Plot

A paroled murderer returns to the Staten Island home of his youth, where a poignant friendship blossoms with the restrained wife of his temperamental-- and jealous-- brother.

Six years ago Joey's life changed totally. A shop owner who lay in a pool of blood claimed that Joey was the perpetrator. Now the time is served and Joey has scars on both his body and his soul. He is determined to never go back to prison. He seeks his elder brother Tommy who has begun dealing drugs and is now married to a beautiful blonde named Lorraine. She is at first sceptical about Joey staying there, but soon they develop a special relationship.—Fredrik Klasson <fredrik.klasson@boras.mail.telia.com>

Twelve years after his shattering debut Combat Shock (1984), writer/director Buddy Giovinazzo again rocked audiences with this explosive drama featuring "an authentic whiff of the sunny, slummy streets of Staten Island" (Time Out) and "a formidable trio of great performances" (The Guardian): Academy Award nominee Tim Roth "delivers an astonishing performance" (Premiere) as a mentally impaired man released from six years in prison to live with his small-time drug dealer brother (James Russo), his stripper sister-in-law (Deborah Kara Unger) and the dark family secrets that threaten to destroy them all.