This is an intriguing movie. The cast is mainly budding superstars. Their performances here are in keeping with their march up the ladder to A-list status. Tim Robbins especially connects with an ex-ruffian that has found his conscience. He wants in to a trip to Mississippi, to join MLK's freedom fighters. His explanation to a Malcom X type recruiter in Harlem, is heartfelt and well delivered. The rest perform their quirky roles well, thru some very quirky situations. The movie is very..... quirky.

But....the writer, who went on to Oscar consideration later in life, has really stretched stuff to fit the plot. The mood change is radical, sub-plots are diverting, but unnecessary. And the worst to me was Jodie being "slugged" and knocked out. She remains knocked out while, carried from the subway, a car theft, a police shootout, a car crash, a 3rd floor Mom/Son confrontation, a climb to a rooftop and a 3 way struggle on the roof. Then she wakes up, reasonably clear headed!?!?! Hmmm! Too much for me. The "inept" police approach was good comedy and again, the cast showed the promise of bigger things to come!! Worth a watch! (in fact, watch the credits roll for a laugh out loud moment!)

It's 1964 The Bronx. Violent Heinz (John Turturro) returns to his neighborhood after getting out of prison for an attempted rape of Linda (Jodie Foster). Harry (Tim Robbins) rescued Linda the first time but has turn pacifist since then. Somebody shoots a teacher with an arrow. Castro and Willie are two kids blowing up a store sign with cherry bombs. They pick up Melanie and Brita who are out of it from sniffing glue. Heinz is after Linda again thinking he's in love with her. Jamie would like to be her boyfriend who protects her.

This movie is split in two. Turturro, Foster and Robbins inhabit one half. Turturro is great as the disturbed rapist. The penguins are weird. The acting is good but the script meanders a bit with a lot of strange turns. The other half has four lesser known actors. The girls are funny. It's odd that it seems to float on the surface of the movie without connecting to the other half. I do find the unknown actors' story interesting especially the elevator scene. I kept wondering what that story has to do with anything. The final reveal satisfied me to some extent. I wish it could have made more connections earlier in the movie.

The kind of film that doesn't get made anymore in Hollywood. Original story, great atmosphere, wonderful acting. A somewhat quirky but still powerful human drama. Somehow, everything just fits in this film. Given the cast, it's hard to believe it is so little known. One to be re-discovered (hopefully). 8 stars out of 10.

In case you're interested in more underrated masterpieces, here's some of my favorites:

imdb.com/list/ls070242495