Rating: C+
Dir: Paul Morrissey
Star: Marília Pêra, Richard Ulacia, Linda Kerridge, Geraldine Smith
[22] This has the low-budget feel of something Abel Ferrara would do; grubby, down-beat New York locations populated by scummy characters dealing in copious quantities of drugs. It’s giving nothing away to say it all ends in tears. Alphabet City is the name of the area in question, where a range war is going on between two groups seeking to control the coke + heroin trade. The film centres on the La Punta family, ruled by a matriarch so desensitised to death that she happily plans funeral and christenings simultaneously. This performance, by Marilia Pera, drags the film up by its bootstraps; the rest of the actors largely fail to deliver identifiable characters, and often, intelligible dialogue. The other major thing you’ll take away is a firm resolve to drive speedily past Alphabet City, should you be in the neighbourhood.