Well, this was an interesting movie, and brought back an old favorite, Marisa Tomei, who noticeably walks around topless for a few scenes in the film, and I must say as a fellow woman, she’s still looking pretty smashing for being in her forties!  Phillip Seymour Hoffman and Ethan Hawke play brothers in this movie, one seemingly on the borderline of being a sociopath until we see some real emotion come out later, played by Hoffman, and the other a sniveling cry baby who seems to have a good heart, but also blames others for his problems and is not averse to taking the easy way out for any sort of predicament - a coward, if  you will.

The movie is one about what seems like a victimless crime, thought of by Hoffman, the “bad” brother, and is carried out by his cry baby brother played by Hawke who turns in a good performance as well alongside the formidable Hoffman, which is much to say about acting abilities when you can hold your own beside a pro. 

The brothers hatch a plot to make some extra money, which they are both in desperate need of, for different reasons but both through faults of their own, to rob their mother and father’s jewlry store.  When things go horribly wrong, the events are told in a flash forward, flash back sequence, with a sort of weird format that I didn’t like, and you’ll know what I mean when you see the film. 

The problem I have with this movie is that I just didn’t care about these two brothers.  Instead of feeling sorry for Hawke, I didn’t care if he spent the rest of his miserable life in prison, since he seemed the type that would push you out in the middle of traffic if it were between you and him getting hit by a car.  As far as Hoffman goes, it seems the film maker teeters between trying to make you dislike him and feel sorry for him, both of which are unsuccessful, at least for me.

Tomei puts in a good performance, but we’re unsure of what her character’s point is, other than providing what seems like gratuitious sex scenes and topless eye candy.  If I were her, I’d wish the film I’d bared it all for several times grabbed the audience a bit more and stuck with you.  All in all, I can’t say I disliked the movie, but it wasn’t up to snuff for the actors that were in it, including Albert Finney, who did a great job as the father who seems to have some problems of his own.