A New York Heartbeat (2013)

A New York Heartbeat: Directed by Tjardus Greidanus. With Escher Holloway, Rachel Brosnahan, Eric Roberts, Jack Donner. Spider, a young gang leader, gets in over his head when he robs a notorious gangster. On the run, he’s taken in by a sheltered young woman and her reclusive uncle, a legendary mobster gunned down by the same gangster now pursuing Spider.

“This is a good movie. I would rather have a movie with loads of suspense and few special effects like this movie; than a movie with great special effects and no suspense. This movie shows that a low budget can be to the benefit of a film. These gun laden movies tend to be formulaic in many respects but there is enough here to keep you watching with empathy for the characters until the end. There are a lot of good elements in u0026quot;A New York Heartbeatu0026quot;. I like the credible evocation of the era although I am sure you could find flaws if you looked hard. I liked the slangy throwaway quips of the era e.g. u0026quot;snazzyu0026quot; and u0026quot;foxy chicksu0026quot; (u0026quot;wait around a dark corner and drill himu0026quot;) and the way the slang was delivered. I liked the line u0026quot;if a fellah does some listening he learns thingsu0026quot;. So it was a very good screenplay in my humble opinion. I liked the muted evocative trumpet; made me feel kind of blue and was not overdone. I liked the little things like when the birds flew past as Spider and Tamara were talking. It was flock of them which was a common urban sight in past decades. And at certain points, a few birds would fly past to maintain the special ambiance of the film. The movie started well and hooked you in with immediate suspense with the guys swigging from a brown-paper covered bottle of booze. That was common as I remember in the 60u0026#39;s (I am quite old). Young folks of nowadays would not know about such small things as booze bottles covered with brown paper (maybe). But it lent credibility for me who does remember a less sophisticated texting-free era. This movie is convincing and relies on good acting and plot tension. But for a few holes that I thought I perceived in the plot I would have given it an 8. Probably 7 u0026amp; 1/2 would be my real assessment. This is a very entertaining movie but possibly a few too many gun-solutions for my personal taste. The great thing was the unrelenting suspense and the affection you feel for the characters. The acting is good because you donu0026#39;t notice that it is good. And isnu0026#39;t that what we should aim for?”