Once Upon a Time in Staten Island

With overwrought performances that border on melodrama, and a plot as generic as a bad 1980's teen comedy, "This is the Night" feels very much like it means something to the writer / director... But it won't have the same affect on anyone else. I didn't buy any of the plot points. They all feel wedged in. The enormous character swings are way too abrupt. This feels very much like a film-school sophomore's lazy screenplay, crammed in during finals week. D for effort.

I remember seeing Rocky III in the theater when I was ten. Let me tell you, it WAS a major event. It was sold at out and we convinced the theater to let us in so we actually stood up in the back of the theater to watch it. It was the only time I stood up in a theater and it was totally worth it. Which brings me to this film. It definitely brought up feelings of nostalgia and I love how it didn't flinch away from the way people talked to each other back then. It was a heartwarming coming of age story and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

No doubt in my mind this was a movie for only true Rocky fans. But having never seen even one of his movie this was not as special to me. Where the actor's in this movie good, hell yes! I might be the only one but going into this movie and seeing Blum's name on it I thought this would have some unnatural twist. I kept waiting and waiting and by the time the guy was yelling on the roof I was done with this movie.

Had they just focused on the family and maybe had way more interesting things going on this would have been a solid flick. I love Blum, so all this movie shows me is, as a producer he is not just limited to only horror. Although horror is what I love him for. This was a DRAMA nothing more or less.

A slow going drama with very little interesting things going on in it. It is worth your time if you just have nothing better to do. I also loved the LGBD pride aspect of this movie. I know this movie could have been more but for what it was worth it was an ok drama. Just don't expect a lot going into the movie like I did and you will not be disappointed.

Also, ppl putting 1's are just being plain hateful! This movie was AT LEAST half good so above 5 but below 9 would be an honest take on the movie.

The tone had me excited for another coming-of-age teen drama, centered in NYC; a real slice of life.

What I saw instead-right up until I turned it off-was a typical virtue-signaling Hollywood pander that tries to edit history. So many things were tweaked to reflect today's overly-progressive viewpoint. The casting is heinous, and the writing is not representative of how things were, but how some Millenial THINKS they were, or should have been.

Enough of Hollywood's revisionist and pandering faux-morality. This could have been a charming slice-of-life, but is just a flat, clichéd, inaccurate snooze fest.

Heartfelt 80s dramedy with the release of Rocky III at it's center. Multiple storylines are almost too much but the director makes them work. Watts and Cannavale give their usual solid performances but Frank Grillo shines. I have become very impressed with the way Grillo can make seemingly impossible acting tasks look believable and he really comes through again. Keep 'em coming Frank.