Booster

Set amidst Boston's less glamorous neighborhoods, the 2012 indie crime drama, Booster, is a narrative anchored around familial ties, broken dreams, moral dilemmas, and the stinging realities of urban existence. Matt Ruskin, known for his award-winning documentary work, ventures into narrative cinema with this provocative debut that balances a pungent realism with a compassionate humanistic core.

Nico Stone plays the lead, Simon, a gentle soul ocean-deep within the hardened exterior of a small-time thief. He works in a shoe store but moonlights as a car thief to help his brother, Abel, portrayed by Adam DuPaul, to pay off a large debt. The quiet intensity in Stone's eyes portrays Simon's conviction and desperation, firmly rooting the theater audience in his reality. DuPaul, meanwhile, manages to make Abel sympathetic without shedding his realistic, flawed edges.

The movie begins with a glimpse of a double life - Simon, by day working a respectable yet unfulfilling job selling shoes, and by night descending into the shadowy, dangerous side of Boston, stealing cars to pay off Abel's debt. Simon and Abel’s relationship is a significant anchor throughout the movie, cementing the bond between brothers that is willing to cross legal and ethical boundaries to spare the other from harm.

Veteran actor Seymour Cassel lends depth and credibility to the proceedings as Grandpa, the family's patriarch. He is unwittingly the emotional center and the movie checks frequently in with him, underscoring the contrast between grandfather and grandson, the elder a symbol of an upright life free of crime and the complexities his grandson has been trapped in.

Throughout the film, Ruskin deftly navigates through the narrative's maze of moral ambiguities, positioning characters in circumstances that are both personally damning and universally relatable. He explores the dichotomy of crime and conscience as intimately connected aspects of urban life. Ruskin's script also engages with the question of familial loyalty versus personal integrity, a theme that solidifies the narrative spine of Booster.

The cityscape of Boston is a character in its own right as opposed to a simple backdrop. Its gritty underbelly and the more attractive locales depict the binary existence of its inhabitants. Ruskin's documentary background seems to lend itself to his feature film debut, employing a naturalistic style that makes the cityscapes and urban milieus come alive with an unvarnished authenticity.

The film’s pacing is unhurried, allowing characters and relationships to breathe, simmer, and unfold organically. The movie carefully shuns excessive melodrama and embraces subtlety, which enables the audience to develop an emotional connection with the characters and their predicaments. Even the background music serves as an emotive tool, punctuating important scenes and complementing the atmospheric cinematography.

Where Booster truly shines, however, is in its suspense. The palpable tension builds throughout each car theft, making every car alarm, footfall, and police siren an ominous threat. The film's real triumph lies in the way it never lets go of this tension, turning even the more mundane, quiet moments into ticking time bombs.

Booster, with its clever mix of family drama and crime thriller, is a poignant tale of life's difficult choices, set against the backdrop of the less celebrated parts of Boston. The movie makes a point about the pressures that society and circumstance can place on a person's moral compass, twisting it until it no longer points towards the right.

In conclusion, Booster is a vivid portrayal of the complexities of urban life juxtaposed with the universal struggle between right and wrong. The film's strong performances, compelling narrative, atmospheric cinematography, and absorbing suspense together make it a must-watch for indie film enthusiasts and fans of thought-provoking cinema. Booster is a meditation on morality and a testament to the lengths one would go to preserve family ties and loyalty.