''The Devil's Own'' is a 1997 American
action thriller film directed by
Alan J. Pakula, starring
Harrison Ford
Harrison Ford (born July 13, 1942) is an American actor. Regarded as a cinematic cultural icon, he has starred in Harrison Ford filmography, many notable films over seven decades, and is one of List of highest-grossing actors, the highest-gr ...
and
Brad Pitt
William Bradley Pitt (born December 18, 1963) is an American actor and film producer. In a Brad Pitt filmography, film career spanning more than thirty years, Pitt has received list of awards and nominations received by Brad Pitt, numerous a ...
, with
Rubén Blades,
Natascha McElhone,
Julia Stiles,
Margaret Colin,
Treat Williams, and
George Hearn in supporting roles. The plot revolves around a terrorist in
Provisional Irish Republican Army
The Provisional Irish Republican Army (Provisional IRA), officially known as the Irish Republican Army (IRA; ) and informally known as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary force that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland ...
(Pitt) who comes to the United States to obtain
black market
A black market is a Secrecy, clandestine Market (economics), market or series of transactions that has some aspect of illegality, or is not compliant with an institutional set of rules. If the rule defines the set of goods and services who ...
anti-aircraft missiles, but his plan is complicated by an
Irish-American
Irish Americans () are Irish ethnics who live within in the United States, whether immigrants from Ireland or Americans with full or partial Irish ancestry.
Irish immigration to the United States
From the 17th century to the mid-19th c ...
policeman (Ford), whom the IRA member has come to regard as family.
The film was released by
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc., Trade name, doing business as Columbia Pictures, is an American film Production company, production and Film distributor, distribution company that is the flagship unit of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group ...
on March 26, 1997. It received mixed reviews from critics, but was a financial success. This was the final film of director Pakula, who died the year after its release, and the final film photographed by
Gordon Willis, who retired soon after.
Plot
In 1972
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...
, eight-year-old Frankie McGuire witnesses his father gunned down for
republican sympathies.
Twenty years later in
Belfast
Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...
, Frankie and three fellow
IRA members are ambushed by the
British Army
The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...
and
Special Reconnaissance Unit agents. Two of the IRA gunmen are killed, but Frankie and his comrade Sean Phelan escape after managing to kill three soldiers, a civilian and four rival
loyalists. Pursued by a British Army helicopter, Frankie's commander Martin MacDuff decides that the IRA needs
Stinger missiles to fight back.
Under the alias "Rory Devaney", Frankie arrives in
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
to buy missiles. American
Judge
A judge is a person who wiktionary:preside, presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a judicial panel. In an adversarial system, the judge hears all the witnesses and any other Evidence (law), evidence presented by the barris ...
Peter Fitzsimmons, a longtime IRA supporter, arranges for him to stay with Irish-American
NYPD
The City of New York Police Department, also referred to as New York City Police Department (NYPD), is the primary law enforcement agency within New York City. Established on May 23, 1845, the NYPD is the largest, and one of the oldest, munic ...
Sergeant Tom O'Meara, his wife Sheila, and their three daughters on
Staten Island
Staten Island ( ) is the southernmost of the boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County and situated at the southernmost point of New York (state), New York. The borough is separated from the ad ...
. Believing that "Rory" is an immigrant construction worker, Tom and his family welcome Frankie into their home.
Sean reunites with Frankie, acquiring an old fishing boat to smuggle the missiles home. Frankie cuts a deal with
black market
A black market is a Secrecy, clandestine Market (economics), market or series of transactions that has some aspect of illegality, or is not compliant with an institutional set of rules. If the rule defines the set of goods and services who ...
arms dealer and
Irish mobster Billy Burke to receive the missiles in several weeks time. Fitzsimmons has the money for the deal delivered to Frankie by Megan Doherty, another IRA operative posing as his family's nanny, and Frankie hides the duffel bag of cash in the O'Meara's basement. Megan later warns Frankie that MacDuff has been killed by British authorities and they must postpone the deal, much to Burke's displeasure.
After lying to protect his partner, Eddie Diaz, for fatally shooting an unarmed thief in the back, a guilt-stricken Tom decides to retire from the force. He comes clean to Sheila and they return home, only to be confronted by masked intruders. Frankie arrives and he and Tom fight off the intruders as Sheila calls the police, but they are held at gunpoint until sirens approach and the assailants flee. Frankie confronts Burke for sending his men to steal the money, shooting one of the attackers in the knee, but Burke reveals that he is holding Sean hostage and demands payment for the missiles.
Realizing that the intruders were searching Frankie's room in the basement, Tom discovers the duffel bag of cash. Confronted by Tom, Frankie reveals his true identity, but Tom has called Eddie and they arrest him. Stuck in traffic en route to the police station, Frankie overpowers Tom and takes his gun, mortally wounding Eddie when he draws his own gun, but is forced to flee without the money.
