The Book, The Film, The T-Shirt
  • Home
  • News
  • Features
  • Movies
  • Books
  • TV
  • Gaming
  • Interviews
  • Competitions
DVD, Movies 0

Jamesy Boy (2014)

By Dave Griffiths @goodbaduglyshow · On January 19, 2015


The Gist:

Jamesy Boy is the biographically tale of street thug turned poet James Burns (Spencer Lofranco) who despite the best efforts of his mother, Tracy (Mary-Louise Parker) and his girlfriend, Sarah (Taissa Farmiga) falls on the wrong side of the tracks and finds himself in prison.

While in prison James finds himself tangling with the likes of violent gangbanger Guillermo (Taboo) which ultimately lands him in more trouble with the hardened warden, Lt. Falton (James Woods) who is quick to rise to anger when he feels his rules are not being obeyed. James finds himself even more confused by his life when he suddenly feels the need to protect a weaker prisoner named Chris (Ben Rosenfield) and when he forms a close bond with a rapist/murderer named Conrad (Ving Rhames) who is serving a life sentence.

The Review:

Jamesy Boy is the kind of the film that really annoys you. Annoys you because it has some moments of greatness but then at other times lets itself down with some of the smallest things that easily could have been corrected at any stage throughout the making of the film. As a result the film never really ever reaches the great heights that it should really reach, but at the same time is more than watchable and really draws you in and does more than enough to suggest that first time feature director Trevor White certainly has a nice career ahead of him as a Hollywood director.

The biggest problem with Jamesy Boy is that this is a film that needed to be gritty to make a real impact and instead it never really gets out of a gear that is normally suited for a daytime television movie. That in itself is a real crime that begins with the screenplay written by Lane Shadgett and Trevor White. The story of James Burns lends itself perfectly to a screenplay and it the right hands this would end up as a good crime drama/prison film that could be as gritty as anything that Larry Clark could ever come up with. Certainly Shadgett and White are on the right path early on. They set up a shattered relationship between James and his mother but it is never explored the way it should be. The same can be said for Crystal (Rosa Salazar) and the gang that James becomes involved with, the real threat and danger to James with them never comes across because they are so clichéd they never really seem dangerous.

Then there are the times when the screenplay does work and the film wins you back over. Some of the scenes involving James and Conrad or James and Guillermo work really, really well and it is during those scenes that the drama and tension that should be all throughout this film really comes to the fore. The disappointing thing about that though is it is never really there when it needs to be so the audience will at times feel really let down.

Perhaps the one thing that really stands out about Jamesy Boy though is the acting of Spencer Lofranco. While the script does let him down at times he does more than enough to show he has genuine talent. His baby face is a stark reminder of a young Leonardo DiCaprio in The Basketball Diaries and despite the material at hand he puts in a performance that isn’t too far off a very early Leo either. Taissa Farmiga, Taboo and Rosa Salazar also put incredible performances but it is James Woods who really comes to the fore with a strong portrayal of an angry Prison Warden despite the fact the character is written as a cliché.

The Verdict:

Jamesy Boy is a watchable film but people need to be warned that the film never ever really reaches its full potential. Still the story of James Burns is interesting enough and there are times when you find yourself wondering whether this going to be a tragic tale or a happy one.

Certificate: CTC

Director: Trevor White

Starring: Spencer Lofranco, Taissa Farmiga, Mary-Louise Parker, Taboo, James Woods, Ving Rhames, Rosa Salazar, BenRosenfield

Running Time: 109 minutes

Date of Release: TBA

Share this:

  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)

Related

Jamesy Boy (2014)
Dave Griffiths
January 19, 2015
3/10
3 Overall Score

Ben RosenfieldJames WoodsJamesy BoyMary-Louise ParkerRosa SalazarSpencer LofrancoTabooTaissa FarmigaTrevor WhiteVing Rhames
Share Tweet

Dave Griffiths

Dave Griffiths has worked as a journalist for over twenty years now -covering topics including film, television, music, travel and sport (with a main focus on AFL Football). That time has seen him host the popular X-Wired television program for seven seasons as well as write for various magazines such as Buzz Magazine, Heavy Mag, Stage Whispers, The Banner and Eternity.. He has even branched out into writing online for Subculture Entertainment, Media Search and The Book The Film The T-Shirt. He also worked as the online editor for Entertainment 360 for three years. Dave's radio work has seen him work on various radio stations including 3RPP, Triple R and Light FM. He is currently the resident film reviewer on Sydney's 2UE radio station and can be heard reviewing what is new at cinemas and on DVD each week on Wednesdays at 3pm with Ed Phillips. He is also the co-host of Melbourne's 94.1FM's breakfast show 'The Motley Crew' and he can sometimes be heard on J-Air's 'First On Film'. David is also the co-host of two popular podcasts - ‘The Good, The Bad, The Ugly Film Show,' and 'The Popcorn Conspiracy' As far as Film Reviewing goes David is an elected committee member of AFCA (Australian Film Critics Association and a member of IPRESCI (International Federation of Film Critics)/FIPRESCI (Fédération Internationale de la Presse Cinématographique). He has also served as a jury member for a number of international film festivals and is considered an expert on cult cinema, horror movies and Australian films.

You Might Also Like

  • Movies

    Haunted Mansion Review

  • Movies

    The Moon Review

  • Movies

    BlackBerry Review

No Comments

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Subscribe & Follow

Follow @thebookthefilm
Follow on Instagram
  • Popular
  • Comments
  • Tags
  • The Rise of Lockdown Streaming

    May 3, 2020
  • Salvo (2014)

    September 27, 2014
  • Penny Dreadful S1 EP 3 ‘Resurrection’ & EP 4 ‘Demimonde’ Review

    June 22, 2014
  • Pet Movie

    Spoiler Alert – Top 5 Horror Movie Twists

    March 17, 2017
  • warner bros. for her dvd collection

    Christmas Gift Guide: For Her – Heart Warming DVDs

    December 14, 2016
  • Win a copy of The Apartment on Limited Edition Blu-ray Courtesy of Arrow Academy

    December 23, 2017
marvel Ben Affleck J.K. Simmons Jai Courtney Amy Adams Chris pratt Jason Clarke Hugh Jackman Emilia Clarke Henry Cavill benedict cumberbatch Sky Atlantic Scarlett Johansson Liam Neeson Tom Cruise Mark Wahlberg Terminator: Genisys Daniel Craig
  • Home
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Affiliate Disclosure

ABOUT

Over opinionated and online. The Book, The Film, The T-Shirt was created for lovers of entertainment everywhere. We hope you enjoy it. Don't feed the writers after midnight.

Sign up for our newsletter!

* = required field

Latest News

  • 5

    Titanium Noir Review

    November 6, 2023
  • 3.5

    Haunted Mansion Review

    August 31, 2023
  • 4.5

    The Moon Review

    August 27, 2023

SEARCH THE SITE

HIBS100 Index of Home and Interior Blogs
HIBS100

© 2016 Last Exit to Hollywood Media Limited. All rightsreserved. “As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.”