Gravesend

Review of "Gravesend"

Quite gripping tale of 4 young men from the ghetto without a chance in life who find themselves in an uncontrollable situation after a careless prank goes totally wrong. From this moment on they are doomed, yet they desperately try and retrieve the situation the only way they know how - the criminal way, and this is when things spiral out of all proportion.

The raw talents and amateurism of this filmmaker really suit the mood of the whole film and its well worth checking out if you like similar themed movies.

Being a 16 year old "kid" and an aspiring filmmaker, I felt the need to add a comment about this movie. Despite most people who would say this movie is a waste of time, poorly acted, directed, filmed and it either dragging on, being too slow etc. I've always been able to appreciate the work behind making a movie, no matter how bad it is. That is why I rate Salvatore Stabile highly on his first film. The fact that he was 19-23 (not sure which exactly) years old and the supposed budget of $5000 (Although I highly doubt it) is really inspiring. Shot in doco-style camera work with 16mm film it really has a grittyness to it which really adds character to a movie like this. It's so un-hollywood, maybe I just have thing for amateur, low budget films but a film like this is truly something to proud of for Salvatore Stabile. I can understand that it may not be everybody's cup of tea but it is a great film, and deserves to be appreciated. God on you Sal, keep up the good work.

I love films like this. Pacy, lean and funny. It will no doubt draw fire for being a bit Scorcese-esque, and admittedly, the character Zane owes a lot to De Niro in Mean Streets, but in fact the film actually resembles L'Haine a lot more. The difficult customer scene is very funny, and the whole thing was neatly finished. Great stuff.

I can't believe the low rating this movie has received so far. It's a great description of life in an east coast city. The events evolve like a great tragedy... It's like a mix between Shakespeare and Cassavetes. The acting is top notch... no need to qualify it with "for unknowns"... The shot of the freeway bridge at the end reminds me a little of the end of "Over the Edge", another great modern tragedy. This is definitely not a suburban film, though, which may be why some people can't seem to connect.

Oh the Agony! The suffering I went through to watch this.. First off, way too much stupidity. I mean if I killed someone, I doubt I'm going waste time arguing and then spend all night driving around town with the dead body in my trunk. Jeez.. what were these people thinking. I think throughout the film we are supposed to care for these characters.. but the only thing I cared about was seeing the credits rolling.. and it seemed like forever before they finally did. I realize the filmmaker was only 19.. but jeez can't he come up with anything better than colorful four-letter adjectives. Also, some advice for his next film - invest in a tripod.