In The Soup (1992)

Steve Buscemi shines in this wry slice of New York low-life. He’s Adolfo Rollo, a struggling but earnest wannabe filmmaker who divides his time between fending off the landlords, lusting after his neighbour Angelica and touting his artsy 500-page film script to anyone he thinks might cough up a little finance. Getting nowhere on the last of these, he puts his project up for sale and is surprised to get a call from Joe, a small-time gangster-cum-playboy who seems interested in producing. Joe and Adolfo become unlikely buddies, but while Joe seems to have a genuine concern for his new friend’s welfare the promised funds for the film prove elusive.

Alexandre Rockwell swept the board at Sundance 1992 with this his fourth feature, winning both Special and Grand Jury prizes (knocking Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs into the rough). Based on his own experiences, it’s a consistently fresh, funny and sometimes rambling series of vignettes featuring finely-drawn character roles for a clutch of rising stars such as Sam Rockwell (no relation), Jim Jarmusch and Stanley Tucci, and more substantial performances from Jennifer Beals (the director’s wife at the time) as Angelica and John Cassavetes veteran Seymour Cassel as Joe.

This film is part of Cinema Rediscovered on Tour.