Stories of imperfect parents, broken children, and the toll divorce takes on a family are as common as hand-me-down clothes, but few arouse the firsthand dramatic intensity and heartbreak of Tom Quinn’s The New Year Parade. Sandwiched between a pair of Philadelphia’s Mummers Parade — an elaborate display with almost as many moving parts as a family in disarray — it’s clear that Mike (Andrew Conway) is losing control of his clan. Wife Lisa (MaryAnn McDonald) cheated on him, yet their two grown children, Jack (Greg Lyons) and his younger sister Kat (Jennifer Welsh), appear to be siding with mom. Kat learns of the pending divorce from gossip in her father’s bar, Jack contemplates jumping ship for another band, and at several points in the proceedings, the children act as therapists for their parents. The parade, an annual tradition passed down from father to son, gives the film its through line as Mike’s South Philadelphia String Band prepares for next year’s competition. Shot over a period of four years and largely improvised by a cast of non-professionals committed to seeing Quinn’s vision through to the end, the finished product is so seamlessly integrated as to leave the impression of a hidden-camera documentary. (2008) — Scott Marks
This movie is not currently in theaters.