25th Hour tells the story of Monty Brogan's last day of freedom. He was convicted to 7 years in prison for drug dealing.
Edward Norton plays Monty and he never disappoints me. He is always capable of doing a great emotional performance. Philip Seymour Hoffman and Barry Pepper play Monty's best friends, both gave very strong performances.
There are such remarkable scenes in this film like the powerful "make me ugly" scene. Barry Pepper together with Norton made that scene so authentic, it's beautiful and the amazing "mirror" scene where Norton blames basicaly everyone in the world for his fate. The final scene is also powerful, when a father dreams about a much brighter future for his son.
The connection with 9/11 events are very strong. New York City like Monty, will never be the same again. He can't run away from his fate, he can't undone his mistakes in life, he really is going to prison. It's real.