This film must have gone directly to cable. It's a credit to the director and writer of "The Best Thief in the World" to have enticed such talent as Mary Louise Parker, Audra McDonald, Lois Smith and David Warshofsky to appear in it.
If you haven't seen the film, please stop reading.
We meet young Izzy sitting on the ledge of an apartment building in Upper Manhattan. He appears to be trying to jump. We don't know anything of what will be revealed later, so we are not prepared to see this little boy break into apartments. Izzy is a disturbed child growing up too quickly in a hostile environment. His own life has been shattered by the stroke his father has suffered and has him bound into a wheel chair.
In a way, this is Izzy's way to escape his lot in life. By going into other people's apartments, Izzy is venting his frustrations for what life has given him and his family. He feels empowered and invincible; he can pull all those stunts and never be caught, or so he thinks. Izzy is hanging out with a rough group of children. All what this little boy wants, and never verbalizes, is that he wants to get out of the apartment where his father is a sad reminder of what his life has turned out to be. When Izzy discovers the money hidden in a hollowed bible, instead of stealing it, he just scatters the bills all over the house. In his childish mind he is telling the dwellers of the house they are vulnerable to having their homes broken into.
Sue, his mother, on the other hand, is trying to cope with the collapse of her life. She has to face reality because Paul, her husband will probably will not be able to earn a living and support his family anymore. Sue has no clue what Izzy is doing because she is too preoccupied about how to make ends meet.
The director has created a sort of Greek chorus showing two young black boys rapping 'gangsta rap' which is shocking. We watch in disbelief how they utter all kinds of profanities right at us, maybe to let us know that what we are seeing is nothing in comparison with what ghetto children have to face on a daily basis.
This is a disturbing movie, but it has its rewards because of what Mr. Kornbluth has been able to get from his talented cast. Michael Silverman makes an impressive Izzy. It's impossible to take one's eyes from this tiny actor; he holds his own playing opposite more experienced and established actors. Mary Louise Parker's portrayal of Sue is a study in how a person can be defeated despite of being a good person. Ms. Parker is always a joy to watch. Audra McDonald, Lois Smith and David Warshofsky are all excellent in their roles.
We look forward to future films by director Jacob Kornbluth
