LIVE BY NIGHT

2016 ‧ Crime film/Drama film ‧ 2h 9m

Recent release: January 13,2017 (UK)

Initial release: December 25, 2016 (USA)

Director: Ben Affleck

Box office: 85,000 USD

Budget: 65 million USD

Producers: Ben Affleck, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Todd, Jennifer Davisson Killoran

IMDB Rating : 7.4/10

Starring: Ben Affleck , Elle Fanning , Brendan Gleeson , Chris Messina , Sienna Miller , Zoe Saldana Chris Cooper

ABOUT

Live by Night is a 2016 American crime drama film written, directed, co-produced by and starring Ben Affleck, based on the 2012 novel of the same name by Dennis Lehane. The film also stars Elle Fanning, Brendan Gleeson, Chris Messina, Sienna Miller, Zoe Saldana and Chris Cooper and follows an Ybor City bootlegger who becomes a notorious gangster.

Produced by Warner Bros. Pictures, the film premiered in New York City on December 13, 2016 and had a limited release on December 25, 2016, and will have a wide release on January 13, 2017.

PLOT

Set in the 1920s and 1930s, the story follows Joe Coughlin, the prodigal son of a Boston police captain. After moving to Ybor City, Tampa, Florida, he becomes a bootlegger and a rum-runner and, later, a notorious gangster.

PRODUCTION

Development

Warner Bros. acquired the rights to Dennis Lehane's Live by Night in April 2012 with the intention of developing the project as a starring vehicle for Leonardo DiCaprio through his Appian Way Productions. In October 2012, it was announced that Ben Affleck would direct, write and star in the project; he and Jennifer Todd would produce through their Pearl Street Films, along with Appian Way's DiCaprio and Jennifer Davisson Killoran.

Pre-production

In the summer of 2013, Affleck and film crew members visited Tampa, Florida and Lawrence, Massachusetts to scout locations. In August 2013, it was reported that production would be pushed back from the fall of 2013 to the fall of 2014, due to Affleck's acting commitments in Gone Girl (2014) and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016). He visited various locations in Brunswick, Georgia in the summer of 2014. Affleck stated in a September 2014 interview that the film had been green-lit: "It’s supposed to start shooting in July [2015] and I’ll start prepping in March. We got a budget, we got locations." On September 4, 2014, Sienna Miller, Zoe Saldana and Elle Fanning joined the cast of the film. Affleck visited Brunswick, Georgia again in February 2015.

On July 9, 2015, Warner Brothers' decision to green-light the film was officially announced. Miller, Saldana and Fanning were all still attached to the project. From August to December 2015, other cast members were gradually revealed, including Chris Messina, Chris Cooper, Miguel, Max Casella, Scott Eastwood, Brendan Gleeson,Anthony Michael Hall and Titus Welliver.

Filming

Principal photography began on October 28, 2015 in coastal Georgia. Exterior scenes were filmed in Brunswick, at Affleck's private property on Hampton Island near Riceboro, on Tybee Island, in Savannah and at Fort Pulaski National Monument. Tampa's film commissioner said tax rebates in Georgia and Affleck's home on Hampton Island, a 45 minute drive from Brunswick, had led the filmmakers to choose the state instead of Florida. Filming took place in Lawrence, North Andover, and Boston's North End. From December 2015 to February 2016, filming took place in Los Angeles, California. Scenes were shot at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel, in Pasadena, and in Wilmington.

Cinematographer Robert Richardson used both the Arri Alexa 65 and vintage 65 lenses from Panavision.

RELEASE

In November 2013, Warner Bros. gave the film a Christmas 2015 release date. In May 2014, the release date was moved to October 17, 2016 and, in August 2015, it was pushed to an unknown release date in 2017. In March 2016, Warner Bros. confirmed that the film would be released on October 20, 2017. In June 2016, however, the release date was changed to January 13, 2017. In October 2016, the film was pushed up to a limited release on December 25, 2016, before opening wide on January 13.