With Eddie dead, Tom is questioned by the
FBI
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...
and their British counterparts and realizes that they intend to kill Frankie, who meets Burke at an abandoned warehouse. Demanding the money, Burke presents Frankie with the missiles as well as Sean's severed head, and Frankie hands over a duffel bag rigged with a bomb. The resulting explosion allows Frankie to kill Burke and his men, and he drives off with the missiles.
Frankie goes to Megan at the Fitzsimmons' residence, determined to complete his mission and deliver the missiles to Ireland. Downstairs, Tom interrupts a cocktail party and confronts the judge, before recognizing Megan from a photo in Frankie's bag, but Frankie escapes. Tom convinces Megan that only he can save Frankie from being killed by the authorities, and she directs him to the boat.
At the dock, Tom sneaks aboard as Frankie sets sail with the missiles, leading to a shootout. Tom is wounded and disarmed, and Frankie prepares to kill him but realizes he too has been shot. Tom embraces a dying Frankie, recognizing that they both were fighting for causes they believe in, before steering the boat back to shore.
Cast
Production
Development
The film's origins date back to the early 1980s as a pitch by
Lawrence Gordon and
Robert F. Colesberry.
The producers hired screenwriter
Kevin Jarre to write the first draft; as Gordon recalled "Jarre had disappeared for a couple of years and came back with a wonderful screenplay",
which was an action-packed tale about a heroic operative of the Irish Republican Army.
Gordon acquired the script in January 1990.
In 1991, Gordon took the script to
Brad Pitt
William Bradley Pitt (born December 18, 1963) is an American actor and film producer. In a Brad Pitt filmography, film career spanning more than thirty years, Pitt has received list of awards and nominations received by Brad Pitt, numerous a ...
, who was not yet well-known at the time. Pitt enthusiastically accepted the script,
which Gordon recalled "was supposed to be a gritty, low-budget thriller with Brad as the only star." The project began moving forward towards pre-production at
Universal Pictures
Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures (also known as Universal Studios or simply Universal), is an American filmmaking, film production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered at the 10 Universal Ci ...
but was left at a standstill due to Pitt's lack of acting credits at the time, as well as the politically controversial subject matter on which the story was based.
In the ensuing years, interest in the project was renewed thanks to Pitt's performances in ''
Legends of the Fall'', ''
Interview with the Vampire'', and ''
12 Monkeys
''12 Monkeys'' is a 1995 American Science fiction film, science fiction thriller film directed by Terry Gilliam from a screenplay by David Peoples and Janet Peoples, based on Chris Marker's 1962 short film ''La Jetée''. It stars Bruce Willis, M ...
.'' The project was stuck in development at Universal before the studio put it into turnaround, eventually ending up at
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc., Trade name, doing business as Columbia Pictures, is an American film Production company, production and Film distributor, distribution company that is the flagship unit of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group ...
.
Pitt visited Belfast in preparation for the role and suffered bruises after he was attacked on the city's
Falls Road after being mistaken for a Protestant.
Casting
Despite having Pitt's name attached, the studio was of the opinion that he could not carry a major film alone. For the role of Tom O'Meara, both
Gene Hackman and
Sean Connery
Sir Thomas Sean Connery (25 August 1930 – 31 October 2020) was a Scottish actor. He was the first actor to Portrayal of James Bond in film, portray the fictional British secret agent James Bond (literary character), James Bond in motion pic ...
had been considered at various points, but at Pitt's suggestion,
Harrison Ford
Harrison Ford (born July 13, 1942) is an American actor. Regarded as a cinematic cultural icon, he has starred in Harrison Ford filmography, many notable films over seven decades, and is one of List of highest-grossing actors, the highest-gr ...
was approached for the role,
which at that time was more of a
character role. Ford read the script and agreed to play the part, though that meant the script had to be rewritten to create a fuller role for Ford and a more complicated relationship between the characters played by the two men.
To expand Ford's role, producers brought in David Aaron Cohen and
Vincent Patrick to rewrite Jarre's script.
Patrick stated: "There was no way they were going to shoot the original script. It had to become a two-hero piece with equal action heroes. Supporting two stars is what this was about". Cohen added: "Take it from Columbia's perspective. Twenty million, and you want Harrison to be the supporting actor?"
James Gray was offered to direct the project but he turned it down, as did
Bryan Singer
Bryan Jay Singer (born September 17, 1965) is an American filmmaker. He is the founder of Bad Hat Harry Productions and has produced almost all of the films he has directed, as well as multiple television series.
After graduating from the Univ ...
