A perfect start from the developing director which shows how much talent he had which would show itself fuller in We Own The Night and later films. A melancholic, well acted crime drama (bar Tim Roth%u2019s strange accent), this is a thoughtful story which is matched by Gray being capable of creating striking images and flourishes.

A very solid and promising debut from James Gray who would become somewhat of an American auteur, a rare bird in his generation. He would revisit the subject of lower class New York Jews in his next films which got even better (particularly his late aughties' movies We Own the Night and Two Lovers). Gray did a good job casting Tim Roth here. The Brit is an expert tough guy and does the seedy Brooklyn accent effortlessly.