Fresh Kills: the directorial debut of Jennifer Esposito and its reviews

Fresh Kills is a crime drama movie that released on 16 June 2023. American actress, Jennifer Esposito, 50 has turned writer and director with this film. And if the reviews are to be believed, the film seems to be making good at the box office. What inspired Jennifer to make such a film about tough women?

Fresh Kills, Jennifer Esposito’s new film

Fresh Kills is the 2023 film of American actress, Jennifer Esposito. Jennifer has acted in the film but with it she has also launched her writing and directing debut. Moreover, Jennifer is one of the producers of this film.

The film is a gripping drama that narrates the lives of the loyal womenfolk of a crime family that used to rule some boroughs of New York City in the last few years of the last century. On IMDb, this film has a rating of 8.9/10.

The women of the Larusso crime community were tough ladies who adapted to the circumstances when their world got uprooted. It is the story of a loving mother Francine (played by Jennifer herself) who has two daughters who are poles apart. Connie (played by Odessa A’zion) is of a destructive mentality while Rose (Emily Bader plays the role) is extremely dutiful. This young generation have to grow up in a turbulent atmosphere that keeps reminding them of who they are. Are they able to cope with this rough life? This film shows that women can be gangsters too and violence and ambition can be part of them too.

Jennifer’s inspiration and journey in making the film

Jennifer feels strongly for women. She feels that it is hard for women to find their voice in this world that keeps telling and reminding them to not have one. Jennifer got the idea of this film story at her age of 16 when she was staying at Staten Island. She was keen to know about the women behind the criminal men. Jennifer enlightened:

“It was something that haunted me seriously throughout my career. So, I was just to the point where I was getting so frustrated with roles,”

“So, I was like okay, I have to write this or I’m quitting. Because I was just so unfulfilled.”

For the last 13 years, Jennifer struggled to bring the film to life. She even mortgaged her house two times to raise some money for its making. She was under constant pressure to bring in a male star into the film or have an experienced director on board for it. But she managed to resist all these pressures and completed the project on her own. And her efforts shows. It is her pet project and Jennifer expressed:

“I get so emotional because it’s been such a journey. The only thing I ever wanted in this business — I didn’t care about fame, I didn’t care about the money, I don’t care about any of that stuff — I just wanted to connect with people to make art and make you feel something. Let’s talk about something. Let’s understand something,”

The outcome of Fresh Kills film

The outcome of her great efforts are obvious. Every word, scene, lighting, sound in the film is as per her imagination and vision. Her dream came true and she is elated. She said:

“I’m so happy this movie is going to get out to the world. Because it was, it was everything. It was my morning, my noon, my night, my dreams,”

The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. Though there were some weak points of the story, her idea, concept and direction did win accolades. Film critic Joey Magidson writes:

“Jennifer Esposito writes and directs Fresh Kills, and while the flick comes up short for me, there’s enough talent here to think she has a bright future in filmmaking. The actress has the germ of a great idea and directs her cast well, so with a better sense of pacing and a bit more meat on her story’s bones, she’d have something.”

Short bio on Jennifer Esposito

Jennifer Esposito is a beautiful and talented American actress. More Bio…

Martina Birk

Update: 2024-09-06

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