City Island

Director: Raymond De Felitta 100 minutes. Rated: PG-13

Film Synopsis

Starring Andy Garcia, Julianna Margulies, Steven Strait, Emily Mortimer, and Alan Arkin

Set in a quaint fishing community on the outskirts of New York City, City Island is a hilarious and touching tale about a family whose comfortable co-existence is upended by surprising revelations of past secrets and present day lies. Vince Rizzo is a lifelong resident of the tiny, tradition-steeped Bronx enclave of City Island. A family man who makes his living as a corrections officer, Vince longs to become an actor. Ashamed to admit his aspirations to his family, Vince would rather let his fiery wife Joyce believe his weekly poker games are a cover for an extramarital affair than admit he's secretly taking acting classes in Manhattan. When Vince is asked to reveal his biggest secret in class, he inadvertently sets off a chaotic chain of events that turns his mundane suburban life upside down. Inspired by the exercise, he decides to bring his long-lost ex-con son Tony home to meet the family, and it soon becomes clear that everyone—including his college student daughter, teenaged son Vinnie, Jr., charismatic acting partner and drama coach— has something to hide. A perfect storm of deception, half truths and confusion makes Vince and his family members realize that the truth may not set them free, but it is easier to keep track of than all their well-intentioned white lies. 

"The ensemble cast is strong. At its silliest comic moments it has a sitcom flavor, but the overall effect is gently amusing." Claudia Puig, USA Today
 
"A warmly hilarious movie about family members and their secret hearts." Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

"You needn't have colorful Italian relatives, like myself, to enjoy this boisterous and warm-hearted film, which sidesteps cliche while embracing the hope and love in loony dysfunctional families everywhere." Amy Biancolli, San Francisco Chronicle