Fri 3 Jul 2009
Now Available On DVD: Uncle Nino
Posted by Michael under Available On DVD, Films That Fell Through The Cracks
[4] Comments
Uncle Nino is not only an example of the rare species, “the family movie that doesn’t suck”; it is a member of that rarest subset, “the family movie that is poignant and entertaining for all the various age groups of the family.” It is (unfortunately) also an example of that not-so-rare phenomenon, “the great little independent film that is crapped upon by the cold uncaring film distribution system.”
A labor of love of writer/director Robert Shallcross, Uncle Nino was actually shot in 2003 and wandered in the wilderness of studio indifference for several years unable to find a distributor. This despite a great reception at film festivals and a huge grassroots cult following (it sold out a theater in Grand Rapids, Michigan for an entire year). After much work by those associated with the film, it received a halfhearted limited release in 2004/2005 (again garnering a rave response). More corporate lethargy ensued before the film was finally released on DVD in June of 2009. Hopefully now Uncle Nino will finally get its due from a wider audience.
Joe Mantegna plays Robert Micelli, an overworked ad exec who has lost touch with his wife and children. In fact, the entire family has lost touch with each other, each living in their own world, unable to communicate except via arguments and screamed conversations from separate rooms. Basically the average suburban American family in the current age.
That autistic pattern is broken when Mantegna’s elderly Uncle Nino (deftly portrayed by Pierrino Mascarino) unexpectedly arrives from Italy. At this point, you’re probably saying to yourself, “Gosh, I bet Uncle Nino’s Old World charm and simple ways cause everyone to reevaluate their lives and the choices they have made; resulting in them all rediscovering the value of family and of a less complicated, not as goal directed life.”
And you’d be right, cynical smart ass; but it’s about the journey, not the destination. And Uncle Nino gets there with style and an easy grace. Whenever the movie threatens to dip into total bathos or hokieness, the actors and director manage to avoid veering off the Cliffs of Schmaltz. It sometimes feels a bit like an After School Special, but a really really good one. Besides, it’s a family movie, not a Tarantino flick; so back off.
Joe Mantegna’s real daughter, Gina (who was 12 at the time), plays his daughter in the movie and does a fabulous job. The two were able to translate both the bond and the angst from their actual relationship, and it gives their scenes a veracity beyond the standard Father/Daughter family film dynamic. Anne Archer, who had worked with Mantegna several times before, has the role as his wife, and their familiarity and comfort with each other adds to the genuine feel of the film.
Making Uncle Nino was truly a family affair for Mantegna; not only did he get to work with his daughter for a summer back in his hometown of Chicago (the Northwest ‘burbs, actually), but he took his whole family with him for an extended reunion with all of his relatives, who were scattered in the towns around where the film was shot (Joe and family ended up just crashing with them during down time). In fact, most of the extras in a large crowd scene toward the end of the film are members of the Mantegna clan.
So, to sum up: if you’re having a jones for a sexy high-octane shoot-em-up or a bracing look at the seamy underbelly of suburban America; give Uncle Nino a pass. But if you’re looking for something to pop in the DVD player at a holiday gathering that will keep the little ones and the old folks entertained, yet won’t bore the tweens and young adults (and you) to death; and even might elicit a few tears and hugs all around— Uncle Nino is a fantastic choice.
Thanks for your kind words. Not producers or directors nor execs had much, if anything to do with this film’s limited success. I made 650 personal appearances, many per day, with the absolutely indispensable help of Grand Rapidians, members of an organization we founded called Uncle Nino’s Nephews and Nieces to promote the film with no money and much impedence. We were obstructed in every way through a long Michigan winter by those infantile and jealous egos that could have helped. We had no money but we were at the theatres every morning, noon and night. We were at schools, libraries, Radio Stations sometimes at 4 in the morning. Billy Sue Berends,Pres. of Uncle Nino’s Nephews and Nieces, written up in Time Newsweek, without pay, worked day and night along side Kirk, and Denise Badjek,Peter Secchia,Colleen Pierson, Eric, the Prince of Popcorn, 100′s of people, Kathy Stelter and her son,constantly schemed and conived to help me, to give me housing and money and a car to drive, and be perpetually at my side. We sold 29,000 tickets to the unemployed of Michigan. If we had been allowed to do nationally what we did brilliantly there, the movie would have made millions.
Of course it might have helped if I had also been \fabulous\ in the movie instead of merely \deft\.
Pierrino Mascarino, Uncle Nino
Uncle Nino/Pierrino:
I sincerely hope that your tireless work (and others) on behalf of the film will pay off with it receiving much greater recognition. It’s a great movie and people are always starved for fantastic family films, so I’m confident that will happen now that it’s finally out on DVD.
As far as your performance: It was fabulous, and I wrote that in my original draft of the post; and then changed it to “deft” because I was worried that I was using too many superlatives in the review.
It was my first “real” posting, and I’m still trying to get comfortable in my new role as film blogger. Plus, it was three in the damn morning when I finally finished it and I had no idea that you’d be reading it and responding to it a few hours later (that’s kind of scary how quickly this stuff disseminates, I’ll need to get used to that).
So please forgive me for my lack of proper enthusiasm toward your work–
“Pierrino Mascarino’s performance as Uncle Nino is both wonderfully heartwarming and uncannily genuine.
Not since Morgan Freeman’s breakout performance as ‘Fast Black’ in Street Smart (a film definitely not suitable for a double feature spot with Uncle Nino) has an actor so inhabited a role that you forget that it is someone ‘just playing a part.’
The man is a Thespian God walking our troubled, imperfect earth and we should treasure every moment he appears on the screen.”
OK, I laid it on a little thick at the end, but I really did love your performance.
Best of luck and continued success with the film!
Michael C
Hi!
I was looking for a film concerning life in Chicago or starring actors from Chicago to show on my bus of 8th graders before we visit your town. Perhaps this would be a good choice.
If you have any other suggestions, please let me know.
I also love, ‘Things Change’.
Things Change is a fabulous film, and would definitely be great for the kids to watch.
Uncle Nino is a great choice as a film, but it was shot in the suburbs and doesn’t showcase any of the city.
For movies which feature more of the city and would be appropriate for 8th graders, I would say some good possibilities are: Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Adventures In Babysitting, The Fugitive, The Untouchables, My Bodyguard, High Fidelity (check for content issues, but the kids would definitely enjoy it), Baby’s Day Out (although they might be a little old for that), Stranger Than Fiction (great film), and Return To Me.
For more suggestions, you should speak with that incredibly knowledgeable and awesome tour guide you hired