Review of 25th Hour (2002) by Ryan R — 11 Sep 2014

Spike Lee is one of those directors that many people love to hate, but his quality films cannot be denied. My favorite films of his are Do the Right Thing, Malcolm X, Inside Man, and the documentary, 4 Little Girls. I picked up the Spike Lee Collection Vol. 1 on Blu-ray out of a urge to revisit He Got Game during the 2014 NBA Finals, and a curiosity about this film that most people in the forums I visit were interested in, 25th Hour. Boy am I glad I did. I actually preferred this film over the one I bought the double feature for most.

The film follows Monty (Norton) as he prepares to go to prison for a seven year sentence the following day. He's highly respected among New York's seedy underbelly, and he has to come to grips with the decisions he's made and effects they are having on his friends and family. This is truly a performance driven piece, and said performances are all top notch. Edward Norton leads a stellar cast in this gripping dramatic tour de force. He's joined here by the late Philip Seymour Hoffman, Rosario Dawson, Brian Cox, Anna Paquin, Isiah Whitlock Jr., and an exceptional Barry Pepper in what may just be his best performance to date.

A few things to note here are the amazingly gorgeous visuals and the fantastic score by Terence Blanchard. The cinematography by Lee and Diego Prieto (The Wolf of Wall Street, Argo, Babel, and many other beautiful films) is washed out, with high contrast, and looks damn near painted on a canvas. There is true technical prowess on display here. I recommend seeing the film for its visual and auditory artistry alone. And definitely on Blu-ray if possible. It has a top notch transfer.

I do have some complaints, but they are few and far between. Some of the characterizations seemed pointless and out of place, like Paquin's character for example. While her performance was rock solid, her role seemed unnecessary. Whatever message her relationship with Hoffman's character was meant to convey, it was lost on me. Perhaps with time and revisits that will become more fleshed out in my mind. Another complaint I had was that it seemed to meander a bit towards the end, and the curve ball they threw was somewhat unsatisfactory. Even with those complaints, there is a lot to love here. Great film.