Motherless Brooklyn
In 1950s New York, private investigator
Lionel Essrog (Edward Norton, who also
directs, produces and writes the screenplay)
attempts to save the life of his mentor Frank
Minna (Bruce Willis) after the latter is shot.
Minna dies before he can be saved, but
Essrog is determined to solve the mystery
surrounding the murder.
FIVE FACTS:
- This film is adapted from Jonathan
Lethem’s 1999 novel of the same name. - Although the novel is set in the 1990s,
Norton opted to shift its events to the
1950s for the film, as he felt the characters’
behavior fitted this era better. - One character here who does not appear
in the novel is Moses Randolph, who is
played by Alec Baldwin and inspired by real-
life New York city planner Robert Moses. - Norton acquired the film rights to the
novel about two decades ago, and is
both the director and screenwriter of the
finished movie. - This is the second movie Norton has
directed after 2000’s Keeping the Faith.