Pride and Glory (Colin Farrell, Edward Norton, Jon Voight, Noah Emmerich) – Gritty, grueling, and gross, this inner-city crime and cop drama is great. In many ways, this is a family picture in the way The Godfather is only not as good. Jon Voight, whose career seems to have reached new heights in his older years, plays the patriarch of a cop family as Francis Tierney, Sr., one of the top executives in the New York Police Department. His son, Francis, Jr., a police inspector played by Noah Emmerich (Cop Land, The Truman Show, Cellular), who has never had to carry out this important a role before. The other son, Ben, is portrayed by one of my favorite actors (and sometimes directors) Edward Norton. Ben has been off the streets voluntarily for two years for reasons we find out during the movie. Colin Farrell plays Jimmy, who has married into the family through a daughter, Megan. He’s tough, plays it rough; and we soon find out, he’s on the take. When four cops die in what appears to be a drug bust, dad wants Ben on the task force looking into the death. Ben very reluctantly agrees, and all roads lead to Jimmy.
The film then becomes a suspenseful chase and morality tale about family, pride and glory; hence the title. The acting is so incredible here that you become absorbed in the action and find yourself caring about the actors – even Jimmy. The characters are also all complex except maybe Ben, who is righteous to a fault. Farrell is especially good here as he alternates between relentless and ruthless on one side and loving on the other. Emmerich surprisingly holds his own, having to show ambition, loyalty, and compassion in every scene. I was really impressed with his performance because he has never shown this kind of range. While the film is not for everyone, particularly for the squeamish, it is both a story told well and a film impeccably acted.