Before zero tolerance policy promotes by the Mayor Guliani in the 1990ies, New York seemed to a be really nasty place - as we can follow in the movie in question, where robberies, desolated industrial areas, shootings, pointless graffiti, etc. set the tone for the background people had to deal with. And the activities to find another way, to cope and thrive without violence and malpractice, seemed almost an impossible task - as we can see via the Morales family, decently performed by Oscar Isaac (as Abel) and Jessica Chastain as Anna; the latter was the practical mastermind, while Abel aimed at communication, explanation and dissuasion... So, the main topic was than one can achieve success by combining them only? Plus some other wise ideas, but all this was depicted in a protracted manner at times, the thrill lost flesh, and many obvious scenes became recurrent, paving the way for predictable ending (a small twist there did not provide any additional value).

All in all, not a bad movie, but as for movies dealing with similar topic or period, there are dozens that are more versatile, more catchy, like Carlito's Way or Chinatown.