Lack of good storyline.

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

... the Southie that tried so hard from the Garrity era on down to portray themselves as Just Another Heart Of Gold (all-white) Community, or the one that really exists?This isn't a great movie. The production values are spotty, such plot as exists is threadbare, sound fades in and out, and you won't put the tape back in the box having learned much of anything.But paintings don't tell stories either; they're evocative mood-setting pieces, and so is this movie. Wahlberg doesn't put phony speeches in the characters' mouths, he doesn't have a happy ending, nothing much is resolved, and no one is any less of a mess than at the beginning. He presents you a moving image of a profane, drunken, violent environment that is a side of Southie the residents and the city of Boston would prefer you not see. It's there nonetheless.6/10.

I happened upon Southie one day while browsing through my local video store. Having grown up around Boston I was amazed that I did not hear of it before. Even though the DVD had a very `B' looking cover, I gave it a shot… I was very surprised! Donnie Wahlberg was very convincing as Danny Quinn, a Southie kid who returns home after a self-imposed exile. He finds his family slowly falling apart, and hears the neighborhood beckon him to return to a life of crime. If this sounds familiar, that's because it is! The script suffers from a lack of originality, but the interesting thing is that the dialogue is very well written, even though the theme is well trodden. The acting is also well done: James Cummings plays the film's principle antagonist Joey Ward, and manages not to go over the top, (as many others tend to in gangland films such as this). Rose McGowan is also wonderful as Danny's younger sister Kathy, who battles with alcohol addiction. Finally Lawrence Tierney gives a fine Cameo as a local `good' gangster. The only thing that is noticeably absent in this film is any drug use whatsoever. South Boston like many other urban neighborhoods has had many problems with drugs. The difference is that in Southie most live by a code of silence, and do not like to air dirty laundry about their community, whether it's true or not. That may explain why James Cummings, a South Boston native, didn't include any reference to them. Overall this is a fine film, which I recommend to anyone who enjoys the genre. The DVD also includes one of the best Cast/Director commentaries that I've ever experienced… A real treat!!!

Let me begin by saying that I have lived in Dorchester and South Boston all of my life, so my opinion may be a bit loaded. Let me also say that I have seen this movie before, 15 different times, all of which with a different title, the first and best version of this story being "Mean Streets" by Martin Scorcese.The idea of people battling against an urban environment for a better life is hardly anything new to American Cinema. it has been here since the early 70's. It has been done and done again. There are great films built around this theme. Some of which will be very hard to outdo.What is amazing is that the vast majority of scripts written by young men who grew up in similar surroundings continue to deal with these issues in less resilient and origional ways.In this film Donnie Wahlberg's 'Danny Quinn' is the ultimate candidate for the phrase, "you can take the boy out of the (insert town here), but you can't take the (insert town here) out of the boy". Arriving home after leaving town for a while Danny is dragged back into the vicious cycle that made him leave in the first place (gee, didn't see that one coming). Try as he might, he can't resist the gravity of his surrounding and is sucked into an blackhole of alcoholism, violence, and abuse. Like I said, nothing original. The film does explore some meaty drama with the Quinn mother played by Anne Meara, then she dies 3/4 of the way though the film, so that's that. The rest of the movie is color by numbers.I should note that the South Boston presented in this film is nothing like the South Boston of today. Yes, it is a mostly blue collar community, yes, the people there are mostly irish americans, yes it can be a tough place, and yes the people are very parochial (enter "forced bussing" into any search engine). However it is not the type of place where gangsters go around having shotgun fights, it hasn't been remotely like this since the 70's when Whitey Bulger's gang was in its heyday. While all of the negative attributes of the community and its history are examined in "Southie" none of the positive attributes are even touched upon. This does not hold true for the film "Southie" rode into cinemas and film festivals on the laurels of: Good Will Hunting (If ever there was true to life picture of a blue collar boston, this is it).Take a look at another recent film about a different Boston community, "Monument Ave". Though this movie suffers from the same cliche problems as "Southie", it explores a theme that many of Boston's blue collar residents can identify with. Set in charlestown, a neighborhood which is known for its "code of silence", the characters in this film squirm as they see their once closed off neighborhood become an area of blue chip real estate for young yuppies looking for an upscale urban home. In "Monument Ave." there is a clear juxtaposition between the violent, troubled townies and their new neigbors. This phenomenon holds true for the real South Boston as well, however the film "southie" does not even touch upon it.In the end it probably does not matter where the setting of the film was. The writers were from boston so they chose southie. It could have been the third moon of Jupiter, but it still wouldn't have made this film any more original, 3/10 stars.

This film drew me in right from the beginning. There was nothing that could possibly take my attention off of the TV. The acting is great, the actors and actresses are very deep and real. I recommended it to many of my friends and I would highly recommend it to anyone else. I am not the type of person that watches movies with action and some violence but this film totally moved me.