Monument Avenue MPAA Rating: R Entertainment: +1 1/2 Content: -4

There's very little honor among the thieves in an Irish neighborhood in Boston. Bobby OGrady (Denis Leary), his cousins and buddies work full time stealing from the more affluent nearby neighborhoods. In their spare time, the young men sniff cocaine. When their boss, Jackie (Colm Meaney), suspects one is a police informer, that member is quickly disposed of. The fatal shooting occurs in the gangs favorite bar, but Detective Hanlon (Martin Sheen) cannot penetrate the hoodlums code of silence. Bobby has to be especially careful not to upset Jackie because he is secretly having an affair with Jackies girlfriend, Katy (Famke Janssen). When Bobbys young cousin who just came from Ireland becomes a victim of violence, Bobby decides to take the law in his own hands. The most entertaining scenes are the car-stealing ones, which are slick and clever. Otherwise the movie lacks heroes, a love story, humor or even an interesting plot.

Saying that MONUMENT AVENUE has filthy language is an understatement. At least 210 f-words, 19 s-words and 14 other obscenities, plus 16 regular profanities assault the ears. Why do these drug-sniffing, healthy men choose crime as a livelihood? They have been brought up in devout Catholic families, and have passed their rebellious teenage years. Bobby is 33 years old, and we assume the others are about his age, except for the cousin in his late teens. Katy is a foul-mouthed, two-timing tramp who doesnt have any morals or purpose in her life. The film has no sex scenes, although Katy does spend a night snuggled up with Bobby on the living room sofa. The guys make several references to sex and make crude remarks about women while watching TV. Violence includes the fatal gunshot in the bar and a brief glimpse of the bloody corpse of Bobbys cousin. Especially disturbing, however, is that Detective Hanlon looks the other way when Jackie is shot down in cold blood. When the gang sees a young black man on the street, they terrorize him and yell terrible racial slurs at him. Frequent drinking, drug use, obscenities and profanities make MONUMENT AVENUE a monumental disappointment.

Preview Reviewer: Mary Draughon
Distributor: Lions Gate Releasing, 561 Broadway, Suite 12B, NY, NY 10012