25th Hour

25th Hour is a 2002 American drama film directed by Spike Lee and starring Edward Norton. It is based on a book by David Benioff and tells the story of a man's last day of freedom before he must go to prison for selling illegal goods.

The film received many good reviews and some people think it is one of the best films from the 2000s. It shows scenes of New York City after the September 11 attacks. In 2016, the film was placed 26th on the BBC's 100 Greatest Films of the 21st Century list. Many consider it to be one of Spike Lee's lesser-known but great movies.

Plot

A man named Monty Brogan is about to spend seven years in prison for dealing drugs. This film shows his last day of freedom. He walks around New York City with his dog, Doyle, whom he saved years ago. He visits places that are important to him, like his old high school and his father's bar.

Monty meets up with friends, but things get tense. Someone told the police about his drug business, and now he is going to prison. He worries about what will happen to him there. In the end, Monty says goodbye to his friends and his dog before going to prison.

Cast

The film features many talented actors. Edward Norton plays Monty Brogan, the main character. Other notable actors include Philip Seymour Hoffman as Jacob Elinsky, Barry Pepper as Frank Slaughtery, and Rosario Dawson as Naturelle Riviera. The cast also includes Anna Paquin, Brian Cox, Tony Siragusa, Levan Uchaneishvili, Isiah Whitlock Jr., Michael Genet, Patrice O'Neal, Aaron Stanford, Marc H. Simon, Armando Riesco, and Vanessa Ferlito.

Production

Development

David Benioff finished his book The 25th Hour while studying at the University of California Irvine. After many rejections, the book was published in 2001. Actor and producer Tobey Maguire read an early copy and wanted to play the main character, Monty Brogan.

Maguire got the rights to make a movie and asked Benioff to write the screenplay. But after the script was done, Maguire was too busy with the film Spider-Man to act in another movie. He stayed on as a producer for 25th Hour. Director Spike Lee showed interest in directing the film.

Spike Lee liked a long speech in the story where Monty talked about New York City. Benioff had thought about leaving this speech out, but Lee convinced him to keep it. The movie was being planned when the September 11 attacks happened. Lee decided to include those sad events in the story, and the feelings of loss and uncertainty are part of the film.

Reception

The film 25th Hour was well liked by many people. It got an 80% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes from 176 reviews. On Metacritic, it scored 69 out of 100, which means most critics liked it.

Some famous movie critics put 25th Hour on their lists of the best movies from the 2000s. In 2016, a big survey of critics ranked it as the 26th greatest film since 2000. Later, in 2025, it was ranked 24th on Rolling Stone’s list of the best movies of the 21st century.

Music

Terence Blanchard created the music for the film. Other songs featured in the movie include:

1. Big Daddy Kane – "Warm It Up, Kane"
2. Craig Mack – "Flava in Ya Ear"
3. The Olympic Runners – "Put the Music Where Your Mouth Is"
4. Grandmaster Melle Mel – "White Lines (Don't Don't Do It)"
5. Liquid Liquid – "Cavern"
6. Cymande – "Bra"
7. Cymande – "Dove"
8. Cymande – "The Message"
9. Bruce Springsteen – "The Fuse"

In popular culture

The television show Better Call Saul made references to the film 25th Hour in one of its episodes called "Bingo". In that episode, a character named Jimmy tells another character, Kim, to imagine 25th Hour, featuring Ned and Maude Flanders from The Simpsons. He said this when he called Kim to tell her that the Kettlemans had hired him to be their lawyer because one of them might go to jail.