The kind of film that doesn't get made anymore in Hollywood. Original story, great atmosphere, wonderful acting. A somewhat quirky but still powerful human drama. Somehow, everything just fits in this film. Given the cast, it's hard to believe it is so little known. One to be re-discovered (hopefully). 8 stars out of 10.

In case you're interested in more underrated masterpieces, here's some of my favorites:

imdb.com/list/ls070242495

It's 1964 The Bronx. Violent Heinz (John Turturro) returns to his neighborhood after getting out of prison for an attempted rape of Linda (Jodie Foster). Harry (Tim Robbins) rescued Linda the first time but has turn pacifist since then. Somebody shoots a teacher with an arrow. Castro and Willie are two kids blowing up a store sign with cherry bombs. They pick up Melanie and Brita who are out of it from sniffing glue. Heinz is after Linda again thinking he's in love with her. Jamie would like to be her boyfriend who protects her.

This movie is split in two. Turturro, Foster and Robbins inhabit one half. Turturro is great as the disturbed rapist. The penguins are weird. The acting is good but the script meanders a bit with a lot of strange turns. The other half has four lesser known actors. The girls are funny. It's odd that it seems to float on the surface of the movie without connecting to the other half. I do find the unknown actors' story interesting especially the elevator scene. I kept wondering what that story has to do with anything. The final reveal satisfied me to some extent. I wish it could have made more connections earlier in the movie.

"Five Corners" is a dark comedy about a man (John Turturro) recently released from prison who seeks revenge on the people who caused him to be arrested. They are: the woman (Jodie Foster) he tried to rape; her boyfriend (Todd Graff) and the hero's situation (Tim Robbins),who saved the woman's life, and probably used of a lot of force to detain the rapist (nothing is shown so we have to deduce),since now he's peace-keeper who doesn't trust violence at all after this life changing incident

This marked as being John Patrick Shanley's first script ever filmed, separated by a few months of the other one that brought him some recognition and the Oscar, the acclaimed "Moonstruck". Never elegant or brilliant like his most successful screenplay, "Five Corners" is something to be seen because Shanley knows how to create good moments one after another with knowledge of cause (he lived similar experiences as the ones showed here),some odd humor and makes you feel interested even when the story goes on a random rampage of sequences and characters that doesn't seem to fit a purpose in the plot - the young kids having a good time all around, including a memorable ride on the top of elevators. They have a purpose actually, but it takes too long to get there.

But, like "Moonstruck", he has on his disposal and director Tony Bill, a good ensemble casting (the difference is that most of the actors in this film were relatively unknown at the time of its release while Norman Jewison's film had an stellar casting already famous). Foster and Robbins are fine together, very comfortable in their roles (Tim's best scene involves a small monologue about why he wants to join the Civil Rights Movement); Graff, unforgettable as the comic relief in 99,9% of "The Abyss", is quite annoying as the goofy boyfriend who always seem to ruin the day for everyone. Top quality performance of this comes from the terrorizing psychotic character of Turturro, his coldest and scariest character I've seen since John Shooter in "Secret Window".

The drama? Engaging. The suspense? Good with some violent moments, but predictable at many parts (the ending was quite strange though, who could have thought of that happening?). And the comedy? Hardly work I must say. First of all, there's too much randomness included in this, the parts should be put together in a better way and the dialogs should go under a deep construction - that's why the Coen's succeed so much in doing funny and dark tales. OK, not just dialogs, but also in developing believable, sustainable situations. This goes beyond ridiculous when the girl decides to meet the psychopath, completely alone on a park at midnight. Who does that?

All in all, presentable, watchable and manageable. A good little flick, probably more known these days because of the cast, which is the main reason why you should see it. 8/10