Washington Heights

Conflict between a father and son is hardly a fresh cinematic subject, but the intergenerational quarrel is given a distinctive spin in Alfredo De Villa's energetic Washington Heights, set in New York City's Cuban-American community. The film focuses on widower Eddie Ramirez (Tomas Milian), who runs a local bodega, and his son Carlos (Manny Perez), an aspiring comic-book artist who can't forgive his philandering father for the pain he caused his mother, but still puts his career on hold to run the store when the older man is injured in a robbery. Their strained relationship is mirrored in that of Carlos' buddy Mickey (Danny Hoch) and his father, who dismisses his son's dream of becoming a bowling champion as absurd. Shot on high-definition video, the film goes sentimental too often, and the final reel veers into melodrama, but these flaws are offset by both a strong sense of place and the cast's urgent, committed performances. Though Washington Heights doesn't match the expressiveness or nuance of last year's slice of New York neighborhood life Raising Victor Vargas, it's still an affecting reworking of a traditional story, told with passion and sensitivity. Recommended, overall. (F. Swietek)