Really. We went to see Chop Shop over the weekend at Film Forum and came away remarkably impressed. The story is about a couple of kids living on their own and making their way in the big city, or more specifically an area of the city known as the Iron Triangle, in the shadow of Shea, where there are no streets, sewers, or schools, but an seemingly endless stream of cars coming in for repair.
It's a tribute in an odd way to one of Gotham's most ragged edges, a place that may be not so ragged too much longer but also to the city itself, which despite all its glamor and glitz is still pretty tough living for a lot of people.
One of the cooler things about the film is that director Ramin Bharani doesn't use actors. The leads in the movie are just schoolkids on the Lower East Side, and the guy who owns the chop shop actually owns the chop shop. He doesn't show the actors the script either, just telling them what the script says and letting them figure the rest out.
Anyway, it's only at Film Forum 'till Tues, so go go go!
-- David Freedlander