Big ideas done with subtlety and care in Ira Sach's new urban family film, LITTLE MEN

How do the decisions we make about right and wrong, friends and family, and whom to help when the chips are down -- as well as those made for us by our parents -- affect our lives to come? A sterling example of all the above can be found in LITTLE MEN, the new film from Ira Sachs (Keep the Lights On, Love Is Strange) that offers up the conundrum of gentrification and modern-day real estate in Brooklyn, New York, and how this impacts the lives of two families.

As has always been his wont, Mr. Sachs places character, followed by situation, above all else, although I must admit that his plots have become increasingly interesting and rich (compare The Delta, from 1996, with his current film). The filmmaker, shown at right, seems to bite off a bit more "story" with each new work, chew it up properly and then let us digest the results -- which, in this case, produces plenty of food for thought.

The tale here is of a middle-class Manhattan family -- actor dad (Greg Kinnear, above, left), therapist mom (Jennifer Ehle, above, right) and middle-school-attending son (Theo Taplitz, below) -- that, due to the sudden death of its estranged patriarch, moves to Brooklyn to take over the brownstone left to dad and his sister (Talia Balsam).

On the ground floor of that brownstone is a dress shop run by a South American woman (Paulina García, below) whose relationship with the deceased father is never quite spelled out. But she owns and has been running the shop for more than a decade (with nary a rent increase) and is in no mood to move out or have anything changed monetarily. Her teenage son (Michael Barbieri, two photos below) quickly becomes fast friends with the family's son, and so the set-up for real estate (excuse the expression) "trumping" relationships becomes front and center.

How this plays out is both expected and not so. No one is an out-and-out villain, and surprisingly enough the dress shop owner proves the most intransigent of anyone. But thanks to a keen grasp on character and motivation (and the truly troubling attempt by Kinnear's dad to somehow "do the right thing"), we viewers are brought up-close-and-personal to the idea of family vs friendship, money vs morality and not-so-simple betrayal and the results thereof.

Performances could hardly be better, particularly those of the two boys, both of whom shine in their own special ways. Kinnear, one of the most under-rated actors working today, is as fine as always. Notice his ability to let us understand that dad is not so hot an actor (his Trigorin -- they're doing The Seagull -- looks good but lacks a lot) yet his performance as the beleaguered dad is quite wonderful.

By the finale of Little Men, it is clear that everyone has moved on. But the family's son must quietly accept and live with his betrayal of his friend, and we get a dark, rich sense of the past having impacted the future in ways that will likely not be undone. And Mr Sachs has created another quiet, small movie that resonates strongly and beautifully.

From Magnolia Pictures and running a mere 85 minutes, the movie, after opent in major cities over the past few weeks, hits South Florida tomorrow, Friday,. August 19, at the Coral Gables Art Cinema, and then the following Friday, August 26, at the Bill Cosford Cinema, Miami. On September 9, it opens at the Movies of Delray and the Movies of Lake Worth, and at the Lake Worth Playhouse. You can view all currently scheduled nationwide playdates, cities and theaters by clicking here.

Chris Evans' charming directorial debut, BEFORE WE GO, hits Blu-ray, DVD & Digital

You may find yourself, as did TrustMovies, muttering now and again, "I don't buy that" as BEFORE WE GO, the directorial debut of Chris Evans and starring Mr. Evans and Alice Eve, takes off. Some of the set-up does seem a bit iffy, but hang on even a little while, and the characterizations (provided by screen-writers Ron Bass, Jen Smolka, Chris Shafer and Paul Viknair, from a story by Bass and Smolka) and the sterling performances given by Evans and Ms Eve will insure that you stick with this charming, funny and moving tale of love.

What proves most interesting about Before We Go is that the love here in mostly not between the characters played by Evans (at left) and Eve (below, right). Instead it's about the love each of them has for someone else. That this movie will prove such an "odd" love story should not surprise if you consider that screenwriter Bass also gave us My Best Friend's Wedding -- one of the all-time best (and surprisingly, most popular, too) off-kilter love stories Hollywood has yet produced.

Again, Bass and his crew are creating a tale of love in which that love includes everything from friendship, help and lust to heartache, hope and growth. The movie is mostly just these two people, whom we learn more and more about as the story progresses.

