Steel City (2006) User Reviews

Fatherhood, Remorse and Redemption

[claudio_carvalho · 7/10 · 11 November 2008]

After a tragic accident caused by the truck of the middle-aged Carl Lee (John Heard) where a woman dies with a crushed stern, he is arrested and sent to the county jail. His son PJ (Thomas Guiry), who works washing dishes and cleaning tables in a restaurant, feels lost, without financial support to keep his father's house, and is fired from his job and evicted from his house. His older brother Ben (Clayne Crawford) is a harder worker in a mill with a little daughter and cheats his wife with a bartender. Ben has open wounds in his relationship with his father and does not visit him in the jail. Carl's brother Vic Lee (Raymond J. Barry) helps PJ bringing him home but demanding discipline and respect. PJ's mother has just left her husband and is living with a policeman. On Christmas, the remorseful Carl forces PJ to keep an overwhelming secret that bonds them.

"Steel City" is a low-budget movie that seems to be a very personal family drama, supported by magnificent performances and solid, simple and credible screenplay about people not well succeeded – losers indeed. A father with remorse for leaving his family has a second chance to redeem himself in behalf of his young son and he sacrifices his freedom to compensate his absence in his childhood and adolescence. Therefore this is a beautiful tale of redemption but never being corny or commercial. On the contrary, most of the characters are not nice, and I dare to say that they are unpleasant with their rude behaviors. Nevertheless "Steel City" is a worthy movie. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Atrás das Grades" ("Behind Bars")

Better than you would think

[slake09 · 7/10 · 26 June 2008]

Steel City is the story of a dysfunctional family working through the crisis of the father being jailed. The mother isn't present, although members of the extended family (uncles, etc.) play prominent roles.

In my humble opinion, the only reason this movie doesn't have a higher rating is that none of the characters are particularly sympathetic; there isn't a single one of them that you would invite over to your house. In fact, you might be best advised to call 911 the instant any of these characters showed up in your neighborhood.

That aside, the movie is enjoyable for the storyline, good acting, and good production values. The secret mentioned in the plot outline isn't such a big secret, don't look for a twist ending or suspense.

Watch it when you can't find what you were looking for and have to settle for what's left in the rental store. It makes a pleasant evening of movie watching without being great.

The Characters Grow on You

[wmjaho · 6/10 · 28 January 2006]

Steel City is one of those low-budget movies that makes for satisfying Sundance fare despite lacking the necessary ingredients for broader box-office success. It's the story of a dysfunctional family in a small town in Illinois, centering around 20-year-old PJ (Tom Guiry), who is trying to hold his life together as his father goes to prison for his role in a fatal car accident. PJ is angry, bitter and confused. He can't hold a job or his temper. He resents his older brother Ben (Clayne Clawford), whose life is also unraveling from alcohol, selfishness and philandering. He's feeling alienated from his mother, who has moved in with a black cop and his son. And he tries desperately to be supportive to his father (John Heard), for reasons that gradually emerge in the movie. Finally he is connected to his Uncle Vic (Raymond J. Barry), who helps him get a job and attempts to mentor him.

All this may sound vaguely familiar, but director Brian Jun manages to develop the characters with honesty and compassion. By the end of the movie each character has worked out his redemption, and in the process created bonds of love and concern within the family.

These Steel City characters feel like real people. The writing is crisp, hard and direct. The casting is terrific and each performance believable. This family will grow on you, and you will find yourself rooting for them to do well, to make good decisions, and to find happiness.

I don't work for anything under $10 an hour . . .

[charlytully · 7/10 · 7 February 2009]

. . . as STEEL CITY's main character Paul Joseph "P.J." Lee (played by Thomas Guiry) informs his ex-Marine Uncle Vic (Raymond J. Barry) early on. This movie boils down to an eternally-ungrateful P.J. getting countless breaks from nearly everyone in his life, wrapping up with the most implausible outcome imaginable--an ironic close which will be troubling to any viewer who has given this film the slightest attention, unless they are a total cynic already. Salvaging a better-than-average 7-out-of-10 rating, however, are plausible acting performances from Guiry, Barry, John Heard as P.J.'s self-sacrificing dad Carl, America Ferrera as his ambitious girlfriend Amy, Laurie Metcalf as P.J.'s nurse mom Marianne, James McDaniel as P.J.'s cop step-dad Randall, and so on through the supporting cast. It's too bad the whole flick is set up for the "other shoe" to drop on P.J.--and it never does!

