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90As a dramatist Eason has a classicist's sense of structure and movement to complement his sense of the cinematic. Manito, which has a special grand jury prize from Sundance among its 10 awards, is a small film with a big impact.
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88Manito sees an everyday tragedy with sadness and tenderness, and doesn't force it into the shape of a plot.
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88The film recalls Martin Scorsese's "Mean Streets" and the minimalism of films such as Lars Von Trier's "The Idiots." Eason and cinematographer Didier Gertsch keep the cameras tight on the actors' bodies and faces, creating palpable unease.
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80Eason's twist of fate and too-sudden ending seems as rooted in Washington Heights as the music that pours from the neighborhood's car windows, the smoke that billows from its late-night eateries, and the stoic resignation inscribed on its inhabitants' faces.
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80Manito is the rare little movie that gets bigger as it goes along--so big that it can hardly contain its own emotion.
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80Furiously paced -- just shy of the sensory-overload point -- pic duly merits comparison to its spiritual granddaddy "Mean Streets," not in the usual imitative sense but rather in the freshness, character acuity and low-budget high style brought to a different NYC ethnic milieu.
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80Franky G.'s performance as the protective yet combustible older brother is as real as it gets.
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75Toward the finish, the movie takes a regrettable curve into melodrama, but the excellent performances never waver.
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75A leisurely, scene-setting start, peppered with authentic banter and winning localized humor, fleshes out the characters in Manito so well you feel as if you live alongside them.
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75A low-budget wonder: rough and gritty around the edges, filmed for what looks like a budget of $1.98, but bristling with energy, passion and intimacy.
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75Because Manito is really just an opera without the violins or Viking hats, you probably don't need to have everything spelled out. Its Spanish-English script is secondary to the universal language and timeless drama of family, community, dreams made and dreams dashed.
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75Until the point that changes everything, Manito is more a portrait of a neighborhood and its various characters--and this is the even more impressive part of the film. Once the disasters start to domino, the story becomes a bit familiar, a bit manipulative.
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70Eric Eason's assured debut succeeds in the way Larry Clark's “Kids” succeeded -- through a feel for the rhythms of street life, and some extraordinary casting.
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70Unusually impassioned indie.
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70Though a dramatic (even melodramatic) narrative eventually takes shape, what you remember is the succession of moods and observations through which it emerges.
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60Eason balances the clichés of a fairly standard story with convincing realism and a powerful momentum that never flags.
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60With Manito's raw portrayal of its characters and stripped-down cinematography, the undercurrent of impending tragedy is palpable.
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60Has an appealing rawness.
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50If you shy away from that sick feeling in the pit of the stomach that comes when watching good people make bad decisions, then best to steer clear of Manito, a low-budget indie that reaches near-Greek proportions of tragedy brought on by lousy decision-making.
User score distribution:
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Positive: 22 out of 22
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Mixed: 0 out of 22
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Negative: 0 out of 22
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BillB.9Fantastic first film. Totally distinct. A great director has landed. Dying to see his next film!
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SweetmanS.8Powerful and devastating glimpse of life in the NYC Washington Heights Latino community.