THE DEVIL'S OWN

:''"The Devil's Own" is also a nickname for the Connaught Rangers and of the Inns of Court Regiment''
'''The Devil's Own''' is a 1997 movie starring Harrison Ford, Brad Pitt, Rubén Blades, Natascha McElhone, and Treat Williams.

Contents

Synopsis

Cast

Trivia

External links

Synopsis

A police officer helps a visitor from Northern Ireland, only to discover that he has a potentially deadly secret. Belfast-native Frankie McGuire (Brad Pitt) saw his father gunned down by loyalist paramilitaries at the age of eight, and when he grew up he joined the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA), determined that one day he would avenge his father's death. A Volunteer, Frankie is responsible for the killing of 13 British soldiers and 11 members of the RUC, as well as many loyalist para's. After a bloody battle where Frankie's IRA unit kill a number of British Troops in broad daylight , Frankie flees to the United States. Upon arrival in Newark/New York City, Frankie is met by a judge who is sympathetic to the IRA's cause and who arranges a place for him to stay. He also provides him with a lot of money, intending to purchase a bunch of stinger missiles from an underground arms dealer in America, Billy Burke (Treat Williams). Using the name Rory Devaney, Frankie moves into the home of Tom O'Meara (Harrison Ford), an honest cop for 23 years. But, Tom is already in the midst of a personal crisis; his friend and partner Edwin Diaz (Ruben Blades) recently shot a man that he knew was unarmed in the line of duty, and while Edwin wants Tom to help him cover up the matter, Tom's conscience will not allow it. When Tom begins to realize that "Rory" is not simply a man running from the violence of his homeland, he is torn between his sympathy for Frankie's cause, and his fear of the FBI, who are attempting to capture Frankie.

Cast

★ Harrison Ford - Tom O'Meara

★ Brad Pitt - Rory Devaney/Francis Austin McGuire

★ Margaret Colin - Sheila O'Meara

★ Rubén Blades - Edwin Diaz

★ Treat Williams - Billy Burke
Flimed in Greenport NY (Long Island)

Trivia

★ The movie attracted notorious press attention during principal photography. Many stories had reported that there wasn't enough room for both its stars Harrison Ford and Brad Pitt, and attributed that, in addition to troubles on the production and escalating the budget. At the U.S. Box Office, the movie was a flop, earning only half of its $90 million budget.

★ A possible explanation for the film's poor performance was the changing political situation at the time in Ireland.

★ The title is explained at Ford's daughter's confirmation, where the congregation renounces Satan and all his works while Pitt remains silent.

★ A recurring theme in the film is the jealousy felt by Pitt's character, the Irish native, towards Ford's character, an Irish-American, and his peaceful life in New York City. Whenever Ford brings up turmoil in Ireland, Pitt responds with something along the lines of: "Don't look for happy endings, Tom. It's not an American story, it's an Irish one."

★ Brad Pitt wanted to leave the production, but was threatened by a lawsuit. In the February 2, 1997, issue of Newsweek, Pitt called the film a "disaster", and said that "it was the most irresponsible bit of film-making - if you can even call it that - that I've ever seen. I couldn't believe it." Pitt subsequently wrote a letter to Newsweek claiming his remarks had been taken out of context. Still, rumors of fighting on the set (especially over which star would be the focus of the film) plagued the production. The original script was discarded and there were at least seven subsequent rewrites. Pitt said the final version was "a mess". "The script that I had loved was gone," he said. "I guess people just had different visions and you can't argue with that. But then I wanted out and the studio head said, 'All right, we'll let you out, but it'll be $63 million for starters.'"[1]

★ Alan J. Pakula's final directed film.

★ Screenwriter Robert Mark Kamen was one of the original writers but was never credited.

External links

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★ Movie stills