee made up, although Lee often extends the ends of his films (see Mo' Better Blues and Clockers), so Benioff's novel was right in keeping with Lee's style.

This is one of Spike Lee's best films, and it was totally disregarded at the box office, probably people want to pigeonhole Lee. But like all great artists, Spike Lee can transcend himself. I believe 25th Hour will be remembered as a great American film in the years to come.

Note: I would recommend you read David Benioff's novel, but the film is taken right from the book with few amendations, and those small changes - emphasizing 9/11, making Monty's father a fireman - improve Benioff's book.
"
Criminals are always playing spin the bottle and sooner or l
Jenny J.J.I. | That Lives in Carolinas | 03/21/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)

"One of the many things that make 25th hour such a special film to me is how Benioff and Lee didn't attempt to cram too many events into this plot. This film does take place in just one day, and it's a perfect snapshot of the lead protagonist Monty Brogan's thoughts and actions in that final day before he begins a 7 year jail sentence for dealing heroin, expertly put together by David Benioff and Spike Lee. We see Brogan (superbly played by Edward Norton) walking his dog, talking to his girlfriend, having a meal with his father, going out to a club with his friends, preparing to go to jail and being driven there. It's not over the top, it isn't brash, but it does do what is necessary.

Brogan is clearly worried and regretful. This is faultlessly portrayed by the mirror scene, in which he rants incessantly about the variety of people populating New York, and then realizes that he only has himself to blame for the situation he is in. It's such a human moment, since how many people can honestly say that they have never chosen to blame others, and take their anger out in a vicious way, even if it is just personal thoughts? But it isn't just Monty who feels regret, virtually every other character we focus on does, Monty's father is weighed down by his former alcoholism, and he partly holds himself responsible for Monty's fate. And so do Monty's friends, not preventing him from his choice to deal drugs.

Monty Brogan is not really shown in a 'good' or 'bad' light. Norton plays him as a normal person. He's easy to relate to, and it's a reminder of how anyone can turn out depending on what choices they make. His choice of drug dealing is looked down upon, the interrogators ridicule him, but that is only in the context of drug dealing, not as a normal person. Benioff and Lee were keen to show his actions like this.

The film is skillfully made, from the very tasteful opening credit scene acknowledging 9/11 (another honest feature about the film, which is an important theme throughout), where we see the lights at ground zero dropping from the sky, to the fantasy scene with Monty and his father in the car near the end, where they think about the family he could have had, all surreally dressed in while. Terence Blanchard's score too is one of the most beautiful I've heard in a recent film along with Michael Andrews score for Donnie Darko - The Director's Cut (Two-Disc Special Edition). The film tells it like it is. It's about decision making, it's about responsibility and it's about real friendship. It's realistic on an emotional level and is now one of my favorite Spike Lee Joints.
"
One of the best movies I have seen.
Mark D Burgh | 05/21/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)

"I am not a big fan of Spike Lee and I do not usually write reviews for movies. But after watching this film, I was inspired to do so. This is one of the best movies I have ever seen. Edward Norton plays his role to perfection. His supporting cast does an excellent job at bringing out his exceptional acting skills. The few montage sequences in the film were humerous as well as though-provoking. This is one of those movies that will stay in your mind long after you view it. I highly recommend this film to anyone who enjoys a good drama. I have a new found respect for Spike Lee."