This film is about the turbulent childhood of a writer who published his memoir of his days in a rough neighbourhood.
"A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints" tells a depressing story where life is very tough for the residents of the neighbourhood. It is plagued by violence as the residents seem to have poor impulse control. Even though I like Channing Tatum and Shia LeBeouf, their characters (and all other characters) seem to wander around the neighbourhood looking for fights, making them rather unlikable characters.
With so much swearing and violence, it would be easy to think it is a gangster film. Of course, it is a personal film for the writer and director, hence the pacing is slow. Events in the film are bad, but they are not particularly cinematic, and not interesting for the big screen. I find the film boring and not engaging. The thing that bug me the most is that the film doesn't make any mention of any types of saints, either directly or metaphorically. I am disappointed by "A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints", as it could have been an engaging and emotional drama with a very strong cast.
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