User Reviews

I'm a long time fan of Tim Roth, who doesn't do nearly as much as I'd like him to, these days. The other British stalwart in this, the equally excellent Vanessa Redgrave was another point of interest for me.

There's a real brutal efficiency to this film that makes it unlikeable but also demands respect and our attention. Roth is the roving assassin who is forced to do his next job in his old neighbourhood and that means getting reacquainted with his family: dying Mum (Redgrave), hateful and abusive Father (Maximilian Spiel), as well as impressionable younger brother (Edward Furlong). 24 year old débutant director James Gray comes up with - and scripts - a surprisingly mature piece of crime cinema that is both poignant, moving and shocking.

To my mind, the violence should rate the film at 18, not 15; the cold- blooded unfeeling of Roth's callous and unflinching "jobs" don't even give us time for any bad taste to form in our mouths. I can see that some would find this a barrier to their enjoyment in what is mostly a character- driven drama of some depth. The winter-set scenes of back street Brooklyn are chillingly authentic and bleak and these help remind us of the family's Russian roots. The father, a devout Jew, who's also having an affair often speaks Russian still, hanging to his identity the best he can, in an alienating, changing and disintegrating world.

There are also some tender moments between assassin son and brain-tumour suffering mother, and of him lovemaking with his girlfriend, who wants to try to understand him and his motives. His younger brother tries to keep his own feet on the ground, whilst his sibling gradually but surely steals his innocence.

Yes, it is sad - and savage but strangely rewarding, too.

Little Odessa, also release under the title "Contract killer" is a very effectively and realistically told mobster movie, from the Russian community. It's a take on the prodigal son, here as a cold contract killer. A great watch for connoisseurs of films, and mobster film in particular.

The movie stands out for great acting, directing and photography, being James Gray directorial debut. Music is excellent as well. The actors are making this a great watch. The whole film is stuffed with fabulous acting. Tim Roth and Edward Furlong is both fabulous as the brothers, as Vanessa Redgrave and Maximillian Schell is as the mother and the abusive father. I think this is some of the best I've seen from them all.

The film starts up with the contract killer, being the older brother Joshua Shapira coming back to his hometown of Brooklyn after being away for years, to do a contract job. He fled town after committing a killing, which obviously is not forgotten. He meets his younger brother, Reuben, which tells him that their mother is terminally ill with brain tumor. Joshua wants to see the mother, but are not welcomed by the father, being a danger to the whole family since wanted by the mobsters.

It's bleak, cold, gritty, effective and what I believe very realistic told. I was immediately sucked into the story, which is following the younger brother more than the older hit-man. it's no action movie, but a mobster movie told in the way we've seen many times. This does not stand back from these. The film builds slowly up to great scenes.

It's powerful on emotions, far more than on the action. However the persons are quite cold, and so is the violence. And there isn't much hope to see in the dreary days of this family.

The quote "We'll wait 10 seconds and see if God saves you" is said by Tim Roth's character before he does a killing. I would regard this is a must-see for mob film lovers, and a classic in the genre. I would likewise recommend the brilliant and effective "Eastern promises" by David Cronenberg, telling a story from the Russian mafia in Great Britain.

I enjoyed the movie. Tim Roth, who is apparently British, sounded to me (a Texan) as a perfect second-generation Russian Jew. He was so coldly efficient in this character that I did not even recognize him as the hapless robber in Pulp Fiction. Kudos also to Moira Kelly, Edward Furlong, and Maximilian Schell. Good direction and photography. The use of the Russian choral music throughout set the mood on medium-creepy, even when that was the only clue. I've never been to Brighton Beach, or even Brooklyn, but the film really brought home the gritty reality of that immigrant community. (I really just mean the day-to-day atmosphere of the place, not the mobster story plastered on it.) Worth checking out if you don't mind a slower, more cerebral sort of hit man movie.

I saw this movie at a quite low age, I consider it one of the films that evoked my passion for this art form. This film is very bare, very raw yet somehow harmonious, as well. The violence is very well depicted, in a very cold & frightful way. This is a film without any greater hope, without any greater optimism of our future. A rapid & haunting way of showing the true face and consequences of brutal violence. Intensively and artistically this film displays a chaotic & desperate family, a destiny very honest and very haunting. Cinematography is stunning, as is the environment, which very well defines the fundamental characteristics of this film, cold, naked, intense & raw. Great debut by the very promising James Gray.

