January 7, 2011 (2011-01-07) (Palm Springs International Film Festival)
Running time
93 minutes
Country
United States
Language
English
Down the Shore is a 2011 American independent thriller film directed by Harold Guskin and starring James Gandolfini and Famke Janssen.[1]
Plot
The owner of a Jersey shore amusement park is forced to confront his dark past when an enigmatic Frenchman shows up on his doorstep claiming to be his late sister's widowed husband.
Down the Shore has a 45% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 11 reviews[4] as well as 58% approval, based on 7 reviews on Metacritic.[5] Gabe Toro of IndieWire said that "Down the Shore at least deserves credit for its strong performances (though the less said about too-old John Magaro’s turn as Mary’s autistic son, the better)".[6] The film also received a 1.5 out of 5 from Chuck Bowen of Slant Magazine who said that "the film suggests what might happen if TBS and Bruce Springsteen were to collaborate on a sitcom set in hell".[7]
Variety was quoted saying that "The virtue of this standard family tale is James Gandolfini's most substantial feature role to date",[8] while Michael Rechstshaffen of The Hollywood Reporter said that "a rock solid James Gandolfini performance keeps this slice-of-Jersey-life drama grounded".[9]