Two brothers find themselves on opposite sides of the law in We Own the Night, an emotional crime thriller starring Joaquin Phoenix and Mark Wahlberg as the siblings -- plus Robert Duvall as their father. Although this gloomy movie aims for realism, its plot requires too much suspension of disbelief where certain crucial points are concerned. So, despite my admiration of the fine actors involved, I had trouble being drawn into the events presented here.

Still, I think director James Gray (The Yards), who also wrote the script, was on the right track by wanting to make a more character-driven film than the traditional cops-and-robbers flick we’re used to seeing. He claims We Own the Night is an example of classical storytelling. It’s based on “an idea that goes back to the ancient Greeks -- that one’s life is shaped primarily by forces outside of one’s control, as if the God’s have dealt each person a fate -- a destiny.” Apparently, instead of being interested in “whodunit,” the Greeks were focused on character and “how it happened.”

With its emphasis on character, We Own the Night clearly follows the format Gray describes. Prodigal son Bobby Green (Phoenix) emerges as the one who has the most to lose when he finds himself in the middle of a battle between his father and brother -- both NYPD police officers -- and a villainous Russian drug dealer. Rejecting familial ties and the lawman lifestyle, Bobby changes his last name from Grusinsky to Green, which supposedly hides his police connections from the scum populating his new surroundings. He simply wants to have a good time  while managing a 1980s New York nightclub and making love to his sexy girlfriend (Eva Mendes from Ghost Rider). Projecting a simmering inner conflict after his character makes a decision about whose side he’s really on, Phoenix -- who receives most of the screen time -- is impressive in many of his scenes (even when he mumbles, we know what he’s talking about because of his grim facial expressions), and we can’t help feeling that Bobby will explode at any minute. 

SPOILER ALERT

What Bobby decides to do is not surprising; however, the setup for “how it happens” seems inconceivable to me. Powerful drug dealers may be evil, but I doubt they’re as stupid and oblivious as depicted in We Own the Night. And, although Bobby suffers from anxiety over his life-changing decision, any rational man going on the dangerous mission he undertakes would surely be more careful about the items he carries along with him.

Wahlberg and Duvall play roles less interesting than the one assigned to Phoenix in this film. Their characters, of course, are pivotal to the changes happening to “Bobby,” but they get very little chance to strut their stuff. Wahlberg, in particular, seems uncomfortable playing the part of the “good son.” He spends most of the time looking at the floor and speaking so softly it’s hard to understand him. What a contrast to his dynamic Oscar-nominated performance in The Departed! On the other hand, Duvall nails each one of his few scenes, as always. He’s every bit the proud poppa to one son and the disappointed dad to the other, all the while projecting paternal worry about them both.   

Also on a positive note, with the goal of simulating New York in the 1980s, cinematographer Joaquin Boca-Asay (Roger Dodger) captures the look and feel of that period without compromising his own artistic flair. And his creative photography of a car chase in the drenching rain adds some welcome suspense and excitement toward the end of the movie.        

As crime dramas go, We Own the Night fails to reach the heights of such quality films as The Departed and L.A. Confidential. Although the movie is not a total loss, it's too bad Gray’s original concept must struggle so hard to stay alive amid distracting plot problems.  

(Released by Columbia Pictures and rated “R” for strong violence, drug material, some sexual content and brief nudity.)