Writer/director James Gray's (We Own the Night) first film was critically acclaimed for it's cinematography and for performances by Vanessa Redgrave and Maximilian Schell. It is not an action film, even though the main character is a hit-man. It is a drama about family and shame.

Mr. Orange, Tim Roth (Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, The Incredible Hulk) plays a son who has been disowned for bringing shame on the family by his behavior. He returns to Brighton Beach to do a job, and reunites with his family as his mother lays dying. He also reunited with Moira Kelly, much to the delight of movie viewers.

About the only one happy to see him was his younger brother Rueban, played by Edward Furlong (Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Pecker). Well, mom was happy, but moms are always happy no matter how bad their children are - trust me on that.

Violence was at a minimum for a Russian Mafia/hit-man picture, and the focus was on the family. Maximilian Schell was excellent as the father that made piece just for a moment to allow Redgrave to see her son.

Gray's first film has nuance and subtlety not often seen in a film featuring the mafia.

In "Little Odessa" (So dubbed after the Russian enclave of the same name in Brooklyn), Roth plays a hit man who returns to the neighborhood of his youth only to find that family matters are not as easily settled as contract killings. The film is an excellent debut for writer/director Gray and, IMHO, much better than his follow-up work "The Yards". "Little Odessa" may be short on story with an obvious absence of the tinselization which comes with big bucks, but it is also honest, unpretentious, and sports an excellent cast. Will play best with reality freaks into crime dramas. (B-)

This was a 1990s crime film I skipped at the time, but now wanted to go back to watch after greatly enjoying writer/director James Gray's more recent film "The Lost City of Z." In this film Tim Roth plays a hit-man for the Russian Mob returning home to Little Odessa, a primarily Russian Neighborhood in New York City, but the main focus is on his younger brother Edward Furlong and the brothers' relationship to each other and their parents, Vanessa Redgrave as the terminally ill mother and Maximilian Schell as the caring father. Although there is a crime story about the mafia going after Roth, at it's core "Little Odessa" is a dark family melodrama. Much like "The Lost City of Z," writer/director Gray creates rich characters with strong performances (Moira Kelly is also quite good as Roth's girlfriend). Both films also similar present a terrific sense of place, that's reminiscent of the works of Herzog or Wim Wenders, where the setting and locations play almost as important a role in the film as the story and characters. An unfortunate similarity between the two films is a slow meandering pace. A major strike against "Little Odessa" is that I'm not quite sure of the film's subtext or central theme. There's likely something about family, but whatever point Gray had in mind gets obscured by subplots and melodrama. Still, despite the film's slow pace and lack of clear purpose, it's visually arresting, features strong performances, and paints a vivid picture of what it's like to live and breath in Little Odessa. Deeply flawed, but well worth watching.

This story lacks a primary source of knowledge. The director is trying to tell you something he doesn't know well himself. As a son of immigrants from the USSR he is obviously interested in his roots but he doesn't bother to learn about them before speading the news. As a result you will see an imaginary community of Brighton Beach that exists only in director's mind.

You will see some popular actors in this movie but not exactly a good acting from them.

A stunning debut by this young writer-director -- Dostoyevskian themes, an exact sense of place, and a lyricism touched by few of his peers. And now six years' wait!

While most U.S. indie filmmakers spent the 1990s studiously copying Tarantino, Gray in this overlooked gem created something entirely different: a character study of tragedy among the unhip and uncool. Torn by illness and the return of a prodigal son, a Russian immigrant family in New York tries to outlast the omens promising its destruction. The film owes something to Coppola, but you might feel the presence of Bergman, too. Unsentimental, unsparing, with brilliant performances by the principal cast. A must see.

Joshua Shapira, a hitman for the Russo-Jewish mob (Tim Roth), ordered to kill an Iranian jeweler, unwilling returns to his childhood home in Brighton Beach and to his estranged family. The first feature by director James Gray is not lacking for intenseness. Roth is excellent as the vicious hood who rediscovers his relationship with his younger brother (Edward Furlong) and the story (much of which is about 'black-sheep' Joshua's relationship with his family) and script are quite good, as is the rest of the ensemble cast. There were some odd, inconsistent scenes (for someone who wants to remains unnoticed, Joshua frequently waves his pistol in people's faces, and his 'crew' at a shooting just drop the guns on the ground (a plot-driving event) despite not wearing gloves) and the ending, though unexpected, seemed a bit abrupt. I didn't really like the neo-gothic soundtrack, which struck me as pretentious (but other people though the score was excellent). Generally, a good, gritty if slightly fanciful mob-meller.

