
In the rail yards of Queens, contractors repair and rebuild the city's subway cars. These contracts are lucrative, so graft and corruption are rife. When Leo Handler gets out of prison, he finds his aunt married to Frank Olchin, one of the big contractors; he's battling with a minority-owned firm for contracts. Willie Gutierrez, Leo's best friend, is Frank's bag man and heads a crew of midnight saboteurs who ruin the work of the Puerto Rican-owned firm. Leo needs a job, so Wi... (Full plot summary below)
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In the rail yards of Queens, contractors repair and rebuild the city's subway cars. These contracts are lucrative, so graft and corruption are rife. When Leo Handler gets out of prison, he finds his aunt married to Frank Olchin, one of the big contractors; he's battling with a minority-owned firm for contracts. Willie Gutierrez, Leo's best friend, is Frank's bag man and heads a crew of midnight saboteurs who ruin the work of the Puerto Rican-owned firm. Leo needs a job, so Willie pays him to be his back-up. Then things go badly wrong one night, a cop IDs Leo, and everyone now wants him out of the picture. Besides his ailing mom and his cousin Erica, to whom can Leo turn?
Leave your thoughts about The Yards.
| Suite101.comNick RogersHow "The Yards" shifts toward crime drama through character rather than pure plot is hard to disclose without divesting twists. Inspired by real-life scandal, James Gray lets personal insight color Shakespearean shenanigans of privilege, panic and power. |
| Independent on SundayAntonia QuirkeIt has a terrific subject, an unimprovable cast and a trio of trustworthy, even hip, producers. And no life. |
| Chicago TribuneMichael WilmingtonShines whenever we see the performances of Phoenix and Caan. |
| Boxoffice MagazineLael LoewensteinGray's writing is so smart and his direction so forceful that it gives the material exceptional texture and depth. |
| CNN.comPaul Clinton (CNN.com)One of the best dramatic films to come out of Hollywood this year. |
| City Pages, Minneapolis/St. PaulRob NelsonThe Yards appears greater than the sum of its old sources, in part because its hero wouldn't know a cliché if it pressed two Knicks tickets in his hand and told him there's more where those came from. |
| Los Angeles Daily NewsGlenn WhippIt can't help being smothered by the filmmaker's desire to create a story straight out of The Godfather or Greek mythology. |
| Detroit Free PressTerry LawsonA well-acted and socially earnest, if rather routine, ride. The Yards makes no unexpected stops. |
| Film.comPeter BrunetteDon't be misled by claims that you've seen this one already. You haven't, and you should. |
| Los Angeles TimesKevin ThomasSo strong and secure in its remorseless movement that you buy into what's happening, its people so firmly gripped in the vise of fate and their own character flaws. |