CHOP SHOP

When it comes to film subgenres, one of the more peculiar (to me, at least) has to do with children in poverty. International in scope and dubbed the transglobal children's street film by at least one person, it includes such harrowing works as Los Olvidados (Mexico) and Pixote and City of God (Brazil), as well as the comparatively prettified Salaam Bombay (India). Now director Ramin Bahrani and his co-screenwriter Bahareh Azimi have added another outstanding work to the subgenre—and their look at children in poverty is set close to home in Willets Point, Queens, the threatened "Iron Triangle" industrial zone right by Shea Stadium and LaGuardia Airport.

Chop Shop, poetic and touching like Charles Burnett's Killer of Sheep, is currently running at the Film Forum, where Bahrani will hold Q&As at the 8 pm screenings tonight and tomorrow night. I strongly recommend seeing this movie, which draws on young local talents Alejandro Polanco and Isamar Gonzales in the lead roles and also features a strong supporting cast including Ahmad Razvi. Chop Shop's story of how siblings Alejandro and Isamar (pictured) fare in this world is thoroughly absorbing. The Willets Point setting, virtually a character in itself, reminded me of locales in the documentary Manufactured Landscapes as well as takes on capitalism in Henry Miller's Tropic of Capricorn and Kurt Vonnegut's Breakfast of Champions.

Come to think of it, I'd like to know how the film has gone over in Willets Point.

Here Lisa Katzman interviews Bahrani. And here's a blog entry by Gina Telaroli.



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