The Deli

An A Class Cast in a B Class Movie. The Deli tries to be like Clerks or Smoke and fails. For starters, half this movie is just for laughs. No real story, no plot or moral, just a laugh or two. The other half is decent, with good acting, a good storyline, etc. If they had to do it all over again, they should edit 45 minutes of the movie and made it into a short film. That way, the Deli could have won awards for a 3mm short comedy. Instead, the Deli is a straight to video release with an amazing Italian cast and a terrible story. PS....does anybody relate, if not care about the main characters? Gamblers without any shame of destroying their lives in order to win on a basketball game. It's one thing to write a comedy, but the ending makes the audience lose interest in any of the characters and treat the Deli like a "half-baked" comedy...with a great cast of actors.

A messy movie with the occasional unnecessary scene that gos nowhere and appears to have nothing to do with the plot. One of the most annoying films I have seen in years. I guffawed once so I guess it gets one star. Truly arduous viewing!

I understand that back then, this may have felt like just another one of those. One that tries to capture the feeling of movies like Smoke/Blue in the Face and so forth. But watching this with years gone by, the perspective helps the movie. I'd go as far as to say that it aged quite well overall.

The casting is amazing (I'm guessing a lot of favors got called in) and the story is alright overall, while not being anything special at all. It is about the interactions of the characters it is about "episodes" in life or the store. Again that may not appeal to you specifically, but that doesn't make this a bad movie - and vice versa. Decent enough for those interested in movies like this

Just purchased the Special Edition DVD with the Commentary and Deleted Scenes (which I thought some should have been left in the film). The director and actors on the commentary stated that even children enjoyed the film. Well, let me tell you my 8 year old daughter started to watch it with me during the Pinky/Mattarazzo scenes !! She was laughing. Anyway, a great talented cast that knew how to act natural contributed to an authentic film about a typical ethnic New York neighborhood. Complimenti ! Bellissimo film ! Established character actors such as Tony Sirico, Burt Young, Vincent Pastore, Frank Vincent bring an authenticity to the film which makes the viewers literally feel that they are right there on location in a close knit neighborhood. Even the great Judith Malina from the theater contributes in her portrayal as Mrs. Amico. This film should be viewed by any film lover as it is a light hearted comedy about any given day in a NY quarter.

Very funny, if slightly longish, look at odd-balls somewhere in darkest, ethnickest New York. Some of the jokes don't work, but if you don't like one, there's another along in 30 seconds and that's sure to be a pleaser. Any film that has Iman demanding an avocado, no pit (she's off pastrami) is worth one's time.