Brooklyn Rules 2007

Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times: Brooklyn Rules doesn't exactly rule, but fans of the cast will find much to enjoy. Read more

David Edelstein, New York Magazine/Vulture: The mix of autobiographical texture and authentic mobster minutiae puts it over and then some. Read more

Ty Burr, Boston Globe: Too many cliches and not enough energy have come along for the ride. Read more

Kevin Crust, Los Angeles Times: Whether it's read as an exclamation of borough pride or as a set of unwritten laws governing its residents, the movie takes a well-trodden path in chronicling the lives of three Italian American friends, circa 1985. Read more

Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly: Years after Federal Hill (1994), director Michael Corrente is still doing low-budget Mean Streets knockoffs. Read more

Terry Lawson, Detroit Free Press: ...Winter's coming-of-age-in-the-1980s saga is content to rewalk the same mean streets, never ducking into one alley or back room we haven't visited. Read more

Jan Stuart, Newsday: If Winter had an extraordinary youth, it eludes Brooklyn Rules, another generic memory piece in which the now-successful writer takes us on a thinly veiled tour of the burger joints, bowling alleys and faces from his formative grunge years. Read more

Lisa Rose, Newark Star-Ledger: Once you get beyond the surface cliches, there's truth and sincerity in the dialogue and performances. Read more

Jack Mathews, New York Daily News: Though the three friends at the center of the story don't always look or sound smart, the movie does both. Read more

Lou Lumenick, New York Post: Vivid work by Alec Baldwin as a brutal Gambino crime family captain isn't enough to justify the sub-Scorsese stylings of Michael Corrente's Brooklyn Rules. Read more

Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle: Capturing Manhattan's essence is easy. But capturing life inside provincial New York City -- is something that eludes most filmmakers...And now add Brooklyn Rules to the short list of movies that get it right. Read more

Mark Holcomb, Time Out: Read more

Melissa Anderson, Time Out: Aggressively derivative. Read more

John Anderson, Variety: A sometimes funny, occasionally maudlin coming-of-age dramedy that wants to be Goodfellas but might have been called Mild in the Streets. Read more

Scott Foundas, Village Voice: As a longtime writer on The Sopranos, Terence Winter has steered clear of most of the hoary organized-crime cliches. Instead, he's poured them all into director Michael Corrente's anemic urban drama. Read more

Desson Thomson, Washington Post: Against all odds, it remains surprisingly watchable. Read more