Review of City Island (2009) by Shari M — 09 Sep 2010

A terrific cast, a sparkling script, a director that let the actors take the scenes where they wanted to go, scenery that solidly identified the sense of place, and a totally engaging story combined to make this one terrific little film for this viewer.

Andy Garcia, as Vince, gives a terrific performance. His ability to portray a poor working stiff chasing a dream and hiding a dirty little secret was powerful. Everyone has a secret and these people seem more protective of their secrets than most.

Julianna Margulies gives Joyce, Vince's wife, a desperate quality that evokes sympathy for her imagination as she suspects the worst. Dominik Garcia-Lorido is just sexy enough to pull off the troubled daughter, Vivian, who conceals her failure from her family and uses her obvious assets to help her keep her family from finding out.

And Ezra Miller, as youngest son, Vince, Jr., indulging his own dirty little secret, proved himself to be a master of improvisation that was encouraged by the director, Raymond DeFelitta. Stephen Strait, as Vince's long-lost son, Tony, provides ample beefcake, and Emily Mortimer really added an emotional overlay to the central story that both fueled the misunderstandings and also provided the spark that brought everything to light.

Alan Arkin was not on screen for long, but yet was integral in that his acting class provided the exercise which precipitated the events of the film. A most satisfying film that provided humor and poignancy in equal measures.