The first feature of James Gray already relies on his favorite theme, which is the breaking of a family and the choices that result from it.

The interesting points of the script, and more generally the movie, are the complicated relations between the members of this family. The plot, serve badly by a slow rhythm and a static staging, is very weak and doesn't manage to captivate, except for the rather good ending. This is the biggest flaw of this director, never imposing an undeniable force or power to its movies.

All the characters are very cold and don't convey much emotion, therefore it is difficult to feel any sympathy, empathy or disgust towards them, and that's a shame for a drama.

It is to be noted that Gray, in his following movies, will show great improvement regarding his direction, which is here quite hesitant and ultimately blend, especially with the use of cheap zooms.

This is without a doubt the best debut by a filmmaker in the last decade. James Gray has directed with a sure hand, exerting amazing control over a wide variety of performers and flawlessly maintaining a haunting and menacing mood in his tale of crime and punishment among Russian immigrants in Brooklyn. Vanessa Redgrave is superb, as usual, and Maxmillian Schell has been kept from the unrestrained emotionalism to which he is prone (see JUDGMENT AT NUREMBERG), so that he gives one of his very best performances in years. As for Edward Furlong and Tim Roth, both of whom can be very good or very bad, lets just say they haven't been this good before or since. Gray's command over such aspects of the film as pacing and visual style is impressive. The whole thing builds to a stunning climax.

Boy was this movie boring. Wait, or may be it was just so exciting that I couldn't stand it and I ran into the wall and knocked myself unconscious. Or maybe it bored me so much that I just fell asleep. All I know is that while I was watching this yarnball, I caught myself staring at the wall and wondering if Yoda had any part in my life whatsoever. After sitting through this overly exciting movie, I feel like I will live forever. -**

This film was released in the wake of "Pulp Fiction" et al. It contained Roth (who was in vogue), and dealt with the underworld. It flopped.

In many ways it is not a crowd pleaser. However i has a talented cast, deals with family tribulations well; and has a distinctive style of it's own.

This isn't one of the movie you rent, this one you watch on TV because it's just to depressing and un(Hollywood)entertaining to be worth paying for. Plus it's nothing special. Good acting by Roth and Mrs. Redgrave and some cool sex scenes featuring the ever sexy Moira Kelly. Is it just me or is Edward Furlong the victim of his brother's doing again (American History X). And he wasn't bothering no one, he was just there to help. To average to be good, but still strong enough to touch the viewer. Which reminds me; I don't have the slightest idea what that final scene meant.

It shows the scene where Tim Roth meets his ill mother for the first time in many years. It's weird because this first-time-meeting scene is shown sometime earlier in the movie and I just don't understand why Tim Roth would be thinking about the part where he just comes into the room and he and Mrs. Redgrave just look uncomfortably at each other. After his flashback is over there's this long shot of Tim Roth in the car and then fade back and the movie ends. ?????????????????????????????????????????????? What did it mean.

If you have seen the movie and have any idea what this flashback means please write to me.

This movie was directed by James Gray, who was only 24 when he made this movie and six years later he makes an even better movie called The Yards. This one starts out with Tim Roth playing a hit-man who can't or won't go back to Brooklyn because of his dad, who wants nothing to do with him and some Russian gangsters. Roth is ordered to go and he wants to keep a low profile but it doesn't work that way. His mother is dying and his father wants nothing to do him and his little brother, played by Edward Furlong, wants to be like him. The movie isn't exactly clear about who Roth has to kill but you slowly find out. It is a pretty good movie but The Yards is a much better film.

