Steel City

Steel City is one of those low-budget movies that makes for satisfying Sundance fare despite lacking the necessary ingredients for broader box-office success. It's the story of a dysfunctional family in a small town in Illinois, centering around 20-year-old PJ (Tom Guiry), who is trying to hold his life together as his father goes to prison for his role in a fatal car accident. PJ is angry, bitter and confused. He can't hold a job or his temper. He resents his older brother Ben (Clayne Clawford), whose life is also unraveling from alcohol, selfishness and philandering. He's feeling alienated from his mother, who has moved in with a black cop and his son. And he tries desperately to be supportive to his father (John Heard), for reasons that gradually emerge in the movie. Finally he is connected to his Uncle Vic (Raymond J. Barry), who helps him get a job and attempts to mentor him.

All this may sound vaguely familiar, but director Brian Jun manages to develop the characters with honesty and compassion. By the end of the movie each character has worked out his redemption, and in the process created bonds of love and concern within the family.

These Steel City characters feel like real people. The writing is crisp, hard and direct. The casting is terrific and each performance believable. This family will grow on you, and you will find yourself rooting for them to do well, to make good decisions, and to find happiness.

Steel City is the story of a dysfunctional family working through the crisis of the father being jailed. The mother isn't present, although members of the extended family (uncles, etc.) play prominent roles.

In my humble opinion, the only reason this movie doesn't have a higher rating is that none of the characters are particularly sympathetic; there isn't a single one of them that you would invite over to your house. In fact, you might be best advised to call 911 the instant any of these characters showed up in your neighborhood.

That aside, the movie is enjoyable for the storyline, good acting, and good production values. The secret mentioned in the plot outline isn't such a big secret, don't look for a twist ending or suspense.

Watch it when you can't find what you were looking for and have to settle for what's left in the rental store. It makes a pleasant evening of movie watching without being great.

Superior performances are the hallmark of "Steel City," a moody, gritty, low-keyed drama set in the economically depressed area of the Upper Midwest. P.J. Lee (Tom Guiry) is a fitfully employed young man with an assortment of obstacles to overcome: his father's in jail on a vehicular manslaughter charge; his mom's re-married to a cop; his older brother's a philandering jerk whose wife walks out on him; and his girlfriend has a weight problem which makes P.J. reluctant to fully commit to her. He's also coping with the guilt of having been at least partially responsible for the fatal accident that his dad is claiming was all his fault.

Though most of the screen time is taken up with the travails that P.J. is facing and the growing up he is forced to do as a result, the movie's true emotional focus is on the lengths a largely absent father will go to in an effort to redeem himself in the eyes of his son - even if that means having to sacrifice his own freedom to bring that redemption about. As the film's writer and director, Brian Jun demonstrates a nice feel for the look and flavor of the movie's wintry locale and for the tempo and rhythm of the characters' lives.

"Steel City" is sure to get lost in the shuffle of bigger and grander independent and not-so-independent films out there, but the authentic performances - by Guiry, John Heard, Raymond J. Barry, Clayne Crawford, Laurie Metcalf ("Roseanne") and America Ferreira (virtually unrecognizable out of her Ugly Betty get-up) - and sturdy film-making make it a movie well worth checking out.

I thought that Brian Jun's "Steel City" ran a little long, but still came out worth seeing. Focusing on a young man (Tom Guiry) and his brother having to deal with their father's (John Heard) imprisonment, the movie probably could have developed America Ferrera's character further. Raymond J. Barry's character was, in my opinion, the best character in the movie; I interpreted him as a sort of glue binding the rest of the characters - and the story - together.

As I said earlier, the movie runs a little long. Not too long, but they probably could have trimmed at least a few minutes (or maybe I wouldn't think this had they developed America Ferrera's character further). But overall, I think that the movie is worth seeing, if only once.

I never intended to watch this and was only doing so with half an eye, but it gradually grew on me and got better.

These sad small towns exist everywhere - not only in America, and the people who live there are the same. Some of them are trapped and sink into their despair and darkness; but some make something of themselves and are able to either move on or live a full life exactly where they are. People are people everywhere and stories and people like these are everywhere.

Some of these characters were not particularly likeable, but then, who is to say.

I especially liked the music very much.