Brooklyn is center stage in the film The Narrows. The atmosphere of the city sets the tone for this crime, gangster drama. The film focuses on Mike Manadoro (Kevin Zegers), a 20 year old man who wants to get out of his neighborhood, but doesn’t have the money to do it. He has the talent as a photographer, but no money. He lives with his father (Vincent D’Onofrio), who is disabled. However, Mike goes behind his father’s back and works for a mobster named Tony so he can get the money to pay for a high profile university in Manhattan. His photos show talent and promise, and if Mike can deliver “packages” for Tony, then he has a chance to achieve his dream.
This is a nice gritty film about the paths you choose in life. Mike lives a life he wants to leave, but is such a struggle to get out of. Of course, mixing business with mobsters certainly won’t help. Mike and his father have had their differences and you can tell it on screen. Since Mike’s mother has passed away, things have not been the same. The film doesn’t go into the past, but it didn’t need to. It’s all there on the screen. Zegers does a good job in his role as Mike. Besides in Transamerica, I haven’t seen him do any dramatic acting. Now I know what you’re thinking. Who the hell is Kevin Zegers? Well he was the young boy in a little movie called Air Bud! But he’s grown up in this one and really pulls off portraying a struggling character.
The romance in the film between Mike and Kathy (Sophia Bush) adds some conflict to an already conflicting story. She does not understand where Mike comes from and what he has gotten himself into. Mike is torn between her and his father, and his dream of becoming a photographer. This story is full of struggles and the end lays it all out on the table. A road must be chosen and even some secrets are revealed. These characters must find a way out and they do. Now that doesn’t mean they get out alive.
Brandon Vick is a member of The Music City Film Critics’ Association, the resident film critic of the SoBros Network, and the star of The Vick’s Flicks Podcast. Follow him on Twitter @SirBrandonV and be sure to search #VicksFlicks for all of his latest movie reviews.
Check out the SoBros Shop. Become a Patron. Give us money for no reason. Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter @SoBrosNetwork. Watch on YouTube.