I saw this last night, and on the box somewhere it made reference to being a "Goodfellas" 'ish type of movie...or something along those lines. I cant lie, that was the hook for me being as I love Scorsese gangster movies. This is an EXCELLENT film, amazing in some parts just by the acting alone. Tim Roth...does more with a stare then most can do with words. He was perfect. And after seeing this I really wish I knew of more movies if he's done them were he plays a role similar to this (other then the obvious 'Reservoir Dogs'). Edward Furlong whom I usually don't much care for even pulls off a very believable character. I wont go into detail, or outline some sort of plot. Just go rent this movie if your a fan of the gangster type movies...sorry, GOOD gangster type movies. It is an impressive display of movies not needing excessive violence, but instead great acting to build suspense, or thrills. 9/10

According to the IMDb, James Gray's grandparents were "Russian immigrants." This movie was his vision and I strongly disagree with his warped view of immigrants. Years ago when I was in a wealthy suburban town far from Brighton Beach, I was asked whether I saw the film. I was also asked whether I was ever involved in the Russian mafia. I answered "no" to both questions. It was true I had never seen the film, nor had I ever been involved with Russian organized crime. I was a first-generation American, who because of my parents and grandparents was able to speak Russian, and my family's hopes of achieving the "American Dream" rested firmly on my shoulders. The man who had asked me these questions was an accomplished educator, who had even once been invited to the Oval Office. He was always borderline derisive of me and I felt that he had seen me as a stereotypical "Russian mobster in the making." It was years later when I finally watched the film and I was fuming. I want to convey several issues to Americans about this film. The most important issue is that crime exists everywhere, but Brighton Beach is not controlled by the Russian Mafia. There is barely any presence of Russian organized crime, and most residents have vaguely heard or interacted with these elements. The protagonist of the film, a Russian Jewish hit-man who fled Brighton Beach to evade the ire of the Russian Mafia, was a plot-driven character who did not even slightly resemble any of the young immigrants who arrived to Brighton Beach during the 1970's and 1980's. Joshua Shapira was as realistic as Peter Pan. Second, the elderly generation was poorly portrayed in this film. It was filmed in 1993 and Jacob's 80-year-old grandmother was James Gray's idea of an "off-the-boat" immigrant. I almost laughed at how the grandmother only spoke Yiddish and was an "old world" zombie. That is absolute nonsense. It is true that that generation could speak Yiddish, but they in fact spoke Russian much more frequently and were quite cognizant of history, politics, and current events. That generation, my grandparents, attended English courses for immigrants and were able to converse in basic English. I will admit that not all could do this. Some still had to work, while others had to babysit their grandchildren. My point is that the grandmother in this film, an "Old World" Yiddish-only zombie, was not in any way, shape, or form similar to the grandparents of the Soviet Jewish immigration. My grandfather, who recently passed away, spoke Yiddish, Russian, and rudimentary English (because he worked in this country for many years). He also was always mindful of American and world politics. The portrayal of grandparents in this movie was ridiculous and unrealistic. For example, on my way to the Brighton Beach library I remember overhearing two World War 2 generation Soviet immigrants discussing Hillary Clinton's first international tour as Secretary of State in 2009. The baby boomers, who are grandparents today on Brighton Beach, can speak English proficiently and are quite Americanized. Third, the mother suffering from cancer at home and implicitly unable to get medical care because she is an immigrant is absurd. The United States fully provided medical care and support to the underprivileged. If the Shapiro family were in fact as poor as the family portrays, she would had been able to receive Medicaid/Medicare benefits and the government would have paid for her treatments. It was a sinister exaggeration that the poor immigrant suffering from cancer had to die at home and implicitly the reason was because of her "impoverished immigrant status." Absolutely bogus. She would have been provided full medical benefits and not suffer at home like portrayed in the film. Fourth, the father in the film was the stereotypical "Soviet dictator" parent who was domineering, abusive, and emotionless. The character was just a plot-driven element of the film not remotely similar to any of the Soviet Jewish immigrants who had supported their children, who were either born in the USA or arrived as young children. He was clearly the antagonist of the film, and when the accomplished educator I had mentioned earlier spoke to me about Brighton Beach, I distinctly remember him asking what my father was like. I can assure you that 99% of the Soviet Jewish parents were not Stalin-like brutes. They, in fact, were completely supportive because they wanted their kids to be successful Americans. The father in this film, who dressed like they did at the turn of the century and not the 1990's and stood on Brighton Beach at night with others drinking Vodka with prostitutes, was nowhere close to any reasonable behavior or individual I have encountered on Brighton Beach. The father was an absurd character created by a warped view of what a Soviet immigrant patriarch would be like. I won't spoil the ending for those who haven't seen it, but as the entire movie suggests Brighton Beach is a dark world full of crime, sadness, and tragedy. False. False. False. New Yorkers from all five boroughs travel to the beach and boardwalk during the warmer months, and Brighton Beach is full of restaurants, Sushi bars, and Russian nightclubs. I cannot explain to you how ridiculous it was when Joshua in the end sat in his car alone thinking about all the tragic events during the film. Even when this was filmed in 1993, the movie was a terrible and inaccurate portrayal of Brighton Beach and the Soviet Jewish immigrants who inhabit it. I can tell you that the Soviet Jewish immigrants who arrived when they were young and first-generation Americans who were born here did not live in "Little Odessa" and were not inclined to a life of crime. Education, hard work, and successful careers are the attributes of those who inhabit Brighton Beach and this movie was complete fiction in its portrayal of the older immigrants, younger immigrants, and first-generation Americans.

