Ennemis rapprochés

I say this making no pretense at completely understanding the Irish conflict myself (you'd have to ask someone with experience of Belfast for a more authentic take on the situation), but the irresponsible way the troubles were used here as a backdrop to what is supposed entertainment staggers me. It isn't as if it needed this detail; the terrorist could have been from any unspecified organisation. In the incompetent handling of sensitive issues that the makers really have no idea of, the production team involved in this really have let themselves down. Brad Pitt realised this too late and henceforth disowned the film, a fact which made me admire and respect him even more.

For this I wanted to hate the film, and yet found myself unable to. Beneath the misbegotten attempts at 'political comment', there is a decent little thriller struggling to get out. Pitt is great as the terrorist (dodgy accent aside) and Ford is as reliable as ever in the role of the honest cop. Director Pakula keeps the story moving at all times and stages the action well. Despite all these pluses, I constantly felt uncomfortable at the ways in which the script tried to manipulate my sympathies. While it's not quite enough to make me downgrade the film on an enjoyment level, it loses big points from an ethical perspective. Shame on you Tinseltown.

Starring big stars Harrison Ford and Brad Pitt The Devil's Own is a strange film- While The Devil's Own doesn't do a spectacular job of fulfilling the promise of its cast or its complex politics-and-guns premise, it is nevertheless reasonably well-paced. The less intently you watch this movie, the greater the chance that you'll be pleased by it. Unfortunately, if you're paying attention, it won't take long to notice that very little of the last act holds together. That sort of high-tension, mind-numbing climax makes it difficult for me to retain more than token enthusiasm for the production as a whole. Pitt and Ford do credible jobs as Frankie and Tom. Despite his character's brutal, bloody past, Pitt manages to capture our sympathy, in large part because, aside from the killings, Frankie seems like a likable sort of guy. Ford, in a role that's a far cry from the cocky Han Solo, recalls Jack Ryan, the protagonist of Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger -- a hero whose armor is just a little too shiny.

Frankie McGuire (Brad Pitt) is one of the IRA's deadliest assassins. But when he is sent to the United States to buy weapons, specifically Stinger missiles, Frankie stays with the family of Tom O'Meara (Harrison Ford), a New York police officer who is happily married to Sheila (Margaret Colin) with children , but all of them know nothing about Frankie's true identity. A surprising friendship emerges, but Tom's growing suspicions force Frankie to choose between the promise of peace or a life of murder. A man trapped by destiny and another bound by duty! They are about to discover why they are willing to fight and die. They come from different worlds. They fight for different causes. Now, two men from opposite sides of the law are about to go to war !.

An interesting thriller on the typical theme of hidden identity, as a police officer discovers the true identity of his guest in the house, a member of the I. R. A. Hidden terrorist. This is more of a detailed character study, trying to explore the reasons why the protagonists act the way they do, rather than the typical action movie. This is a good suspense drama devised by screenwriter Kevin Jarre (Glory) and well directed by Alan J. Pakula in which an interpretive duel is established between two of the biggest screen stars belonging to two different generations: Harrison Ford (Patriotic Games, Star Wars, Sabrina) and Brad Pitt (Seven, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Legends of the fall), the latter doing his usual job as an honest patrol cop who gets caught up in bad situations. Harrison Ford was paid $20 million to star in the film and Brad Pitt earned $12 million; the difference in salaries came because the status of first big star was higher for Ford who had recently played the successful Indiana Jones sequels, while Brad Pitt did not yet have the status that he would subsequently achieve. They are well accompanied by a good supporting cast with some familiar faces, such as: Margaret Colin, Rubén Blades, Treat Williams, George Hearn, Mitchell Ryan, David O'Hara and Natascha McElhone.

This features an evocative musical score by prestigious composer James Horner who strives to give the film a tone full of Irish sounds. Adding colorful and appropriate photography by the classic cameraman Gordon Willis who photographed The Godfather and other very important films. This gripping story was professionally directed by Alan J. Pakula, although it has some cracks and is a bit slow. Alan J. Pakula was chosen to direct because he was the only person both Harrison Ford and Brad Pitt agreed should do it, but it turned out to be the last film Pakula finished before his death caused by a car accident. This compelling American film director, writer and producer was nominated for three Academy Awards: Best Picture for "To Kill a Mockingbird" (1962), Best Director for "All the President's Men" (1976) and Best Adapted Screenplay for ¨Sophie's Choice¨ (1982). His producing business partner in the 1950s and 1960s was Robert Mulligan. Pakula was always very supportive of his cast and had a reputation as an "actor's director." He achieved several hits such as ¨The Devil's Shadow¨, ¨Pelican Report¨, ¨Presumed Innocent¨, ¨Sophie's Choice¨, ¨Klute¨ and some failures such as ¨Starting Over¨, ¨See You in the Morning¨ and ¨ The last witness¨ or ¨The Parallax View¨. Rating: 7/10. It is worth seeing and being better than average thanks to the magnificent performances of Harrison Ford and Brad Pitt.

A thriller about an IRA gunman (Brad Pitt) who draws an American family into the crossfire of terrorism. Frankie McGuire is one of the IRA's deadliest assassins. But when he is sent to the U.S. to buy weapons, Frankie is housed with the family of Tom O'Meara, a New York cop (Harrison Ford) who knows nothing about Frankie's real identity.

Ford last appeared in a movie two years before this one in 1995's Sabrina (one of Ford's few financial flops) a remake of the 1954 film with its trio of stars, Audrey Hepburn, Humphrey Bogart, and William Holden. Before that he'd been on a good run with The two Jack Ryan movies (Patriot Games and Clear and Preset Danger) and The Fugitive.

Whilst Brad Pitt was starting to become the Mega Star he is hitting home runs with roles in Interview With A Vampire, Legends Of The Fall, Seven, 12 Monkeys and Sleepers.

You can see what attracted the stars to the movie as the premise is a good one, however once Ford was cast, it was decided to rewrite the script to make his character more central and the script wasn't finished when they started shooting. Ego clashes, budget overruns and long delays saw Pitt tried to walk away from the project. He settled for denouncing the movie as "the most irresponsible bit of film making – if you can even call it that – that I've ever seen." Upon it's release. The movies ending was reshot two days before it's release too.

As expected Ford and Pitt are the best things in this movie, and the parts where this movie works is because of them. It's a shame this was the last movie of Alan Jay Pakula because I like his work as a Director. Be it Klute, All The Presidents Men or Starting Over and Sophie's Choice he showed himself to be a good director.

Worth checking out at least once

Brad pitt, harrison ford. Frankie lives in ireland, in the early 1990s, where the irish republican army is alive and well. When he comes to the u.s., now he's rory, and staying with o'meara, a cop. Rory is here on a mission to get weapons to be used back home. When the deal goes bad, it brings violence to o'meara's door. And he's a cop, so he's got to do something! Small role for treat williams. It's mostly really good. It gets a bit awkward towards the end, but can't say too much. It feels like some scenes were cut out. The trivia section talks about reshoots and multiple script issues, but for the most part, it's not bad! The last twenty minutes were a bit choppy but overall, good story. Directed by alan pakula. Was nominated for some huge films over the years. Story by kevin jarre. At one point during the film, pedestrians walk past rory, humming the theme to rocky; jarre worked on several "rambo" projects with stallone. Died young at 56.