Steineded How sad is this?

Comwayon A Disappointing Continuation

FirstWitch A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

Bob This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

george.schmidt TWO FAMILY HOUSE (2000) *** Michael Rispoli, Kelly Macdonald, Katherine Narducci, Kevin Conway, Matt Servitto, Michele Santopietro, Louis Guss, Rosemary DeAngelis, Anthony Arkin, Saul Stein, Vincent Pastore, John Pizzarelli. Rookie filmmaker Raymond De Felitta based this semi-autobiographical nostalgic romantic drama set in Staten Island circa 1956 on his beloved and well-intentioned late uncle with Rispoli as a working stiff who dreams of opening his own bar to sing in with no help from his totally unsupportive wife Narducci sending him into the unlikely arms of the unwed Irish mother of a biracial baby (the very pretty Macdonald) who is a tenant in their recently bought household.Rispoli gives a heart-felt performance that echoes Jackie Gleason as a beaten upon husband who just wants something better and the rest of the ensemble adds some color to what could have been a retread of 'Moonstruck', its distant third cousin in theory.Wonderful period piece and a gem of a sleeper.

bobbobwhite I enjoyed this sensitive indy film about suburban NYC class, culture and race conflict much more than I thought I would, as its underlying goodness of heart won me over by the end. It freshly and uniquely tells the well-used old story that dreams can come true if you believe in them and yourself enough, work long and hard enough, and let the ignorant things go that are holding you back from success.It showed that most people turn out pretty much the same if raised the same but can change for the better if they want to bad enough and are pained enough by their old life, and can end up caring about loyalty, love, and family just about the same as everyone else can with the best of intentions, even if they didn't know it at first.Not just a terrific film, but a good morality story for us all.

kayfabe The most wonderful thing about nostalgia, is the pathos. I didn't watch this film with the belief that "This was the way things were"--rather, I enjoyed the story of Everyman: The wide eyed dreamer with little chance of success. A man whose comfort zone included failure-he was happy with: "I could have been..." I like misty-eyed forays into Post War America- my childhood was directly shaped by this era. I realize that people were only so different, but the "way of life" was drastically different- Maybe thats what makes nostalgia so attractive: The loss of youth. At one time small stories on film were common-nowadays we only get to see them on the indy film award circuit. Unfortunately that in itself has come to imply "Great Film"...How about "good film". Would people then watch it to enjoy, instead of honor?

wildgoose77 I enjoyed this film overall. The cast turns in some outstanding performances, without a doubt the film's greatest strength. My problems with the film had more to do with the argument being made. Buddy Visalo, an Italian-American man with an entrepreneurial fire burning in his soul, just can't seem to make any of his business ventures pan out. Complicating matters is his wife, Estelle, who wants him to cease these hair-brained schemes and get a good, dependable job that will support a nice house and a family. So you have an otherwise happy couple who just can't give each other what they need most in life. She needs a husband who can be a dependable provider, he needs a wife who will always believe in him and support his goals. The film is clearly sympathetic to the goal-oriented male, expounding the virtues of always striving for success and never giving up no matter how crazy your idea may seem to others. I left the theatre wondering how the story would have panned out if it had been directed by a woman, or for that matter, a mother.Grade: B