P.S.--To "From Granite City, IL" who starts off saying "I live in 'Steel City' . . ." It seems only fair that a "city" (that term seems to be used here somewhat loosely) should have just ONE natural resource or manufacturing nickname (and I somehow thought PITTSBURGH was "Steel City" already--what, with the Steelers and all). The "steel mill" shown in this movie looks like a steel mini-warehouse to anyone who has seen FLASHDANCE! To illustrate what I mean, I suppose someone once had an actual "rosebush" here where I live (maybe someone still does!). I know the Van Goghs down the street have a tulip bed . . . hmmmm--that must make as "Tulip City," as well. But wait--at the edge of "town" the Greens' farm has that pumpkin patch; come October people come from as far away as Oil City to buy one. So we're "Pumpkin City," too. Furthermore, most near every home here has trees in the front AND backyards: we could be "Tree City." To sum up: If Granite City is in the top three towns nationwide for either granite or steel, better take that nickname. If not, "Podunk's" still available.

Pictures of Home

[UnionFighterUnionVoter · 6/10 · 25 September 2008]

This movie caught my eye because I live in a "Steel City"...Granite City, IL. Although the IMDb didn't list it among the original photography sites, many of the scenes that got my attention were from my home town.

The shots in Scene 6 on the DVD with the Petri's Cafe and United Steelworkers Local 1063 are places I have driven past on the way to work for the last 36 years. The shots of the large industrial smokestacks at the end of the block are the Granite City Steel works of US Steel. A shot down State St. includes the Commercial Shoe Shop. The shot of the old downtown area that includes the painted advertisement was interesting...the building has been torn down since this film was made.

My son is a police officer and was interested to hear about the inclusion of his town (East Alton, IL) in the film.

Gritty, greasy, noisy, everything you might imagine two steel towns to be (Alton and Granite City, IL). But I love them both.

steel wall

[lee_eisenberg · 6/10 · 28 May 2008]

I thought that Brian Jun's "Steel City" ran a little long, but still came out worth seeing. Focusing on a young man (Tom Guiry) and his brother having to deal with their father's (John Heard) imprisonment, the movie probably could have developed America Ferrera's character further. Raymond J. Barry's character was, in my opinion, the best character in the movie; I interpreted him as a sort of glue binding the rest of the characters - and the story - together.

As I said earlier, the movie runs a little long. Not too long, but they probably could have trimmed at least a few minutes (or maybe I wouldn't think this had they developed America Ferrera's character further). But overall, I think that the movie is worth seeing, if only once.

Bleak Docudrama Where Everyone Gets Their Monologue

[rddj05 · 3/10 · 14 February 2010]

Well, the critics loved it, and yes, it's got that certain verisimilitude that the hundreds of gritty, bleak, docudramas have had before it. And yet, there's not a single thing about this film that makes you want to keep watching.

It's got the traditional aspects; the gray/blue washed out color palette, the going-nowhere, stuck in a dead end job lead character, the "I knew a guy just like that in my home town" older brother, that these films always seem to have. The film focuses on endlessly bleak subject matter that it just can't seem to rise above.

The cast of characters are fairly stock, and not particularly interesting, and are the usual denizens of working-class middle America. However, America Ferrera does stand out in a relatively small and somewhat thankless role. Screenwriters write monologues to attract name-talent to their projects, but after awhile the endless sloppy exposition just becomes too painful to listen to (Note: if your characters are launching into "Remember whens.." in every other scene, your in dangerous territory.)

The lead actor does a decent job, but isn't a particularly interesting to watch, and the setting created certainly isn't much more interesting to look at. In the end, you just feel as if the actors have nowhere to go with this script, but they will surely all have a few scenes for their personal reels. There's nothing here that couldn't have been handled just as well in a documentary. There isn't much of a story here, but the events are more or less predictable, with the exception of an especially improbable "plot" twist two-thirds through the film. No one really seems to want anything, except maybe to get through another day. And as the viewer, you find yourself just trying to get to the end of the film.

great performances and a heartfelt story

[mistertopps · 10/10 · 21 January 2006]

I can't remember seeing such a heartfelt depiction of blue collar America since The Last Picture Show. It's a story that spoke very personally to me-- a very simple story about fathers and sons. And the crumbling life of one young man, dealing with his father in jail.

And while the plot of the movie is very simple, the emotions within are complex, and played with such sincerity. From the opening shot Tom Guiry delivers such a great performance; watching the movie I couldn't help but think about all the people I know from my small hometown, who are just like him.

The whole film, in the dialogue and casting, all just felt incredibly natural. And the film never goes for any forced or cheap dramatic moments. The cast of the whole family-- they all LOOKED like they could related as well, which is one of my pet peeves when watching a film.

It made me think about my own family; my relationship to my own father. And the sacrifices that people make for each other-- even though they may not like each other, just because they are tied by blood.

