In the forecourt of hell

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Movie
German title In the forecourt of hell
Original title State of Grace
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1990
length 134 minutes
Age rating FSK 16
Rod
Director Phil Joanou
script Dennis McIntyre
production Ned Dowd ,
Randy Ostrow ,
Ron Rotholz
music Ennio Morricone
camera Jordan Cronenweth
cut Claire Simpson
occupation

In Hell's Courtyard is an American action thriller and gangster film from 1990 starring Gary Oldman , Ed Harris and Sean Penn .

action

Undercover agent Terry Noonan is returning to his old hometown of Hell's Kitchen in Manhattan in New York for years . Noonan knows the Irish bully Frankie Flannery and his brother Jackie from his youth in Hell's Kitchen . Frankie Flannery is now the boss and apparently partner of one of the five families of La Cosa Nostra . By appearing to shoot several dealers who are in fact police officers, he can convince Frankie and Jackie that they are gangsters themselves.

Frankie Flannery is a cool, calculating and ruthless psychopath. Jackie Flannery, on the other hand, with whom Noonan spends time from now on, is a drinker and bully, the man for the rough and highly emotional. He hates yuppies who are increasingly moving to his neighborhood. With Noonan, he sets a still unfinished new building on fire, allowing himself an idiosyncratic joke with Noonan: The two of them have to flee through the blazing flames.

For the cop Noonan, the task is becoming increasingly difficult. His old friends are unpredictable, he is constantly involved in crimes. On the other hand, he feels more connected to them than he thought before. In an Irish bar - the gang wants to sell the owner five boxes of expensive whiskey that he can't use - the first argument breaks out. Noonan tries to protect the barman and starts a brawl before the gang takes the place apart.

Frankie Flannery, always accompanied by the beefy bodyguard Pat, suspects that his old quarter no longer offers a future for the old Irish-born residents. He hopes to move to another area with the help of La Cosa Nostra and therefore complies with every request by the Italo Mafia. He therefore murders his friend Stevie McGuire, who owes the Italians, with his own hands by cutting his throat. However, Stevie was also a close friend of Jackie, who was betrayed in this way for the first time by his brother.

Meanwhile, Noonan meets his old sweetheart Kathleen, the sister of the Flannerys. Both realize that they still feel for each other, although Kathleen does not want to have anything more to do with gangsters and has left the neighborhood. Noonan's conflict of conscience - putting his childhood friends behind bars - comes to a head, and he confesses to Kathleen that he is a cop in order to save his relationship with her.

However, events continue to spiral out of control. Jackie Flannery, who blames the Italians for the murder of Stevie, shoots three mafiosi at a chance meeting when they condescently buy him a drink, including Jimmy Cavello, a close friend of Borelli, a high-ranking leader of the Italian-American mafia .

Borelli then quotes Frankie Flannery to clarify the matter. He asks Frankie to kill his brother Jackie, as this will keep the matter in the family and avoid a gang war. Frankie agrees. However, in the event that he did not survive the meeting, Frankie had previously posted his people, including Terry Noonan, nearby with submachine guns and instructed them to shoot everything after two hours if he did not report. But eating with Borelli turns out to be longer than expected. When everyone involved enters the street, the Irish commando is on the verge of shooting each other.

Frankie actually orders his brother Jackie to a secluded spot in the harbor, Pier 84, and shoots him there. However, Noonan is also at the scene and observes the fratricide . At the funeral, Noonan tells Frankie that he was also at Pier 84, giving him his police badge. Frankie then gives his friends a murder assignment, but Noonan does not flee, but instead goes to the gang 's headquarters during the St. Patrick's Day parade and eliminates them in a brutal showdown . However, he is seriously wounded himself. Only after he last killed Frankie with a shot in the head does Noonan lean back and relax. It remains to be seen whether he will die.

background

  • The film grossed just $ 1.9 million in the US, making it a commercial flop .
  • In contrast, the work was well received by film reviews ( Rotten Tomatoes counts 84% ​​positive reviews). The final shootout in particular is often considered one of the most stylishly staged in film history. The achievements of Oldman, Penn and Harris were also praised.
  • For a long time it was not clear whether Ed Harris would be able to play the role of Frankie Flannery as he was still recovering from his injuries sustained while filming James Cameron's The Abyss .
  • Lead actor Sean Penn met his future wife Robin Wright while filming.
  • The film was previously released from the age of 18. After a re-examination in 2012, it was downgraded to the age of 16.
  • The film was released under various German-language titles: In the forecourt of hell and In the forecourt to hell . On television, the film normally runs under the title Im Vorhof der Hölle , more recently also under its original title State of Grace .

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