We Own The Night

We Own The Night (Joaquin Phoenix, Mark Wahlberg, Robert Duvall, Eva Mendes) — It’s official.  Mark Wahlberg is a fine actor and can hold his own with two of the best actors of their respective generations, Joaquin Phoenix and Robert Duvall.  This is absolutely one of the very best movies of the year.  Reminiscent of The Departed, for which Wahlberg was nominated for an Oscar, this is a police drama, a family saga, and a thriller.  Duvall is the police chief whose favorite son, Joseph, played by Wahlberg, followed in his footsteps.  His rebellious, ambitious son, Bobby, is played by Phoenix with more verve than usual but still with the brooding style that he plays best.  Bobby runs an incredibly popular night club owned by a Russian immigrant who treats Bobby like his son.  But the owner’s nephew is a drug dealer who hangs at the Club and draws the attention of the cops’ narcotics unit run by Joseph.  The bad guys go after Joseph, and Bobby has to choose between his high-flying life and his family.  This is an Oscar-worthy film where all the actors could be nominated. See it.