If you're looking for the next hippest flashy film, this is by far not that. If you're looking for an honest emotional experience that hits close to the bone, go see Steel City. I can only hope it comes out in my town so that I can take my father to see it.

simple but affecting working-class drama

[Buddy-51 · 7/10 · 6 June 2010]

Superior performances are the hallmark of "Steel City," a moody, gritty, low-keyed drama set in the economically depressed area of the Upper Midwest. P.J. Lee (Tom Guiry) is a fitfully employed young man with an assortment of obstacles to overcome: his father's in jail on a vehicular manslaughter charge; his mom's re-married to a cop; his older brother's a philandering jerk whose wife walks out on him; and his girlfriend has a weight problem which makes P.J. reluctant to fully commit to her. He's also coping with the guilt of having been at least partially responsible for the fatal accident that his dad is claiming was all his fault.

Though most of the screen time is taken up with the travails that P.J. is facing and the growing up he is forced to do as a result, the movie's true emotional focus is on the lengths a largely absent father will go to in an effort to redeem himself in the eyes of his son - even if that means having to sacrifice his own freedom to bring that redemption about. As the film's writer and director, Brian Jun demonstrates a nice feel for the look and flavor of the movie's wintry locale and for the tempo and rhythm of the characters' lives.

"Steel City" is sure to get lost in the shuffle of bigger and grander independent and not-so-independent films out there, but the authentic performances - by Guiry, John Heard, Raymond J. Barry, Clayne Crawford, Laurie Metcalf ("Roseanne") and America Ferreira (virtually unrecognizable out of her Ugly Betty get-up) - and sturdy film-making make it a movie well worth checking out.

Well Done

[armstrong-charlie1 · 10/10 · 31 July 2012]

What a great story and an exceptional delivery by the actors. What drew me in was the similarity between the location in Alton and my hometown. I was lucky to get out when I did even after the problems I had with the law. Some friends and family were not so lucky. I have known all these characters and I am probably one or two of them myself although I strive to be more than the environment I grew up in. Nevertheless this film brought me home and gave me perspective. I sometimes wonder who that person was making all those 'questionable' decisions.Thank God I got away. Again, thanks to all the actors and the writer for the journey home and the safe return to my blessed life today. -Charlie

Worth It

[MikeyB1793 · 7/10 · 9 May 2009]

This is worth it. If you like a movie with good dialogue and real character interactions then this is for you. The characters are not contrived and unlike a lot of movies this one gets better as it moves along. It's family based (but it's not a Disney family) – father and sons, with girlfriends and ex-girlfriends. Also the movie doesn't lose itself in aimless psychological meanderings.

Like most families there are things that are kept hidden – but it's the rivalries and conflicts that come out best in this movie. Although I did like the reconciliations at the end of the movie, perhaps it was a little too smooth?

achy breaky

[wrigco · 7/10 · 5 September 2023]

I never intended to watch this and was only doing so with half an eye, but it gradually grew on me and got better.

These sad small towns exist everywhere - not only in America, and the people who live there are the same. Some of them are trapped and sink into their despair and darkness; but some make something of themselves and are able to either move on or live a full life exactly where they are. People are people everywhere and stories and people like these are everywhere.

Some of these characters were not particularly likeable, but then, who is to say.

I especially liked the music very much.

Family Trials and Tribulations

[elsenborn07 · 9/10 · 3 July 2009]

Wow! If you want a movie with realistic characters and stellar performances, this is it. No special effects, no car chases, just ordinary people with extraordinary problems. John Heard is spectacularly believable! As a father, he has failed his sons, but now tries for redemption. Raymond Barry is terrific also as Uncle Vic who has seen his share of hard times as well. Young Tom Guiry must grow up with a dark secret, but is able to do so in a way that makes his Dad proud. Excellent acting! Older brother Clayne Crawford (reminds me of Emile Hirsch) seems bent on repeating his father's mistakes. The women all play minor roles, with America Ferrara as the young brother's romantic interest in sharp contrast to her TV stuff.

Brilliant, Springsteen style indie drama

[NateWatchesCoolMovies · 29 December 2017]

Brian Jun's Steel City is a fantastic, little heard of indie rust belt drama that deals in choices, consequences, regrets and what it takes to heal, if possible. In the heartlands, a young working class man (Tom Guiry) struggles with pretty much every aspect of his life. His father (an understated John Heard) has been recently incarcerated, and it's tearing him apart, as well as his family. His older brother (Clayne Crawford) is a hotheaded mess. He finds solace when his uncle Vic (Raymond J. Barry, superb) offers him work and sobering life advice in equal doses. He meets a wonderful girl played by America Ferrera, and gradually, bit by bit, his story hits an upswing. This is a small story, revolving around a minuscule faction of the big picture, but that's all it is anyways, thousands of lives unfolding on personal scale, adding up to this mosaic we call humanity. Life goes on for him, and the film is but a small window into one transitionary chapter of his life. Guiry is great, but Ferrera is magic as the kind of girl anyone could only hope to end up with. Barry gives one of the most soulful turns of his storied career as the kind of no nonsense mentor who cares a lot more than is visible behind all that gruff. The kind of life affirming story that finds hope in the oddest of places.