Pride and Glory

What stands out first about Pride and Glory is the confidence with which Gavin O'Connor establishes its thriller identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, Pride and Glory asks Edward Norton and Colin Farrell to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of Pride and Glory is established with useful clarity: A family's moral codes are tested when Ray Tierney investigates a case that reveals an incendiary police corruption scandal involving his own brother in law. That direct approach lets Pride and Glory use its 2h 10m running time for character, atmosphere and consequence.

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A close look at Pride and Glory reveals how editing that steadily tightens pressure carries information that the dialogue wisely leaves alone. Under the production banner of New Line Cinema, Pride and Glory treats editing that steadily tightens pressure as part of its storytelling grammar. Restricted viewpoints gives Pride and Glory a stronger sense of place within its United States context. The technical departments of Pride and Glory remain coordinated, so polish supports involvement instead of creating distance.

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Performance is the clearest human asset in Pride and Glory, beginning with the committed centre provided by Edward Norton. Colin Farrell keeps Pride and Glory from settling into one emotional register by approaching the material from another angle. The presence of Noah Emmerich gives the surrounding world of Pride and Glory additional texture without distracting from the main line. When Gavin O'Connor holds on a reaction, Pride and Glory communicates more efficiently than another explanatory exchange could manage.

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Pride and Glory finds its clearest story engine when Ray Tierney comes into conflict with Ray. That engine gives Edward Norton something concrete to pursue and protects Pride and Glory from empty movement. In the hands of Joe Carnahan, Pandora's Box becomes a useful complication rather than a detached twist within Pride and Glory. The final use of Tierney is familiar, but Pride and Glory has already established enough context for the turn to matter.

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The directorial personality of Pride and Glory comes from Gavin O'Connor remaining alive in individual scenes and uncertain between them when the premise invites excess. Within Pride and Glory, Gavin O'Connor repeatedly favours readable choices over attention seeking flourishes. That discipline explains why the cast and craft keep the experience watchable in Pride and Glory rather than appearing only in isolated scenes. Where Pride and Glory becomes less convincing, too many scenes explain effects the actors have already suggested, and the loss of control is noticeable without becoming fatal.

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What Pride and Glory has to say is rooted in trust, manipulation and the anxiety of acting without the full picture. The experience of Edward Norton carries that question through Pride and Glory without reducing the character to an example. Tierney helps Pride and Glory test the theme through consequence instead of explanation. When Gavin O'Connor allows ambiguity to remain, Pride and Glory becomes more involving than a simple statement of intent.

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Pride and Glory ends as an uneven film with enough personality to remain interesting, especially for thriller fans who enjoy steady escalation and psychological pressure. What remains from Pride and Glory is the relationship between Edward Norton, editing that steadily tightens pressure and Gavin O'Connor's control of mood. The weakness that too many scenes explain effects the actors have already suggested narrows the impact of Pride and Glory without cancelling its better work. On balance, Pride and Glory gives its intended viewers a distinctive experience rather than a completely anonymous piece of content.