Along the way we're offered a not-bad rendition of My Funny Valentine for trumpet and voice, a walk through New York City's quiet middle-of-the-night streets, coffee in a tiny diner, a wedding party that includes the Evans' character's lost love (the gorgeous and charismatic Emma Fitzpatrick), and a odd and very lovely meeting with a smart psychic (played with great charm and believability by John Cullum).

That's mostly it. But as the relationship grows and changes, I think you'll find yourself hooked. This proves an auspicious directing debut for Evans (who performs with his usual low-key charm), while adding to Eve's gallery of bright, funny, moving and very appealing heroines.

Before We Go -- from Radius/TWC and Anchor Bay Entertainment and running just 95 minutes -- hits DVD, Blu-ray and digital formats today, Tuesday, November 3, for purchase or rental, 

In Michael Imperioli's THE HUNGRY GHOSTS, East meets West--with pizzazz

An unusually fine actor for some 20 years, Michael Imperioli will likely be remembered as Christopher Moltisanti, one of The Sopranos' most indelible characters. (TrustMovies is more likely to remember him for Sweet Nothing.) In his first turn as writer and director of a full-length narrative film, it should probably surprise no one that the performances he elicits from his entire cast are beyond reproach. This is all to the good because the film itself,  which I think may be brilliant in its way -- a small, very specific way -- nonetheless takes some getting used to. An ensemble piece in which the characters' connections to each other become clear only slowly and haltingly, THE HUNGRY GHOSTS takes its time reaching a destination. Ah, but when it does finally coalesce, opening up and out into an entire universe, it may quietly, sweetly blow your mind.

One of the final notes I scribbled while watching Imperioli's  film was, Is this a commercial for Yoga? If so, I’m buying! (Particularly if I could have a teacher like Zohra Lampert.) Ms Lampert begins and ends the movie, and god, it's good to have her with us. Her slightly spacey demeanor that oddly manages to combine depth and gravity -- plus that wonderful voice -- has long made me sit up and take notice. She's just the beginning. I sat up and took notice of every actor here -- from Steven R. Schirripa (below, left), who plays a heavy-set radio-talk-show host with a gambling addiction and problems with wife (Sharon Angela, shown bottom, left) and son (newcomer Emory Cohen, below, right).

Also on board are Aunjanue Ellis (shown two photos below), a young woman who seems to be packing up and leaving, but for where? Following her is a fellow (Nick Sandow) with a philosophical bent, just out of de-tox, who wants to reconnect. Everyone here is searching for something -- connection, fulfillment -- usually in the wrong, if typical, places, including a hot, sad menage a trois (below). Yet more than simply being about fulfilling our needs, the film also tackles the subject of people who avoid their responsibilities to themselves and each other.

As writer and director Imperioli captures intense moments of need on every character's part, and his actors bite into their role with absolute ferocity and moment-to-moment reality that smacks of total commitment. This kind of thing can sometimes lead to a self-involved, emotional "whacking off" that will eventually deaden a movie.  That this does not occur here comes from the filmmaker's surprisingly keen sense of nuance and shading, and of his creation of some off-kilter happenings that, while they seem odd, are also quite real (again, I think, due to the willingness of his actors to jump in and sink or swim).

Imperioli's plot, if you can call it that (it's mostly just the connections these people possess), takes its time cementing. But this allows us to begin piecing together these connections, which also helps us to better understand the characters. Humor bubbles up at odd times ("I don't trust the woods," one fellow notes suspiciously, while taking a walk in the midst of them) and when a scene on a brownstone stoop goes over the top, the actors still manage to coral it and bring it home.

In the press materials for the movie (which I always read after viewing), we learn that the title comes from a Tibetan brand of hell in which souls with tiny mouths are afflicted with big (and insati-able) bellies, and that the storyline and characters reflect the zeitgeist of post-millennial New York City, in which "the desperation of the West smacks up against the religious teachings of the East." I'll buy that. It certainly gives focus to the somewhat fractured, but very inspired, feelings I had at the film's finale.  In fact, maybe I will take that yoga class. Ms Lampert, are you hosting?

The Hungry Ghosts opens today, October 1, appropriately in New York City at the Quad Cinema.  Further playdates will follow around the country, I hope. This one deserves to be seen and experienced.

All photos are from the film itself, except that of Mr. Imperioli, by Steve Granitz, courtesy of WireImage.