Pride and Glory - B-

On DVD (2008). Rated R, 131 minutes. Trailer.

Ed Norton and Colin Farrell star in Pride and Glory as cop brothers-in-law with much different codes of ethics. The film is directed by relative newcomer Gavin O'Connor and tells the story of an unraveling of dirty cops, led by Farrell's Jimmy Egan and uncovered by Norton's Ray Tierney. I like this genre, but the extensive list of films covering the same territory (too many to even partially list - Departed and Serpico, for example) cast a long shadow. Pride and Glory manages some tense sequences and further reveals Colin Farrell as a great actor. Click below for more P & G:

Egan and Tierney are related by Egan's marriage to Tierney's sister. Tierney's older brother is a cop as well, and Jon Voight stars as Police Chief Francis Tierney. Egan's drug/money syndicate goes wrong, ending up with 4 dead cops and Ray is charged with tracking the case down. The film is very predictable, and its characters are either cliched or halfway developed.

Farrell was great as the conflicted and angry brother-in-law, while Norton plods along in his usual self-righteous character without showing much range other than a scowl and difficulty. There are several surrounding characters (goofy partner cop, wife dying of cancer, drunk father, concerned wife, etc) that start to develop but then fall by the wayside. The film has several taut and tense sequences, mostly centered around the conflicting testimony of Ray and Jimmy. This film had a very short theatrical run last fall, and was advertised as early as winter 2007. Not great, not terrible, just there.