Vito After

Vito After is a sincere documentary about filmmaker Maria Pusateri's brother-in-law, NYPD Detective Vito Friscia, who developed respiratory problems following his heroic work evacuating people from lower Manhattan on 9/11 and later sorting through the debris taken from Ground Zero to the Fresh Kills Landfill on Staten Island. The residual emotional trauma from those terrible days is devastating enough, but now the physical damage to Friscia's lungs is more immediately troubling. After much nagging from his wife and sister-in-law, Vito eventually agrees to undergo a medical examination, which reveals severe sinusitis that could have easily evolved into a more damaging condition. While it is hard to criticize Friscia, who is clearly a bona fide hero, the man is obviously uncomfortable on camera and some of his behavior is questionable: initially stubborn in refusing a medical exam (he insists he will only see a doctor if his wife stops smoking), he later blatantly lies on a medical questionnaire (the filmmaker, sitting next to him, chastises him for his dishonesty), and then shrugs it off, citing his Italian-American heritage and occupation in law enforcement to justify his actions (nothing like falling back on tired stereotypes). Still, Vito After is a poignant reminder of the scars of 9/11—both figurative and literal. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (P. Hall)