City by the Sea

Review by Clint Morris

And you think your life is the pits – consider for a moment the daily chore of being New York Police detective Vincent LaMarca.

In his younger years he lived through the pain of having his murderous father executed, his own marriage went bust thanks to a random act of violence and his son is more troubled than one of Nurse Ratchet’s best.

And, on top of that, the same sibling has also just become prime suspect No.1 in a high-profile murder case, which, wouldn’t you know it, is being overseen by his estranged father...

Robert De Niro slips on the slippers of a familiar role – that of a grizzled semi-retired cop. When LaMarca discovers his son, Joey (James Franco of Spider-man fame) is the prime suspect in a slaying – the Alka-Seltzer couldn’t have come any sooner.

Naturally, Joey isn’t the homicidal thug everyone thought he was – he just has to get over his grudge with his father so that someone other than pops gets to hear the truth.

If City by the Sea proves anything it’s that Robert De Niro can still be engrossing, even in the most of middling of films.

To it’s credit City by the Sea isn’t a complete loss – it’s got some attractive performances. Worthy of mention in addition to the leads are Eliza Dushku as Joey’s wife and mother of his child, and Frances McDormand as the woman downstairs whom LaMarca has formed an atypical relationship with. Also worth mention are the captivating themes and engaging scenes between father and son towards the films finale.

Unfortunately though, there’s a lot not right here. De Niro, as good as he may be, isn’t stretching his acting muscles too much at all – and most of the dialogue and character motivations he has to work with might be just as well stamped with a big "cliché" on them.

What’s intriguing is that the film is actually based on a true story and to turn something as mesmerising as that and transform it into a conventional cop thriller is a crime in itself.

In beefing up the rehash, and dwindling the emotional correlation between central characters, director Michael Caton-Jones turns what could have been a gripping piece of film into nothing better than a worthwhile video rental.

3 out of 5

City by the Sea
Australian release: Thursday February 6
Cast: Robert De Niro, Frances McDormand, James Franco, Eliza Dushku, William Forsythe, George Dzunda, Patti Lupone.
Director: Michael Caton-Jones.
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