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Dom Robinson reviews 
- Cert:
- Cat.no: 23785 DVD
- Running time: 101 minutes
- Year: 2002
- Pressing: 2004
- Region(s): 2, PAL
- Chapters: 28 plus extras
- Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1
- Languages: English
- Subtitles: English for the hearing impaired
- Widescreen: 1.85:1
- 16:9-Enhanced: Yes
- Macrovision: Yes
- Disc Format: DVD 9
- Price: £15.99
- Extras: Deleted Scenes, Featurette, Audio commentary
Director:
- Jim Sheridan
(The Boxer, The Field, In America, In The Name of the Father, My Left Foot) )
Producers:
- Arthur Lappin and Jim Sheridan
Screenplay:
- Jim Sheridan, Naomi Sheridan and Kirsten Sheridan
Music :
- Gavin Friday and Maurice Seezer
Cast :
- Johnny: Paddy Considine
Sarah: Samantha Morton
Chrsty: Sarah Bolger
Ariel: Emma Bolger
Frankie: Ciaran Cronin
Mateo: Djimon Hounsou
Papo: Juan Hernandez
In America anything is possible and a few weird things can happen too.
That’s the impression I got as the film begins in 1983 when the Sullivans, an Irish immigrant family move to Manhattan to start a new life, with Johnny (Paddy Considine) trying to get a foothold in the acting business while trying to provide for his family, while his wife Sarah (the enchanting Samantha Morton, although I wish she’d grow her hair for a change) performs menial jobs to get by.
So, with that set up, you then begin to enjoy the fact that not an awful lot is due to actually happen in this film, such as when a comedic moment is brought about from an air-conditioning unit with one major flaw and the struggle to overcome that, plus a moment of tension brought about as the family try to win an ET toy at the local fair, and although it’s a cliche, I really hate to use the words “funny and touching” but for a time this film does exactly that.
Samantha Morton – grow your hair!
Most of the film is told through the eyes of Christy, the family’s elder daughter. She asks Frankie, the son of the family who died at an early age, for three wishes to get them through their initial time in America. Given that the film was dedicated to a “Frankie Sheridan”, I can only presume this fate was inflicted upon the lives of the director and his family.
Sadly, as the film goes on and impassioned anger is delivered by the main characters, this fails to come across like you’d expect and so it drifts on towards its eventual conclusion without direction, something that at first you don’t mind because you’re enjoying it as it finds its way, but halfway through you’re now expecting drama to carry the story along and it just doesn’t really come.
There’s a sub-plot thrown in to eek things out as they, at first, annoy neighbour and all-round weirdo Mateo (Djimon Hounsou), but then they take him into their hearts and the male willy-waving (not literally) between him and Johnny settles down things settle back into their rather dull rut.
It’s not the fault of the cast as they do their best with the material, but such a weak storyline doesn’t help and in the end you don’t really care what happens to the outcome of the key characters. Disappointing.
The Sullivans – not shy about their coconuts.
The film is presented in anamorphic 1.85:1 widescreen and has no problems getting across the bright streets of Manhattan as the family arrive, through to the grim apartment they rent before they tart it up. The sound is in Dolby Digital 5.1, but such a drama never makes particularly great use of this apart from a handful of minor ambient noises in the quietest moments.
The extras on this disc are far from anything to shout about: a few deleted scenes that add nothing to what you’ve already seen (12½ mins), a ‘making of’ (20 mins) that’s just a collection of clips interspersed by bog-standard pleasantries from the main cast and crew – and in both cases, the film clips are in letterbox 1.85:1 rather than anamorphic. Oh, and a director’s commentary, if that’s your bag.
The disc is also inflicted with a few piss-annoying trailers that you’re forced to sit through the second the disc boots up as if it was a rental title. However, at least with this disc you can fast-forward through them.
The film contains 28 chapters, subtitles are available in English and the main menu is animated and scored with a looped piece of music from the film.
PICTURE QUALITY
SOUND QUALITY
EXTRAS
OVERALL 
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.