Such a frustrating disappointment

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

I fully admit my tastes are different from the norm. How IMDb reviewers can rate this film at 5.8 while giving such junk as Snatch and all that horrible Tarantino crap (Django Unchained 8.5 ?????, Grindhouse 7.7 ????, Dusk to Dawn 7.3 ????, etc.) such high scores is amazing.This film is slow, but is very well acted, especially by Gandolfini, Janssen and Magaro. The story at first seems "pushed" but soon as the characters are developed you come to see these as real people with real issues (unlike the nonsense of most all of Tarantino's junk). Although slow, the plot moves along well and ends with a nice conclusion. Lastly, the cinematography develops the mood of the film and the dying (at least in winter) of the old Jersey shore perfectly.If you have to see multiple senseless killings with a 100+ decibel score, then skip this film, but if you want to see a well acted film about people, then I recommend Down the Shore.

Down the Shore is a small drama that soars way above your expectations. It concerns 3 childhood friends living in a small town whose lives are thrown into turmoil when a stranger comes to visit. It takes it time to set up the premise by which time you get to know the characters involved. With a smart script, it sucks you in and you quickly get involved in the lives of the characters. It never goes where you think it will and the acting throughout is just superb by all members of the talented cast. The sadly deceased James Gandolfino puts in a towering performance as a man tortured by the past. There is a melancholy air throughout the film accentuated by a sparse and bleak landscape. This is an intelligent film that deserves a much wider audience and is well worth seeking out.

Excellent. It is rare to see a film that is so unassuming and yet has the stuff that makes me want to be there- know more about it- want to see more- hear more. I know these people- Some of this story resonates like it happened in my life. It didn't have to be Gandolfini and Janssen- It could have been any of a hundred actors handling those parts. But seeing these great people on the screen really makes this movie even greater for me. I don't think I am steering you wrong to award this fine movie 8 of 10. I believe it is worth every point. And, yes, the writer doesn't tell you everything. Like so many other great movies a lot remains unsaid. I hope you enjoy it like I have.

DOWN THE SHORE is one of those little sensitive films that seems like it is lightweight until the secrets of the story begin to leak. It is a film about thwarted human relations that have a core of ill-define tragic misconceptions. It is well written (by Sandra Jennings), well directed (by Harold Guskin) and happens to provide a showcase for some inordinately gifted actors who usually are not given the attention they deserve.The film opens in Paris where a handsome Jacques (the very impressive Italian actor Edoardo Costa) is cranking a carousel for children in a little park. Observing him is a winsome Susan (Maria Dizzia) who speaks no French but in a rare moment of instant chemical gaze we can see that she and Jacques connect. Susan hires Jacques to be her guide while she is in Paris - and then we see them no more. The scene changes to 3 months later when Jacques comes to Susan's home in New Jersey, meets her brother Bailey (a brilliant role for James Gandolfini), informs Bailey that Susan is dead, and gives Bailey a letter and Susan's ashes and informs Bailey that he and Susan were married in France: the letter confirms that Jacques is to own half of Susan's house which she shared with Bailey and Jacques suggests he and Bailey be partners. Bailey runs a small carnival park on the Jersey shore and Jacques is able to help him bring life back into the children's rides.The other part of the story concerns Mary (Famke Janssen in excellent form) who is Bailey's childhood sweetheart but now married to Bailey's best friend, the covertly abusive crack addict Wiley (Joe Pope) who happens to own the little carnival park where Bailey works. Some talk between the two men suggests that their fathers were bad men but Wiley inherited his father's wealth and park and married Mary with whom he had a mentally challenged son Martin (John Magaro) while Bailey has remained single living with his sister Susan. The secrets of why Wiley is addicted to crack and physically abuses Mary while Bailey seems to do nothing about the woman he still loves is brought into focus by the wise Jacques, the one person who seems to be adjusted and happy despite his wife's recent death from cancer. In talks with both Bailey and Wiley, Jacques uncovers the horrid secrets that have bruised everyone's lives and what those secrets mean, and how the story works out must be withheld until the viewer experiences this film.A stronger cast could not be imagined for this well written, well-directed film. The degree of identification with absolutely every character in the film is truly remarkable. This is a tale of the maladaptation to secrets of the past. And one of the many beauties of the film is the manner in which much is left unresolved or unsaid at the end. Grady Harp