, and
Milcho Manchevski. It was Pitt and Ford's suggestion to bring
Alan J. Pakula in as director.,
Pakula initially turned it down, as he wanted to focus on other projects that he was developing at the time; he rejected the offer two more times but eventually accepted the job after Columbia offered to pay him a fee of 5 million dollars.
Filming
Principal photography
Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production.
Personnel
Besides the main film personnel, such as the ...
started in February 1996, with the script "still in flux"; according to ''The New York Times'', "ego clashes, budget overruns and long delays plagued the project."
Pitt "threatened to quit early in the shoot, complaining that the script was incomplete and incoherent" and later "denounced the movie as 'the most irresponsible bit of film making – if you can even call it that – that I've ever seen.'"
To ease Pitt's frustrations, the producers hired screenwriter
Terry George
Terence George (born 20 December 1952) is an Irish screenwriter and director. Much of his film work (e.g. '' The Boxer'', '' Some Mother's Son'', and '' In the Name of the Father'') involves "The Troubles" in Northern Ireland.
He was nominated ...
one week before principal photography was to start. George's primary purpose was to concentrate on helping further develop Pitt's character, and what the actor thought was a superficial outlook on the
IRA situation.
In March 1996, Pakula hired screenwriter
Robert Mark Kamen to provide rewrites during production.
Kamen noted the difficulties on set: "They were running out of script to shoot. They had a script that wasn't acceptable to either actor. Alan
akuladidn't start with a script that everyone had signed off on, we were flying blind....It was scary".
Kamen met with both Ford and Pitt separately to discuss their ideas about improving the script, then he and Pakula would review the material, Pakula would add his own critical comments, and Kamen would go off to write the new scenes.
Contrary to the rumors that were reported at the time, Kamen insisted that both actors were agreeable to each other. "It wasn't the tension between them that made things tense. It was the tension each had with their own parts."
In June 2023, Ford admitted that he was partially at fault for the tension between him and Pitt, stating: "I understand why he wanted to stay with his point of view, and I wanted to stay with my point of view, or I was imposing my point of view, and it's fair to say that that's what Brad felt, it was complicated".
According to Pakula, one problem was that the film's plot did not fall along conventionally simple Hollywood lines, as Ford and Pitt were both playing "good guys" according to each of their own distinct moral codes. ''The New York Times'' characterized Ford's character as "the upright American cop who deplores violence" and Pitt's as "an I.R.A. gunman for whom violence is a reasonable solution to his people's 300 years of troubles."
Pakula compared his intent with the two characters to that depicted in ''
Red River'', a 1948 western in which
John Wayne
Marion Robert Morrison (May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979), known professionally as John Wayne, was an American actor. Nicknamed "Duke", he became a Pop icon, popular icon through his starring roles in films which were produced during Hollywood' ...
's character is defied by his young protégé, played by
Montgomery Clift.
''The Devil's Own'' was filmed on location and at the
Chelsea Piers studios in
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
, as well as in
Newark,
Hoboken,
Jersey City
Jersey City is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, second-most populous ,
Bayonne
Bayonne () is a city in southwestern France near the France–Spain border, Spanish border. It is a communes of France, commune and one of two subprefectures in France, subprefectures in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques departments of France, departm ...
,
Sandy Hook and
Montclair, New Jersey
Montclair is a Township (New Jersey), township in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Situated on the cliffs of the Watchung Mountains, Montclair is a commercial and cultural hub of North Jersey and a diverse ...
and
Greenport, New York on Long Island. For security reasons, the Northern Ireland scenes were instead shot in the
Republic of Ireland
Ireland ( ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland, with a population of about 5.4 million. ...
. The opening scenes were filmed at
Port Oriel, Clogherhead,
County Louth
County Louth ( ; ) is a coastal Counties of Ireland, county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. Louth is bordered by the counties of County Meath, Meath to the ...
,
Republic of Ireland
Ireland ( ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland, with a population of about 5.4 million. ...
. The
Belfast
Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...
shootout scenes were filmed in
Inchicore
Inchicore () is a suburb of Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Located approximately west of the city centre, Inchicore was originally a small village separate from Dublin. The village developed around Richmond Barracks (built 1810) and Inchi ...
,
Dublin
Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...
in July 1996. Other location shoots in Ireland were in the
Wicklow Mountains
The Wicklow Mountains (, archaic: '' Cualu'') form the largest continuous upland area in Ireland. They occupy the whole centre of County Wicklow and stretch outside its borders into the counties of Dublin, Wexford and Carlow. Where the mountai ...
.
Two months before it opened, the film was still unfinished: Pakula, unhappy with the final scene ("a showdown on a boat with a cargo of
Stinger missiles"), called the actors and crew back for additional filming.
The scene was "rewritten and reshot over two days in a studio in
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
."
