“BOARDWALK INTERVENTION”

By Raymond Benson

This small film, which actor/co-producer/co-writer Jon Cryer says could be made 200 times for the budget allotted to Titanic, is an absolute gem.

Written by Cryer and director/co-producer Richard Schenkman, Went to Coney Island… is part coming-of-age story, part mystery, and part social problem film. The latter category encompasses the tackling of mental illness, homelessness, and what one’s obligation might be to a loved one—or simply a friend—who has ceased to function in society.

Daniel (Cryer), Stan (Rick Stear), and Richie (Rafael Báez) have been friends since they were five, growing up on New York streets but basically living a normal existence as precocious, middle-class American boys. As teens, Stan underwent a botched medical procedure to correct a problem with his leg and was left with a permanent limp, brace, and cane. Richie has a reputation as a ladies’ man, but he holds a secret that he can’t reveal. Daniel is the straight-arrow and probably the most intelligent of the trio.

In the present day the threesome is in their thirties. Daniel works a regular job in a pawn shop/jeweler, and Stan is an alcoholic and has a gambling problem. The woman in his life, Gabby (Ione Skye), has about had it with him. Richie is simply… missing in action. He disappeared years earlier after a tragedy occurred in his family. One day, Stan hears that Richie is homeless and living under the boardwalk in Coney Island. Using a childhood code for ditching school and doing something more “important,” Stan tells Daniel that they have a “mission from God”—they must go to Coney Island and look for Richie.

It’s winter, so Coney Island is mostly closed-down except for a handful of sleazy shops and midway attractions. The once famous amusement park is practically a ghost town, on its way to oblivion. Daniel and Stan make their way around the area, encountering various misfits and wackos, until they do indeed find their long, lost friend. Richie isn’t in good shape. What follows is an intervention of sorts, as well as a redemption for the two main protagonists.

Told in numerous flashbacks and contemporary (1998) scenes, Went to Coney Island masterfully draws the viewer into the intimate lives of the characters. It explores their inner demons, but it also exhibits what it means to be true friends. While this might sound like a dire experience, much of the picture is hilarious. The various weirdos and how Daniel/Stan react to them provides the kinds of laughs one might find in a John Hughes picture—only these have a little more bite. This is “dramedy” at its best.

Both Cryer and Stear are excellent in their roles. Schenkman’s direction is pitch-perfect, easily pushing the movie to the top of his eclectic body of work. The way the flashbacks to the 1980s are handled reveal sensitive insight on the mood and sensibility of the era. Schenkman’s handling of the Coney Island sequences evokes a wide palate of moods and imagery.

This is art-house cinema of the highest order.

MVDvisual’s new High Definition Blu-ray release incorporates a frame-by-frame digital restoration from original 35mm film elements, and it looks spectacular. The main feature comes with 5.1 Surround Audio (uncompressed PCM) and 2.0 stereo, plus an audio commentary by both Schenkman and Cryer. The pair also appear in a new, short introduction to the film. Supplements include a behind-the-scenes featurette that contains new and vintage footage; The Producer, a comedy short from the period directed by Schenkman; a photo gallery; and the original theatrical trailer. A mini-poster comes in the package.

Went to Coney Island on a Mission from God…Be Back by Five could stand alongside such low-budget classics as My Bodyguard, Breaking Away, and sex, lies and videotape. Check it out.

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