''Astoria'' is a 2000 American drama film directed by Nick Efteriades, starring Rick Stear, Ed Setrakian, Joseph D'Onofrio,

Paige Turco Jean Paige Turco (born May 17, 1965) is an American actress, who portrayed April O'Neil in '' Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze'' and ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III''. Other roles include Dinah Marler on daytime’s ''G ...

and Geraldine LiBrandi.

Cast

* Rick Stear as Alex * Ed Setrakian as Demos * Joseph D'Onofrio as Theo *

as Elena * Geraldine LiBrandi as Soula * Steven J. Christopher as Lakis * Yanni Sfinias as Mitsos * Gregory Sims as George *

Stelio Savante Stelio Savante is a South African actor that has appeared in 140 films, TV series and video games in the last three decades. He is known for his roles as a South African/Israeli journalist and undercover Mossad agent opposite Jim Caviezel and ...

as Nick * Chelsea Altman as Betty

Release

The film premiered at the

Santa Barbara International Film Festival The Santa Barbara International Film Festival (SBIFF) is an eleven-day film festival held in Santa Barbara, California in February annually, since 1986. The festival screens over 200 feature films and shorts from different countries and regions. ...

on 10 March 2000. The film was released in theatres on 5 April 2002.

Reception

Lawrence Van Gelder Lawrence Ralph Van Gelder (February 17, 1933 – March 11, 2016) was an American journalist and instructor in journalism who worked at several different New York City-based newspapers in his long career. Until 2010, he was senior editor of the Ar ...

of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' wrote that while Efteriades "may not have generated many sparks", with his "affection for Astoria and its people", he has "given his tale a warm glow". Gene Seymour of ''

Newsday ''Newsday'' is a daily newspaper in the United States primarily serving Nassau and Suffolk counties on Long Island, although it is also sold throughout the New York metropolitan area. The slogan of the newspaper is "Newsday, Your Eye on LI" ...

'' rated the film 3 stars out of 5 and wrote that while "the verbiage grows quite thick in patches" and "the story itself is fairly predictable", there are "intriguing variations of light and shadow that, while not exactly freshening the coming-of-age conventions, add deft touches of polish and grit."

Maitland McDonagh Maitland McDonagh () is an American film critic, writer-editor and podcaster. She is the author of ''Broken Mirrors/Broken Minds: The Dark Dreams of Dario Argento'' (1991) and other books and articles on horror and exploitation films, as well as ...

of ''

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media In mass communication, digital media is any media (communication), communication media that operates in conjunction with various encoded machine-readable data formats. Digital content can be created, vi ...

'' rated the film 2.5 stars out of 5 and wrote that while the film is "efficiently directed and acted", it is a "very familiar tale", and "it's hard to feel its pull".

Todd McCarthy Todd McCarthy (born February 16, 1950) is an American film critic and author. He wrote for '' Variety'' for 31 years as its chief film critic until 2010. In October of that year, he joined ''The Hollywood Reporter'', where he subsequently served ...

of ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' wrote that the film "lacks the originality and vitality required of an indie to make it in the real world."

References

External links

* * {{rotten-tomatoes, astoria, Astoria American drama films 2002 drama films 2002 films