Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Chop Shop Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman March 8, 2021

How would you define the so-called “American Dream”? A lot of people tend to associate it with home ownership for some reason, though (and I’m joking here) as someone who has just decided to rent after decades of home ownership, I can tell you having your own house can sometimes be the American Nightmare. Other folks make the term a bit more broad based, maybe even just slightly evanescent, in that the “Dream” is simply the opportunity to succeed and enjoy (as some wise person put it) life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, whether or not that includes owning a home. Some who are prone to naysaying immigrants, claiming they don’t have “the right stuff” to chase the American Dream (whatever that may be), might be in for a bit of a shock with regard to Chop Shop, since focal character 12 year old Alejandro, who goes by the nickname of Ale (Alejandro Polanco), would seem to be the very embodiment of a “go getter” out to better his life in America, despite his young age. That said, little Ale is confronted by a harsh and unforgiving environment in Queens that would hardly seem to be a firm foundation for any kind of dreaming, American or otherwise.

Kind of ironically, at least for anyone who has achieved their verson of the American Dream and found success in whatever field they're pursuing, and especially for those in the Arts, there is often what is called a "sophomore slump", where initial acclaim for some premiere project is followed up by something not nearly as triumphant. In that regard, co-writer and director Ramin Bahrani seemed to avoid this potential pitfall with Chop Shop, which was his second film after the recently reviewed Man Push Cart. While it's true that neither of these films exactly set the box office on fire, both were greeted with pretty unanimous critical acclaim and at times vociferous audience support, at least for those who did manage to see either of them. Both films were also massively feted at various festival screenings, and the two make a rather interesting and insightful pair of stories that explore the immigrant experience in New York City, albeit in different boroughs (Man Push Cart takes place in Manhattan, while Chop Shop, as mentioned above, plays out in Queens).

As Bahrani and some of his collaborators get into in the enjoyable commentary included on this disc as a supplement, the very opening of Chop Shop is almost discursive in that the obviously "too young to work" Ale is part of a gaggle of guys desperately trying to get hired for day labor. Ale is so motivated that, despite not being chosen by some guy in a truck trying to pick up workers, he jumps into the back of the pickup anyway. The driver pulls over and hoists Ale out of the cargo bed, gives him a little money for food, and sets him on his way. While subtle, this initial interaction tends to offer at least the hint of some real humanity in the hardscrabble life of people like Ale, in terms of some stranger at least giving him a few bucks. While Ale is frequently surrounded by schemers, if not dreamers, he is also helped by various people, both "natives" and other immigrants.

Among the helpers is a man named Rob (Rob Sowulski), who owns one of the many titular "chop shops" that are a staple of the neighborhood known as Willets Point. Rob not only hires Ale as a kind of intern who is tasked with various menial jobs like cleaning at the end of each work day, he also lets Ale stay in the place, which has both a room for sleeping and a bathroom. Later, Ale connects with his older sister Isamar (Isamar Gonzales), inviting her to live with him, since her stay at a so-called "safe house" has evidently been anything but safe. Meanwhile, Ale and his best friend Carlos (Carlos Zapata), who have already been seen as nascent capitalists selling candy on the subway, decide to join forces to buy an old van belonging to one of Carlos' relatives, in the hope that they can convert it into something along the lines of the food cart that is front and center in Bahrani's previous film.

There's both hope and hopelessness in Chop Shop, and it may be up to individual viewers which aspect tends to weigh more heavily as the story comes to a somewhat ambivalent close. Ale is such a highly motivated little boy, albeit with maybe just a hint of larceny lurking beneath the surface, that it's hard to imagine him not becoming successful. And yet there's such an immense stack of obstacles surrounding him, it's equally hard to see him prospering in any meaningful way. In both this film and Man Push Cart, Bahrani tends to rip the scab off of what might be called the American Delusion (as opposed to a "mere" Dream), namely that succeeding in the United States is simply a function of one's internal fortitude.

As the commentary gets into, not only are "everyday" New Yorkers featured prominently in the film (the commentators remark how hilarious it is that none of them ever look at the camera, they just accepted that it was there), the non-professional "actors" at the core of the film are just as revelatory. Polanco in particular gives an absolutely remarkable and unforgettable performance, and he's matched by several others.

Chop Shop Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Chop Shop is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of The Criterion Collection with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.78:1. Criterion only sent a check disc for purposes of this review, and so I'm not privy to any verbiage about the transfer that might be included in the insert booklet, but as was the case with Man Push Cart, Criterion's website mentions that this is a "High-definition digital master, supervised and approved by director Ramin Bahrani, with 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack on the Blu-ray. While you may still be able to see a smattering of noise in darker sections of the frame (including in some of the screenshots accompanying this review), to my eyes this is a much more pleasing overall presentation than the somewhat fuzzy looking Man Push Cart. Clarity is typically excellent, especially in the many outdoor scenes, and the palette looks natural throughout, though the film's generally drab environments may mean that traditional "pop" may come as much from a brightly colored car chassis as from anything else. Fine detail is also generally very good in close-ups. The almost verité aspect of some of the film can lead to some understandably slight fluctuations in detail levels.

Chop Shop Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Chop Shop features a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track that nicely supports a glut of ambient environmental sounds in the frequent outdoor scenes. The clamor of Willets Point is nicely detailed in several sequences, but even "quieter" moments capture the echo laden environment of the interior of the shop where Ale and Izzy hole up. There are some very minor amplitude ebbs in what I'm assuming were live, "on the fly" takes out in the urban environments the film uses as locations, but dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly. The film has some source cues, but as is mentioned in the supplements, doesn't really have a traditional "score". Optional English subtitles are available.

Chop Shop Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary stems from 2006, and features Ramin Bahrani along with director of photography Michael Simmonds and star Alejandro Polanco.


• In Search of the American Dream (1080p; 26:46) is a rather beautifully done 2020 (Zoom like) conversation between Ramin Bahrani and author Suketu Mehta where they discuss both Man Push Cart and Chop Shop within the context of immigrants attempting to chase that ever elusive American Dream.


• Making Chop Shop (1080p; 22:21) is another 2020 piece featuring Ramin Bahrani along with assistant director Nicholas Elliott, and co-stars Alejandro Polanco and Ahmad Razvi.


• Rehearsal Footage (1080p; 20:25) documents Bahrani's attempts to incorporate improvisations into the final product.


• Trailer (1080p; 2:42)

Criterion only sent a check disc for purposes of this review, but their website states that an included insert booklet contains an essay by Viet Thanh Nguyen.

Chop Shop Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Even those who are firm believers in the reality of the American Dream may find their faith at least a little shaken by the one two punch that Bahrani delivers with Man Push Cart and Chop Shop. This second effort may in fact be even more devastating since children and other relatively young people are featured so prominently. Technical merits are solid and the supplementary package nicely done. Recommended.