A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints (2006)

A film adaptation of Dito Montiel's memoir of the same name, A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints is a compelling, thoughtful movie based on Montiel's childhood growing up in 1980s Queens. A writer and director who understands his limitations, Montiel wisely left the acting to the pros. Shia LaBeouf (Holes) plays him during his adolescence, while Robert Downey Jr. (Good Night, and Good Luck, Wonder Boys) portrays the grown-up Dito. Never mind that there is absolutely no physical resemblance between the two actors; LaBeouf and Downey are so convincing in their roles it doesn't matter. Switching effortlessly from present day (where Dito is a successful author) to the past (where he is a tough little kid trying to figure out if there is life beyond New York), A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints tackles Dito's complicated relationship with his parents (Chazz Palminteri and Dianne Wiest), as well as the friends he left behind. Eric Roberts is magnificent in a small role as one of Dito's tough, childhood buddies. His powerful performance makes viewers remember there was a time when Roberts was better known for his acting skills than for being Julia's big brother. Montiel--a first-time filmmaker--won the Director's Award at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival for his autobiographical movie. Raw, gritty, and honest, Saints) makes a strong impact and leaves the viewer curious as to how the rest of Montiel's life will work out. --Jae-Ha Kim Amazon.com

Growing up in Queens

Sincere and heartbreaking story about four friends growing up in Queens. They go to school together, they spend time after school together, they protect each other. One of them, the main character Dito (portrayed by Shia B. as a teenager and R. Downey, Jr. as an adult) has complicated relationship with all of them. He feels loyalty to his freinds, but also realizes that he may be loosing his life to local thus if he stays around for a while. His relationship with his parents is a complicated one. His parents got him late in their lives and they are overly protective of him. They seek to be his friends, but Dito feels that all the love is smothering him more than helping him grow emotionally and spiritually. Dito's father loves him fiercely, but is it a jealous kind of love. His father is possesive and probably fearful of his own impending death (his health is frail). In an effort to keep his son close in order to ensure that there is someone taking care of him and his wife in their last days of their lives, he pushes his son away with his stubborness and inability to let go. Before long, Dito leaves East Coast for California where he spends another 20 years as a writer before coming back to Queens where memories of his childhood start to haunt him: his first girl crush, his friend duying accidentaly when he is hit by a train, another friend murdered by the local gang member, third friend drowning is drugs and alcohol in order to hide his own hopelessness and despair and and the last friend (played by fantasticly handsome and convincing Eric Roberts) is in jail after murdering a gang member who beat Dito with a baseball bat. All these people are tied together by the neighborhood they live in and never venture from (going to Manhattan is almost like taking a vacation to them). They do not know of any other world outside their own. They are also bound by the "old world" expectations where children's roles are defined from their birth to be a caregivers and safekeepers of their parents' old ages. When that conflicts with realities of our (american) culture, our own peronsonal needs and desires it is almost impossible to reconcile the two. Heartbreak is inevitable, but it is a kind of heartbreak that does nto erase the love. To the contrary, it seems to make it even stronger and more resiliant. June 25, 2008

can you say "daddy issues" ?

wow! Where to start ?? Umm...the writer and editor both deserve the one star rating. The editior seemed to try and fit everything he has seen in a lame movie before and cram it all in to here (typesetting narration, revealing the end before you know the beginning, charcters talk to the camera) and I guess the writer chose to make money off a movie with 'daddy doesn't love me' issues rather then shell out the $ to talk to a psychiatrist.
Roario dawson is billed as being in this movie yet she doesn't show up till the hour long mark and the movie ends about a half hour after that.
Robert Downey Jr was a very peculiar choice to play the 'grown up' kid. The two actors (young and old) look nothing alike.
The portrayal of women is absolutely cringe-worthy where sex comes first and love doesn't really have much to do with it. Just a bunch of foul-mouthed teens who look at each other like pieces of meat and make cat-calls. There seems to be a message of 'don't ever leave your family or else you are a traitor' and it seems extremely awkward that a parent would really want to cage (not literally) their child that way. I personally could not have a more Italian family oriented life and what was shown here just left me confused. The storyline went nowhere and certainly did not make me care about what was unfolding.
To show the writers block this had .... one of the main "plots" to this was that there was gang retaliation going on back and forth. Guess what for? Drugs? Guns? Pimps? Ho's? It was about SPRAYPAINTING!! That basically sums up the pace that this movie went at for me.
May 2, 2008

LIKE THE FILM'S CHARACTERS...THIS FILM GOES NOWHERE!

I like these types of films and this film has some excellent performances. Diane Wiest is fantastic in her role as the loving mother and everyone else is on cue in this depressing "coming of age" movie. Life in the innner city looks bleak and hopeless for the characters in this film. It's biggest problem is it really doesn't go anywhere. It's worth watching, but I have seen better films dealing with the same subject. It's a good movie, but not great. April 27, 2008

review

I received this product in a timely and efficient manner. It was in great condition. Thanks! April 25, 2008

Coming of Age in Queens

"A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints"

Coming of Age in Queens

Amos Lassen

"A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints" is a well crafted and gritty coming of age story that hits hard. Directed and written by Dito Montiel, it is homage to Queens (the borough) and it brings about tears and laughter. It is a moving film with a cast led by Shia LaBeouf is brilliant. Channing Tatum is breathtaking, Dianne Weist can do no wrong and Chaz Palminteri shines.
The story is quite simple. Dito, a writer living in Los Angeles, returns home to Astoria, Queens after having been away for 15 years. He has come back because his mother called him to tell him that his father was ill. From his arrival, we move back in time through flashbacks and we see him as he matures, we meet his parents and his four best friends. We walk with him and his girlfriend Laurie as he and his friends pass through those stages of family, sex, loyalty, coming of age, violence and wanting no longer to be where they are.
For a debut film, Montiel has arrived with a sublime flair. He gives an authentic and heartfelt look at growing up and in doing so he works his way into our hearts and consciousness. Issues of fatherly love and compassion are throughout the film.
This is not an easy film to watch both emotionally and visually. Some of the hand-held camerawork is a bit hard to follow but as the film shifts from past to present, we realize that this was done in order to show something about the nature of recollection and memory. It is rarely easy
to watch adolescents face their dangers and fears and here we have a boy who escapes them.
Dito is portrayed by Robert Downey Jr., as the adult) and by Shia LaBeouf (as the younger). They both catch the personality of the man (the director) beautifully. Dito is constantly trying for self-improvement and the film is, no doubt, the way the director chose to face himself. He does so with immense style by making the film that he should always be proud of.
February 4, 2008

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