Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead

Director Sidney Lumet, who hasn’t made a great film in 25 years, comes roaring back with this labyrinthine heist film starring Philip Seymour Hoffman and Ethan Hawke. Told out of order, it’s the story of a dysfunctional family who finds countless ways to screw each other over. Hoffman, who knocks another one out of the park here, plays the older brother to Hawke (also great), bringing him in on a jewelry store heist that goes terribly awry. Albert Finney (also great) plays their father, a man stricken by tragedy and guilty of parental sins that are never really revealed and don’t need to be. The film is a great mystery, and you must avoid advertisements and most reviews of the picture because they are revealing too many secrets. It’s a reminder that Lumet once directed great cinema like Dog Day Afternoon and Network. This film stands right beside them.