Synopsis

Fourteen-year-old Joe Henry tries to survive an abusive home, school humiliation, and relentless financial pressure. Working after school at a diner, he steals food and money to ease his family's problems, even as his father's alcoholism and violence drive the household further apart. Joe's attempts to help gradually become more serious crimes, leaving him increasingly isolated and trapped by circumstances beyond his control.

Factoids & Trivia

• The film is semi-autobiographical, drawing on writer Frank Whaley's childhood and that of his brother.

• Its setting is the mid-1970s, and the story's period details include Joe's mother's damaged vinyl record collection and the family's working-class surroundings.

• French New Wave cinema, particularly "The 400 Blows," was cited as an important influence on the film's approach to troubled youth and delinquency.

• The film premiered at the 1999 Sundance Film Festival and won the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award, tying with "Guinevere." It was also nominated for the festival's Grand Jury Prize.

• John Leguizamo served as an executive producer and filmed his scenes in only three days, working around performances of his one-man Broadway show "Freak."

• The production was filmed on Staten Island in New York City.

• The film received an R rating for language and abusive situations involving a child.

• The original music was composed by Anthony Grimaldi and Robert Whaley.