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Fresh Kills (2023) is a strongly argued drama that brings a new perspective to the genre of the mob story that has long been associated with the male, it is a film directed and written by Jennifer Esposito, a story based on the Larusso family who move from Brooklyn to Staten Island in the late 1980’s in order to build a better life for themselves. However, their mob connections do not disappear with the start of the movie and are especially felt by Francine (Esposito), the main heroine and her daughters, Rose (Emily Bader) and Connie (Odessa A’zion). The film is seen from Rose’s persceptive, the second daughter who is describe as more subdued and contemplative as she struggles to come to terms with being raised in a criminal organization, we can say she had a more moral conscience.

This is Esposito’s directorial debut and it is a very personal movie as much of it is based on Esposito’s own life as a young girl growing up in Staten Island. This was a point she had been working on the idea of the script since she was sixteen years and the close relation with the culture and interaction patterns of the community she is try to bring to live through this movie. The production of the film was interrupted with some unique difficulties, especially in the understanding of financing for the project. Esposito experienced some challenges especially in the department of male lead actors which is always a challenge especially when many industries, especially Hollywood, are inclined towards providing more male oriented stories. However she overcame this obstacle through an innovative approach: This made the film the first feature that was financed and marketed by fans around the world through an IPO on Upstream, the world’s first blockchain-based global digital stock market that operates on the Ethereum platform, when I read this actually blew my mind but I guess back then I was not really into crypto.

- IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt15782954/ - Platform: Theaters - Release: June 14, 2024

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Plot Overview

The plot of the Fresh Kills focuses on the life of the Larusso family with an emphasis on women, the family has moved to a new house and it becomes evident that Francine is an abusive wife to her husband Joe played by Domenick Lombardozzi, Joe’s criminal acts are still a part of the family’s daily life, although they do not always manifest themselves in a blatant manner. The story describes Rose’s struggle to find her path towards freedom in a life that she is expected to live, she wants to be free of her family and a life of crime which is represented best by her desire to be a guest on the Sally Jessy Raphael show.

Concerning the main characters Connie is the total opposite of Rose, she is aggressive and hot headed just like the original mob mentality that is portrayed in most older movies. This is because she is fiercely loyal to the family and comes across as quite aggressive, making the tension clear when interacting with Rose. Connie represents the sort of character seen in a number of movies such as The Godfather where James Caan plays the role of a young man who becomes a liability and a source of constant trouble to his family or in Mean Streets where Robert De Niro portrays the character of a reckless wild young man who poses a threat to the family’s stability, this is the first impression given by the character of Connie, true hard core mob mentality but very unstable.

Production Challenges

Despite the challenges, such as finding funding for the film, Jennifer Esposito, who directed the film for the first time, encountered numerous difficulties as a first time director, Esposito inevitably faced the challenge of how to secure the funds for her movie a problem that has plagued the film industry, especially regarding women in director’s chairs. It is quite surprising that even though Esposito was financially limited, she was still able to come up with ways of making the film better by using real locations such as basements, garages and parking lots to make the film real and grounded.

COVID-19 also became an issue for the production process along with the general challenges of creating an animated film. Working during the COVID-19 pandemic meant that everyone had to remain safe, which was a challenge as shooting had to be completed in the 22 day shooting period. Esposito, who also acted in the film had to work in both the capacities for some time, this was a double responsibility given to her during shooting which sometimes saw her holding a hand monitor to assess the scenes before going back to acting with several challenges were experienced due to the pandemic protocols that required a lot of flexibility and hard work from the whole team of actors and crew members.

Fresh Kills is a movie set in the late 1980s to the late 1990s meaning that aside from the actors’ performances, costumes hair, and makeup designers had to pay extra attention to the historical accuracy of the props and clothing worn by the characters. Esposito employed these aspects not merely for aesthetic purposes to give a retro feel to the movie, but to add depth to the action and make the viewer feel the emotions of the characters. This created another layer of work during production because acquiring and placing details that are fitting for the era of the movie required time and diligence.

