Toronto. Chop Shop.

"From the moment I saw Ramin Bahrani's Man Push Cart at Sundance a couple years ago, I knew I'd found a filmmaker I was going to like," writes Kim Voynar at Cinematical. "I was disappointed it didn't do better off the fest circuit; it was one of the best independent films I saw that year, and I eagerly waited to see what Bahrani was going to do which his next film, and I'm pleased to be able to say that with Chop Shop, Bahrani has a solid follow-up." And she interviews Bahrani.

"Chop Shop is another film about making a hard living in New York City, and with more time to film and stunning performances by his very young actors, Bahrani has made an even more powerful film," writes Roger Ebert. "Now we have an American film with the raw power of City of God or Pixote, a film that does something unexpected, and inspired, and brave."

Updated through 9/26.

"I've written quite a bit about how much I loved Bahrani's debut feature, Man Push Cart," adds Jim Emerson, "from its opening shot to its final ingenious moment, and Chop Shop is a piece of filmmaking that is every bit as observant and assured."

"Though Chop Shop is an American film, it feels more like an Iranian movie or the Dardenne Brothers' Rosetta; Bahrani introduces something like a plot point in the late-going, but he mostly focuses, to riveting effect, on how his young hero hustles and claws through everyday life," writes Scott Tobias at the AV Club.

ST VanAirsdale talks with Bahrani for the Reeler.

Update, 9/26: David Walsh talks with Bahrani for the WSWS.

Posted by dwhudson at September 23, 2007 3:21 PM