City of Hope

City Of Hope (1991)

  • 94% of critics liked it
    (16 reviews)

  • 78% of users liked it
    (1,067 ratings)

A city pulses with racial problems, political corruption, and small-time crime in this ambitious microcosm of urban life, written and directed by John Sayles. Nick Rinaldi (Vincent Spano), a lost soul usually high on drink and drugs, has spent his life in one New Jersey city, getting free rides from… More

R,
Directed By
Genres
Drama
In Theaters
Oct 11, 1991 Wide
Samuel Goldwyn Company

Critic Reviews

  • Adam Lippe, Examiner.com

    Sayles' strategy is unique and sneaky without being self-serving... An epic-scale examination of how the bad guy never knows he's the bad guy.

  • Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com

    Though flawed, Sayles' most ambitious film to date confronts modern America as it is beset with explosive racial and class tensions, escalating crime, political corruption, and police brutality.

  • Rob Thomas, Capital Times (Madison, WI)

    A rare Sayles misstep that lets the message overrule the material.

  • Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice

    A powerful and profound film about what is wrong with our cities and what it will take to save them.

  • Walter Chaw, Film Freak Central

    A closed circle of aspiration and compromise, simple hopes impossibly complicated by the stark realities of life in a kind of wartime.

Read all 7 critic reviews

See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

  • Ken S


    Sayles best work by far. Simply an amazing film, a must for fans of the Wire. The fact this isn't available on DVD is proof of a cruel uncaring god.

  • Brian R


    This is a good movie. A film that tackles racial problems, politics, corruption, protests, and urban life. "City Of Hope" is the American microcosm where all these diffrent stories and where most of the characters bump into one another. Sort of like taking all these… More

  • Anthony V


    Another great Sayles ensemble cast piece.

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Cast

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