Under Hellgate Bridge (2001)
Runtime: 87 mins
Theatrical Release: May 11, 2001 Limited
Synopsis: Two years after he is released from a prison, reformed heroin addict Ryan (Michael Rodrick) returns to Astoria, Queens for the funeral of his youngest brother Jimmy, another junkie who died from a "hot shot" under the infamous Hellgate Bridge. Ryan discovers that his brother, Eddie (Brian... Two years after he is released from a prison, reformed heroin addict Ryan (Michael Rodrick) returns to Astoria, Queens for the funeral of his youngest brother Jimmy, another junkie who died from a "hot shot" under the infamous Hellgate Bridge. Ryan discovers that his brother, Eddie (Brian Vincent), is still using, and is trying to move into the business that killed Jimmy and put Ryan in jail. Adding to Ryan's pain, his ex-girlfriend Carla (Jordan Bayne), who set him up to go to jail, is now married to his adversary, small-time mobster Vincent (Jonathan LaPaglia). Watching Eddie going though the same torture that he once experienced, Ryan is faced with a dilemma: if he leaves, he won't be able to take care of Eddie, but if he stays, his rivalry with Vincent could destroy them all. Shot in the dark of bars, the dim twilight, and overcast greys of morning, UNDER HELLGATE BRIDGE lends the impression of a dying city, the death of family, and the end of a way of life. First-time director Michael Sergio has created a very personal film, wrought with the desperation and desolation of the Old West in contemporary New York. [More]
Genre: Dramas
Starring: Jonathan LaPaglia, Michael Rodrick, Jordan Bayne, Dominic Chianese, Vincent Pastore
DVD Info
Release:
Nov 12, 2002
DVD Features:
- Region 1
- Keep Case
- Widescreen
Audio:
- Dolby Digital 5.1 - English
Additional Release Material:
- Audio Commentary - 1. Michael Sergio - Director
- Trailer
Interactive Features:
- Interactive Menus
- Scene Selection
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Reviews
From start to finish, it feels like an amalgam of various other crime movies.
A hard-edged gangster revenge movie which suffers from a budget too small to enable it to rise to its rightful place as a major crime genre film.
It may not be as epochal a piece of work as Mean Streets, but packs what feels like a real-life punch none the less.
For an updated -- but not revisionist -- version of Dead End or Angels With Dirty Faces or even Mean Streets, you could do worse.
The performances are correspondingly overblown and the soundtrack inundated with grandiose choral music and mediocre hard rock.
Robotic acting and outtakes from the Stigmata soundtrack complement the perfunctory plot, while the dialogue indulges massive backstorytelling and desperate iteration.
Seems to be cut from the same cloth as almost every low-budget mobster film.


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