Código de Familia

STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday Morning

When four police officers are brutally gunned down in a run down, drug infested tower block, it sets a deadly chain of events in motion that threaten to tear apart the brotherly structure of the New York Police Department. Honest cop Ray Tierney (Edward Norton) starts with the proper approach, getting a statement from an eye witness to what may have gone on in the shape of an innocent, unlying child who admits to having seen notorious drug dealer Angel Tezo (Ramon Rodriguez) fleeing from the scene in fear. With what happened starting to look fairly obvious, the hunt begins for Tezo. Unfortunately, that includes less honest cops Jimmy Egan (Colin Farrell), related to Ray through marriage, and his men whose corrupt activities have lead to the murders. It all builds up to a devastating battle between family and friends, loyalty and justice, truth and honour.

As any one who's glanced at the trivia section (or Empire Magazine!) will already know, work on Pride and Glory was scheduled to begin as far back as 2001, but owing to America's characteristically patriotic respect for NY cops who risked their lives to save lives that fateful day, any suggestion of corruption amongst them was deemed, well, unpatriotic and it's been left till seven years later for the film to come out. It would appear the most high profile film to come from writer/director Gavin O' Connor, whose other credits appear a smattering of unheard of films that have skipped the sort of exposure this one's got.

Though a few have claimed the film has been done before (which it surely has), it is still far more than a standard, straight-forward cop thriller, with an intelligent, twisty turny screenplay that keeps you hooked with it's developments and raw honesty. Despite this, the narrative flow fails to keep going as well as you'd like, and a fair few scenes gracelessly flow on from the last one rather than keeping you hooked for them. Also on the plus side are strong, solid performances from leading men Norton and Farrell, not to mention Jon Voight and Noah Emmerich as the other honest, well meaning father/son cop team caught up in the middle of the corrupt shenanigans as everyone else. But Norton and Farrell not only have good presence, they have good chemistry together and it's a shame they're scenes together are too few. Another down point is their climactic fisticuffs session, which feels corny and out of place amongst what has been a raw, unflinching, brutally and unsearingly honest cop film up till now, belonging more at the end of a Jet Li or Chuck Norris movie to be honest.

Still, this is a solid, well made cop thriller that was still quite worth the wait. ***

I saw the advance screening of Pride and Glory last night in NYC. It's an excellent film despite the first 30 minutes, which is riddled with enough F-bombs ((classic Collin Farrell)) and Spanish speaking between characters ((no subtitles!)) to make you question whether you'll ever understand what's happening on screen. It's not until after the 30 minute mark that the storyline is finally spelled out for those of us who can't cut through all the nonsense at the start. Thanks to outstanding performances by Edward Norton and Jon Voight this is definitely a MUST see film. All the action will literally have you on the edge of your seat towards the end. However, I'd advise you to spend the first 30 minutes doing something more productive with your time like standing outside in the concession line for popcorn and candy. In the bathroom washing your hands. Maybe on your cell phone having a conversation with your mother would be less punishment than watching the poor set up of this cop flick. But do go out and see this film!!! Just be sure to leave the kids at home, because the profanity, nudity and violence was even a bit too much for some of the adults in the audience. Enjoy.

I saw a screening of "Pride and Glory" last night. It's the kind of American movie you don't see anymore, a throwback to the big themes and dramatic tone of the 1950s, when Elia Kazan was making movies like "East of Eden" and "On the Waterfront," and Arthur Miller was writing plays like "Death of a Salesman" and "All My Sons." Family, honor, corruption, right and wrong, fathers and sons--these are the kinds of issues that director/co-writer Gavin O'Connor is taking on in "Pride and Glory," and in doing so he's made a timeless film. Sincere without being sentimental (much like "Miracle," O'Connor's last effort), "Pride and Glory" gets elbow deep in a corruption scandal that threatens to crack the blue wall of the NYPD and destroy the Tierney family legacy (patriarch Jon Voight, sons Ed Norton and Noah Emmerich, and outlaw brother-in-law Colin Farrell, who has never been better). A muscular, old-school American film, with big themes splashed on a big canvas, "Pride and Glory" is familiar and original at the same time. In the Age of Irony, these are the kinds of movies you rarely see anymore. An honest, gripping drama.

Colin Farrell, Edward Norton, Noah Emmerich, and Jon Voight all deliver great performances. There are many intense scenes throughout the movie, and Norton and Farrell match them with their own intensity. Voight is believable and realistic as the patriarch of the family of cops and the chief, trying to keep his family in order as he thinks it should be.

Despite the inspired performances of the main characters, however, Pride and Glory falls short due to awkward pacing, pointlessly convoluted side-stories revealed in equally pointless scenes, and a general lack of focus. Pride and Glory tries to tell two or three stories at once, but fails to really punctuate any one of them, leading to a fairly emotionless climax and no discernible, unifying theme. The result is a forgettable movie and a hint of buyer's remorse; if you're a big enough fan of Ed Norton or Colin Farrell and want to see either of them put on a great performance, catch the matinée, or even still, wait a few months and rent it.

The plot of this movie is the fairly predictable (though always entertaining) idea of the corrupt cops against the good cops and the always-annoying injection of the nosy media. If it had been done by amateur actors, this movie wouldn't have been nearly as good.

Edward Norton was absolutely STUNNING, blew me away. He's always been a favorite of mine but every role he's in continues to amaze me. There a scene where he's talking to a Spanish woman and his expression throughout the scene is the main thing that stuck out to me in the whole movie. There's just something in his eyes that draws you and sucks you in.

Colin Farrell did an amazing job as well, as did Jon Voight. They managed to bring their characters more personality than I expected there to be. Especially Colin. Even though he played a such a bad character, there was something there in the way he was with his family and everything that still made me feel BAD for him.

And though the f-bombs were sometimes distracting and the ending could've had more punch, overall I really liked this movie.