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Cast and Performances

The movie has a number of great actors including those who have previous experience with acting in movies and who have previously starred in great performances, this time leading the pack is Jennifer Esposito who in addition to directing and writing the movie, acts as Francine Larusso. Esposito is a talented actress who has been in the industry for quite some time, she featured in Crash (2004), where she play the character of Ria as well as in Summer of Sam (1999) which was directed by Spike Lee along with some of the TV shows she has acted in are Blue Bloods where she portrays Detective Jackie Curatola and NCIS where she plays the character of Special Agent Alexandra Quinn.

Next to Esposito there is Annabella Sciorra who portrays the character of Christine, Francine’s sister. Sciorra rose to fame with her first film in True Love (1989) and then contributed to Jungle Fever (1991) and The Hand that Rocks the Cradle (1992) to give some of the productions she has been part of in the past, she is well known for the role of Gloria Trillo for which she got nominated for the Emmy award and got popularity from the series The Sopranos (2001-2004).

Other essential members of the cast include Odessa A’zion, who acts as Connie, Francine's oldest dauthger. A’zion is not new to the screens, she has appeared in the CBS sitcom Fam (2019) and the Netflix drama Grand Army (2020), among the movies she featured in are Hellraiser (2022) and The Inhabitant (2022), A’zion proved to be very perceptive and passionate in portraying her characters which made her a standout performer in Fresh Kills.

Emily Bader, who plays Rose, Connie's young sister, is known for her lead role in Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin (2021), television shows appearances of Badr include Charmed and My Lady Jane. The performance of Rose in Fresh Kills gives the film an emotional appeal as she plays the role of a young woman raised in a crime family.

Joe Larusso is played by Domenick Lombardozzi, who previously has been famous for his character of Herc in the television series The Wire which remain on air from 2002 to 2008, Lombardozzi accomplished a lot and he starred in A Bronx Tale (1993), The Irishman (2019), and Tulsa King, Joe is played quite realistically by Lombardozzi.

Critical Reception

Fresh Kills has received a range of positive reviews and interest from both critics and the audience since many find the movie take on the mob genre fresh and engaging, with some of the criticisms made are that Esposito took a daring move in focusing the story on the women of an organized crime family a change from the usual themes seen in this genre that are mainly surrounded by men, praised for adding depth and realism to characters that are normally only portrayed as part of the ensemble in mob dramas.

The review from Variety praises Esposito for her good drama that focuses on the wives and daughters and noting that the realistic aspect of the movie is enhanced by outstanding performances of the casts notably Odessa A’zion and Emily Bader. The sharp and loyal nature of Connie portrayed by A’zion can be compared to James Caan in the Godfather or Robert De Niros in Mean Streets because of her explosive character. While Bader’s Rose is a way more passive character who finds herself a victim of her family’s criminal activities and embarks on a journey to break free from her lineage and find herself.

Similar to these views, IndieWire highlights the fact that the movie is about observing the complex and multifaceted female characters and their interactions through ordinary events, mch attention has been paid to the female characters as emotional anchors of the show and their choices as well are presented , normally attributed to male crime lords, thanks to Esposito’s direction.

As a first time director Jennifer Esposito has not only been able to endure the difficulties, trials and tribulations of her first movie as director on top have having Hollywoods eyes on her back but also grow and even transition from actress to director. In conclusion we can appreciate the tenacity and the creativity that Jennifer Esposito has demonstrate in Fresh Kills, she successfully transformed her personal experience into a compelling story as well as implemented unique ideas in financing and producing the movie to obtain a film that is quite unique in the given genre. The movie not only helped Esposito to get the new level of success and recognition in her career but also became one of the examples of the female-oriented films in the cinematography. I'm very excited about this movie, from the trailer it does look as the classic violent mob story but this time from the perspective of women within the family and some of them like Connie not loosing an inch of the mob style and aggression.

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Fresh Kills (2023): Jennifer Esposito's Mob Master Piece