Rockaway (2017 film)
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2019}}
{{Infobox film
| name = Rockaway
| image =
| caption =
| director = John J. Budion
| producer =
| writer = John J. Budion
| starring = {{plainlist|
- Keidrich Sellati
- Maxwell Apple
- James DiGiacomo
}}
| music = Aaron Gilhuis
| cinematography = Matthew Santo
| editing = Denis Henry Hennelly
| studio =
| distributor =
| released = {{Film date|2017|08||Rhode Island International Film Festival}}
| runtime = 83 minutes
| country = United States
| language = English
| budget =
}}
Rockaway is an American 2017 drama directed and written by John J. Budion.{{cite magazine |author=Richard Brody |title=What to Stream This Weekend: 'Rockaway', a Boy's Stark and Moving Tale of Surviving Domestic Violence |magazine=The New Yorker |date=January 11, 2019 |url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-front-row/rockaway-reviewed-a-queens-boys-stark-and-moving-tale-of-surviving-domestic-violence |access-date=August 4, 2019}}{{cite magazine |author=Joshua Speiser |title=Rockaway |magazine=Film Threat |date=January 18, 2019 |url=https://filmthreat.com/reviews/rockaway/ |access-date=August 4, 2019}}{{cite web |author=Nick Allen |title=Rockaway Movie Review & Film Summary (2019) |website=RogerEbert.com |date=January 11, 2019 |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/rockaway-2019 |access-date=August 4, 2019}}
Plot
Anthony and John are two brothers who are abused by their father. John, the younger brother, suffers from seeing his mother beaten by his father.
They befriend Sal, Billy, Dom and Brian at a basketball court and spend time playing baseball together. John is noticed for his obsession with New York Knicks star, John Starks. They form a close bond.
Anthony and John's mother decides to move away while the two conceive a plan of revenge against their father by slingshotting a light bulb and pushing the boiler towards him. One night, Anthony, John, and their friends watch a Knicks game; their father becomes angry after finding out his refrigerator is empty. Their friends side with the two brothers.
As the story develops, the gang keeps mentioning the movie, Stand By Me. They also mention that John is just like Gordie, the kid who was a talented writer, since John is good at drawing. If Gordie had shot Ace to death, he would never have become a successful writer.
Anthony and Billy have a confrontation, because Billy thinks that Anthony is no different from his father. The night before moving, the boys spend time together at Sal's house watching a Knicks game, without knowing their house is on fire. Anthony and John return to find that their mother has fainted, but Anthony saves her, and later decides to save his father from the basement. However, he fails and is trapped with no way out, resulting in his and his father's deaths.
The boys grieve over Anthony's death. John leaves without telling anyone where he is going.
Twenty years later, an adult John returns to Rockaway East by train, rents a bicycle, and cycles the places where he used to stroll with the gang. He meets Dom who now teaches in high school. He finds out that Brian, Billy and Sal, are fathers.
Cast
- Keidrich Sellati as young Anthony
- Maxwell Apple as young John
- James DiGiacomo as young Dom
- Tanner Flood as young Brian
- Colin Critchley as young Sal
- Harrison Wittmeyer as young Billy
- Nolan Lyons as Bradley
- Sophia Rose as Gina
- Wass Stevens as Dad
- Marjan Neshat as Mom
Production
Rockaway is the first feature film of director John Budion, who previously worked as a visual effects artist and director for television commercials. Filming took place in July 2016, with most of the shooting taking place in East Rockaway, New York.{{cite news |author=Nick Ciccone |title=East Rockaway native directs coming-of-age film in his hometown |work=LIHerald.com |date=July 6, 2016 |url=http://liherald.com/stories/East-Rockaway-native-directs-coming-of-age-film-in-the-village,81363 |access-date=August 27, 2019}}{{cite news |author=Rafer Guzmán |title=LI director relives his childhood with 'Rockaway' |work=Newsday |date=July 27, 2018 |url=https://www.newsday.com/entertainment/movies/rockaway-long-beach-film-festival-1.20148338 |access-date=August 27, 2019}}
Release
Rockaway debuted at the Rhode Island International Film Festival in August 2017.{{cite news |author=Mike Smollins |title=Local director's film about growing up in East Rockaway to premiere at international film festival |work=LIHerald.com |date=August 3, 2017 |url=http://www.liherald.com/stories/local-directors-film-about-growing-up-in-er-to-premiere-at-international-film-festival,94246 |access-date=August 27, 2019}} After showing at festivals in 2017 and 2018, winning 9 awards including several Best Feature Film awards, the film landed a distribution deal with Gravitas Ventures and officially released worldwide in 2019.{{cite news |author=Mike Smollins |title=East Rockaway director's 'Rockaway' shows around the world after distribution deal |work=LIHerald.com |date=January 31, 2019 |url=http://liherald.com/stories/east-rockaway-directors-rockaway-shows-around-the-world-after-distribution-deal,111369 |access-date=August 27, 2019}} The film also attained a theatrical distributor and release with Paladin, opening at the Village East Cinema in New York City on January 11, 2019.
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{Official website|http://rockawaythefilm.com/}}
- {{IMDb title|5462288}}
- {{Metacritic film}}
- {{Rotten Tomatoes|m/rockaway}}
Category:2017 directorial debut films
Category:2010s English-language films