The narrative follows his final day of freedom: his world has changed irrevocably and he is suspicious of everyone.Ģ5th Hour is worthy of reappraisal for many reasons but I’d like to focus on how it handles an increasingly vexing aporia - the problem of meaningfully addressing the impact of 9/11 without reinforcing the notion that the attacks came “out of the blue” or “changed everything”. The film’s main character, Monty (Edward Norton), is a convicted drug dealer who has just been sentenced to seven years in jail. Unlike some high-profile releases – such as Oliver Stone’s World Trade Center or Paul Greengrass’s United 93, both released in 2006 – Spike Lee’s 25th Hour manages to capture the post-9/11 lassitude that was so acutely felt by Americans, while simultaneously delivering a trenchant political critique. In fact, while blockbusters such as Spiderman (2002) were hastily re-edited to remove images of the World Trade Centre, Lee made the attacks fundamental to 25th Hour, building in extended shots of Ground Zero and the Tribute in Light to pivotal moments in the film. Spike Lee’s 25th Hour, released in 2002, was mostly shot during the summer of 2001 and was reworked following 9/11.
As for Lee’s two famous stylistic flourishes here – the Monty mirror rant and the closing fantasy sequence of a potential flight from jail – the rant works as it appropriates the urban rage and self-delusion that Monty suffers from, although the fantasy sequence seems a slightly pretentious means of articulating what is a fairly obvious sentiment – that Monty imagines what life might be like if he absconded from his jail sentence.The most enduring cinematic representation of 9/11 was not originally meant to be about the World Trade Centre attacks at all.
Also, with nearly ten years’ perspective, the 9/11 symbolism is a touch portentous, although it’s easy to forget just how traumatic and how different everyone thought the world would be in the weeks and months after the attacks. Some of Lee’s attempts to mythologise Monty’s last day of freedom are a touch odious though – especially with the over-the-top musical score and the attempt to give Monty’s seven years in jail perhaps a touch more of an apocalyptic feel than it would be in reality. It is, at times, very funny, moving and humane – especially in the depiction of Monty’s friends Jacob (Philip Seymour Hoffman) and Francis (Barry Pepper) – and particularly enjoyable is Francis’ wicked repartee with his colleagues while working in a Wall Street firm and the humorous subplot involving Jacob and a Lolita-esque student of his whom he bumps into in a nightclub. Review: This sprawling and ecletic work from Spike Lee has, in a sense, more going for it in the ragged fringes of its story than in its slightly awkward, pre-determined centre. He has various loose ends to tie up: saying goodbye to his father and friends, getting someone to look after his dog, finding out who dobbed him in to the police, and deciding whether he’s even going to show up for his sentence anyway. Synopsis: Monty Brogan (Edward Norton) is experiencing his last day of freedom before a seven-year jail sentence for possession of drugs.
Actors: Edward Norton, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Barry Pepper
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