Reception
''The Devil's Own'' received mixed reviews from critics. On
review aggregator
A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews and ratings of products and services, such as films, books, video games, music, software, hardware, or cars. This system then stores the reviews to be used for supporting a website where user ...
website
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...
, it has a approval rating based on reviews, with an average score of 5.2/10. On
Metacritic
Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
, it has a score of 53 out of 100, based on reviews from 26 critics, indicating “mixed or average reviews.” Audiences polled by
CinemaScore
CinemaScore is an American market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts from the data.
Background
Ed Mintz, who ...
gave the film an average grade of "B−" on an A+ to F scale.
Roger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert ( ; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American Film criticism, film critic, film historian, journalist, essayist, screenwriter and author. He wrote for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. Eber ...
gave the film 2½ stars out of 4, saying it showed "ignorance of the history of Northern Ireland" and that "the issues involved between the two sides are never mentioned." The review criticised the contrived plot, stating "The moral reasoning in the film is so confusing that only by completely sidestepping it can the plot work at all." Pitt and Ford were praised, with Ebert complimenting the pair, describing them as "enormously appealing and gifted actors, and to the degree that the movie works, it's because of them."
James Berardinelli gave the film 2½ stars out of 4, saying:
Janet Maslin called it an "unexpectedly solid thriller" with a "first-rate, madly photogenic performance" by Pitt; she notes that it is "directed by
Alan J. Pakula in a thoughtful urban style that recalls the vintage New York stories of
Sidney Lumet
Sidney Arthur Lumet ( ; June 25, 1924 – April 9, 2011) was an American film director. Lumet started his career in theatre before moving to film, where he gained a reputation for making realistic and gritty New York City, New York dramas w ...
" and "handsomely photographed by
Gordon Willis".
Richard Schickel
Richard Warren Schickel (February 10, 1933 – February 18, 2017) was an American film historian, journalist, author, documentarian, and film and literary critic. He was a film critic for ''Time'' from 1965–2010, and also wrote for '' ...
called it "quite a good movie – a character-driven (as opposed to whammy-driven) suspense drama – dark, fatalistic and, within its melodramatically stretched terms, emotionally plausible"; he said Pakula "develops his story patiently, without letting its tensions unravel." ''
Entertainment Weekly
''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...
'' gave it a "
B+," calling it a "quiet, absorbing, shades-of-gray drama, a kind of thriller meditation on the schism in Northern Ireland."
A reviewer for
Salon.com called it "a disjointed, sluggish picture" with a problematic script that "bears the marks of tinkering": "swatches of the story appear to be missing, relationships aren't clearly defined, and characters aren't identified."
''Variety'' said:
The film grossed $140 million, exceeding its $90 million budget, of which $43 million was from North America.
Brad Pitt's Belfast
brogue was criticized by several reviewers.
In 2024, the website Irish Central listed it as one of "The Worst Irish Accents in Hollywood Movies".
Cast and crew response
In retrospect, Brad Pitt said: "I really like ''Devil's Own''. It was a good schooling for me. Still, I think the movie could have been better. Literally, the script got thrown out."
Harrison Ford is also very fond of the movie: "We had a real hard time making it, but Alan
akulamade, I think, a really good movie out of it."
British Royal family controversy
The film was involved in adverse publicity when, two months before her death,
Diana, Princess of Wales
Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997), was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William, ...
took 15-year-old
Prince William, and 12-year-old
Prince Harry, to see the movie. The movie was restricted to movie-goers aged 15 or older, and the Princess persuaded the cinema to let Prince Harry stay despite him being three years underage. She was criticised for flouting the law, for using her influence to persuade the cinema's employees to flout the law, and because of the movie's subject matter (which was said to glamorise the IRA – highly sensitive given that her sons' great-uncle
Earl Mountbatten was assassinated by the IRA). She later apologised, saying she had been unaware of the film's content.
Novelization
A paperback novel of the film, written by Christopher Newman, was published by
Dell Publishing, and released in 1997.
References
External links
*
*
*
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''The Devil's Own'', revised script, January 31, 1996
{{DEFAULTSORT:Devils Own, The
1997 films
American action thriller films
American chase films
American crime thriller films
American political thriller films
American police detective films
Columbia Pictures films
Films about families
Films about terrorism in Europe
Films about the Irish Republican Army
Films about The Troubles (Northern Ireland)
Films directed by Alan J. Pakula
Films produced by Lawrence Gordon
Films scored by James Horner
Films set in 1972
Films set in 1992
Films set in 1993
Films set in New York City
Films set in Northern Ireland
Films shot in New Jersey
Films shot in the Republic of Ireland
English-language crime thriller films
English-language action thriller films
1990s American films
1990s Irish films
1990s English-language films
1997 action thriller films
1997 crime thriller films