City by the Sea (2002)

Director:

Michael Caton-Jones

Writers (WGA):

Mike McAlary (article)
Ken Hixon (screenplay)

Release Date:

6 September 2002 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

When you're searching for a killer... the last suspect you want to see is your son.

Plot:

Vincent Lamarca, whose father was executed for a 1950s kidnapping of a child, grew up to become a police officer, only to see his own son become a murderer.

Plot Keywords:

Beach | New York | New York City | Grandson | Police

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Robert De Niro	...	Vincent LaMarca
Frances McDormand	...	Michelle
James Franco	...	Joey
Eliza Dushku	...	Gina
William Forsythe	...	Spyder
Patti LuPone	...	Maggie (as Patti Lupone)
Anson Mount	...	Dave Simon
John Doman	...	Henderson
Brian Tarantina	...	Snake
Drena De Niro	...	Vanessa Hansen
Michael P. Moran	...	Herb
Nestor Serrano	...	Rossi
Matthew Cowles	...	Arnie
Linda Emond	...	Margery
Cyrus Farmer	...	Carl

Also Known As:

Mark of a Murderer (USA) (working title)
The Suspect (Philippines: English title)

MPAA:

Rated R for language, drug use and some violence.

Runtime:

108 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #38840) | Iceland:14 (original rating) | Iceland:16 (video rating) | Malaysia:18SG (uncut version) | Malaysia:U (cut version) | Portugal:M/12 (original rating) | Singapore:M18 | New Zealand:R16 | Argentina:13 | Australia:MA | Brazil:16 | Canada:14A | Finland:K-15 | Germany:12 | Norway:15 | Peru:14 | Philippines:R-13 | Spain:13 | UK:15 (original rating) | UK:18 (video rating) (2003) | Canada:A (Ontario)

Filming Locations:

Asbury Park, New Jersey, USA

Company:

Franchise Pictures

Trivia:

Robert De Niro personally had James Franco cast, after viewing his performance in James Dean (2001) (TV).

Goofs:

Continuity: When Joey and his Father are in the building surrounded by cops, Joey looks through a glass window pane which then disappears, reappears and is then broken out by Joey in consecutive shots.

Quotes:

Spyder: [to Gina at the drive-thru speaker] I'll have a bacon cheeseburger and a blowjob.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Film Geek (2005)

Soundtrack:

Red Sails In The Sunset

The "Good Bye" guy

"City by the Sea" is all about De Niro as a New York homicide detective who views the world as black and white and has trouble dealing with the grays of interpersonal relationships. Adrift between a broken home history, an ex-wife, a companion and bed mate (McDormand), and a adult son junkie (Franco), the aging cop protag finds that forging needed reconciliations is more difficult than busting the scumbags on his beat. A solid three star drama, "City by the Sea" is a must see for De Niro fans and a good watch for anyone into gritty dramas. (B+)