City by the Sea Movie Review 2002

Pitch-black drama starring De Niro as NYC homicide detective La Marca, an absentee father trying to find his son Joey (Franco), a junkie on the lam for murder. Though he's not exactly a model son, La Marco is convinced Joey is not the perp who popped a loathsome drug dealer. Events force him to revisit the title's run-down Long Island city, where he must confront his bitter ex (LuPone) and the troubled past he fled 14 years ago. McDormand appears as La Marca's trusty sometime-girlfriend. Suffers from overwrought, lengthy exposition, mostly via De Niro (not exactly his specialty). Overacting only exposes a depressing, overcooked script. Loosely based on a true story.

Distribution

Warner Home Video, Inc., 5775 Linder Canyon Rd., Westlake Village, CA 91362, URL: http://whv.warnerbros.com, Remarks: Does not handle retail queries from consumers; contact your local video distributor.

Available on VHS, DVD
Running time 108 minutes.
Originally from United States.

Cast and Crew

Genres

Bad Dads, Homicide, New York, New York, Police Detectives, Divorce, True Crime, Adapted from an Article, Drug Use & Abuse

Screenplay

Ken Hixon

Cast

Robert De Niro, James Franco, Frances McDormand, Eliza Dushku, William Forsythe, George Dzundza, Patti LuPone, Anson Mount, John Doman, Brian Tarantina, Nestor Serrano, Leo Burmester

Cinematography

Karl Walter Lindenlaub

Director

Michael Caton-Jones

Music

John Murphy

Other

Tom Nelson, Jason Alexander, Don Fleming, Jim Clark, Patricia Woodbridge, Richard Owings, Jane Musky

Producer

Brad Grey, Elie Samaha, Michael Caton-Jones, Matthew Baer, Franchise Pictures, Warner Bros.