Small Time

This is a rather stylized representation of a day in the life of a New York street mugger which blends the dialog and timing of a stage play with monochrome art film cuts to give an overview in several chapters of how a Small Time thug's routine escalates to the almost inevitable conclusion of murder. Early scenes of his home life show him almost relating to his mother and two half-siblings, all of whom rely on his street skills to keep them fed. Later he meets up with his work friends who pass the time between muggings by practicing their rap routines. Most of the film's running time is devoted to his pattern of stalking likely victims--usually older women--on the sidewalks and in the subways of New York. When the opportunity arises, he allows himself to be taken home for gay sex, but his anger always suggests a violent conclusion. By the time the hand gun appears, the conclusion is obvious, but the reasoning remains unclear. Vince is not an antihero, nor even a tragic victim, and why such a character rates his own movie is a question without an answer.