City of Hope

City of Hope

1991 · 129 min · EN · 6.7 (43 votes)
Dir. John Sayles · Starring Vincent Spano, Tony Lo Bianco, Joe Morton, Jace Alexander, Todd Graff, Frankie Faison · Music Mason Daring

“Welcome to the American city. You buy your way in and you fight your way out. Who says it's a free country?”

Drama

This gritty inner-city film follows various people living in a troubled New Jersey setting, most notably Nick Rinaldi, a disillusioned contractor who has been helped along his whole life by his wealthy father. Other characters in this ensemble drama about urban conflict and corruption include Asteroid, an unstable homeless person, and Wynn, an idealistic young politician.

VIBE

A raw, unflinching look at urban decay and political corruption. It feels like a cold, hard dose of reality, exposing the underbelly of the American Dream with a cast of characters struggling against their circumstances.

grittybleakcynicalrealisticsteadysocial realismcharacter-driven dramaurban dramacorruptiondisillusionmenturban decayclass struggle
vietnam wardrug abusenew jerseypoliticsamerican way of lifeurban lifexenophobiakids
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