The movie is a realistic story about immigrants in the US. The shots are very good done. You really feel the atmosphere of the Brooklyn area. The very tight feeling when you live here. The problems the people feel and the relationships between different individuals. The old against the young. The Italians against the Russians and so on. I think this movie really get the important points of the life in a multiethnical city.

As most of the time Edward Furlong plays somewhat of a pitiable kid in this movie as it seems to be his quality. He mostly plays silent and introvert characters on screen. But this time the film focuses not on him but on his brother, performed by Tim Roth. This film is in a way more about family then it is about the job that Tim Roth has (he is a hitman) and I consider it more of a drama in a way than I do Before and After which I saw recently too. And that is also the reason I do not like this movie, it is too dramatic. That plus the fact that the performances were not good, but just OK, the directing was just OK just everything was just OK makes the whole film just OK. What I thought was funny though was to hear those Russians speak Jewish, for it reminded me a lot of German and I could even understand something at times when it was not even subtitled.

5 out of 10

this film totally transcends its derivative storyline and machismo-charged genre. avoiding predictable characterisation (which some of the previous commentators seem to desire)and melodrama, the film may seem (and is at least visually) cold, but its warmth is built through nuance, not cliche. Great soundtrack too, with Arvo Part.

James Gray simply blew my brains out few years ago with this flick! Slow montage is astonishing and despite the lack of action Gray has been able to make his film amazingly interesting... I have seen this film about ten times but I haven't lost the effect. Makes you wonder how somebody is able to make such an intensity on scenes. can't understand why this movie hasn't been more noticed... Oh yeah, the whole cast is terrific!

Little Odessa is very educational. Normally the Russian community in USA is not portrayed too often (Lord of War an exception), and they arrived in a society where they lost a lot of status. Some became succesful and moved to safer suburbs, but the ones who were not able to adapt so easily, end up stuck in a ghetto where they are bitter and isolated from the rest of the city. They refer to blacks a "Schwarzes" and Christians as "Goyim", showing no desire to assimilate.

Inside this world, we see what happen when a father fails to inspire his children, and they try to live opposite (hugh stakes) lives, despite the risk and illegality. It is important to portray how tough it was in the first years as the immigrants arrived, and how their ethnic and cultural ties were still strong and in the end they become a trap manking that community inward looking

Director and writer James Gray has created a gem in Little Odessa.

Starring Tim Roth who has also been in other classic flicks, The Musketeer 2001, Gridlock'd 1997, No Way Home 1996, Pulp Fiction 1994, Reservoir Dogs 1992, The Cook the Thief His Wife & Her Lover 1989, Meantime 1984 and Made in Britain 1982.

Also starring Edward Furlong who has also been in other classic flicks, American History X 1998 and Terminator 2: Judgement Day 1991.

Also starring Moira Kelly.

Also starring Vanessa Redgrave who has also been in another classic flick, The Devils 1971.

Also starring Maximillian Schell who has also been in other classic flicks, Vampires 1998 and Cross of Iron 1977.

I enjoyed the violence.

If you enjoyed this as much as I did then check out other classic Russian crime flicks, The Mechanik 2005, Mute Witness 1994, Command Performance 2009, Running Scared 2006 and Driven to Kill 2009.