The Devil’s Own (1997)

Directed by: Alan J. Pakula | 107 minutes | action, drama, thriller | Actors: Harrison Ford, Brad Pitt, Margaret Colin, Rubén Blades, Treat Williams, George Hearn, Mitch Ryan, Natascha McElhone, Paul Ronan, Simon Jones, Julia Stiles, Ashley Carin, Kelly Singer, David Ohara, David Wilmot, Anthony Brophy, Shane Dunne, Martin Dunne, Gabrielle Reidy, Samantha Conroy, Hassan Johnson, Scott Nicholson, Jonathan Earl Peck, Sixto Ramos, Mya Michaels, Jessica Marie Kavanagh, Brendan Kelly, Kevin Nagle, Gregory Salata, Joseph P. Dandry, Jack McKillop, Mac Orange, Malachy McCourt, Marian Tomas Griffin, Peggy Shay, Danielle McGovern, Ciarán OReilly, Rob McElhenney

Harrison Ford meets Brad Pitt. A most charming poster, you might say at first glance. In 1997 it was the first, but probably also the last time that these cinematic greats met, because there was not really a great collaboration. On the set of director Alan J. Pakula’s “The Devil’s Own,” both actors had a say in their characters, something neither of them got along very well with. For example, the script had to have been rewritten several times because of their participation and the two stars got into an argument on the set. We call that star quality… Actually, it is better to speak of Harrison Ford vs. Brad Pitt, which is also more appropriate for the plot. Brad Pitt takes on the role of IRA member Frankie McGuire, who is hiding in America with the Irish-American family O’Meara. Harrison Ford plays lord of the house Tom O’Meara, a real (how could it be otherwise?) family man. In addition, O’Meara is an exemplary NYPD sergeant, one that uses the law as a guideline. A warm bond develops between the two men, until O’Meara discovers who Frankie McGuire really is… A manhunt begins and ‘The Devil’s Own’ pretends to be an action thriller. This film is essentially that, but it cannot be called a real action thriller. The cat and mouse game between the two consists of a small number of short fragments, which means that it never really comes loose. The short fragments do not really build tension; so it won’t be exciting either. There is hardly any real manhunt. And what should have been the grande finale unfortunately turns into an anticlimax. In addition to the action and thriller elements, ‘The Devil’s Own’ also tries to win some souls in a dramatic way. That would have been possible by further deepening the moral battle between the two main characters, but unfortunately that does not happen. Instead, the focus is more on the fringe things, while the main story in that regard is underexposed and therefore remains quite superficial. Furthermore, the story occasionally contains a number of redundancies. What about the scene where O’Meara’s colleague shoots a car thief and the ensuing situations? This side story leads nowhere and can therefore be called superfluous…

Although the elaboration leaves something to be desired, the story itself is not bad and that helps ‘The Devil’s Own’ a bit in the right direction. The actors Harrison Ford and Brad Pitt also play an important role in it; there hardly seems to be a quarrel in that regard! Harrison Ford does just fine as a family man and servant O’Meara and Brad Pitt, who has the necessary Irish accent under control, knows how to put down both a warm and a cool Frankie McGuire. There is also not much wrong with the music of James Horner. A missed opportunity, that’s the best way to describe ‘The Devil’s Own’. The story lacks the depth at the right moments that might have made this a success. Furthermore, this film simply falls short in the action thriller genre. ‘The Devil’s Own’ therefore does not earn enough, but can be used for an evening of entertainment. The reason for the poor quality is probably the freedom that the two protagonists Ford and Pitt had in the interpretation of their characters. Bumblebees arose on set, a clear line was missing and the late director Alan J. Pakula’s glue efforts were subsequently in vain. Could it be a little less next time, gentlemen divas?