South by Southwest 2023 Film Festival – There have been countless films about a troubled youth who suddenly finds a mentor and turns his life around. In that regard, Story Ave isn’t exactly reinventing the wheel. We’ve seen this premise before. However, the movie has two stirring performances at its center. That, coupled with the feature’s unabashed love for the Bronx and street art, gives a fresh spin on an otherwise overly familiar narrative.

Directed by Aristotle Torres, who co-wrote the film with Bonsu Thompson, Story Ave stars Asante Blackk as Kadir Grayson. After the death of his brother, he finds refuge in street art and joins a gang, led by Sean “Skemes” Hernandez (Melvin Gregg). Because he falls out with his family, specifically his mother, Olivia (Cassandra Freeman), Kadir seeks connection and community elsewhere. In order to join the gang, he has to pay dues, which involves robbery. He sticks up an MTA worker, Luis (Luis Guzmán), but instead of calling the police on the kid, he instead offers to mentor him and gives him a place to sleep. Because of this budding mentorship, Kadir tries to turn his life around and apply to art school, but Skemes isn’t going to let him walk away so easily.

Again, this isn’t a totally unfamiliar narrative. The troubled youth arc has been done plenty, but the interactions between Guzman and Blackk really elevate this movie. Guzman lends both comedy and gravitas to this role, playing a father figure to a young man whose pops bailed on the family. After notable roles in television, specifically “This Is Us” and the limited series “When They See Us,” Blackk proves with this role that he’s ready for film and has major star power. He gives a compelling performance here that lifts what otherwise would be a standard character that we’ve seen countless times. I have no doubt this kid is going to land plenty of other roles, or at least he should.

The movie also raises some fairly interesting questions about art. Eventually, because of his connections, Luis introduces Kadir to the gallery world, through a waitress/photographer Gloria (Coral Peña), whose boyfriend runs one of the biggest galleries in the neighborhood. Gloria believes her photographs are a statement against gentrification, while Kadir believes that his street art has more meaning and better represents the neighborhood as he sees it. He also feels like he’ll never fit into the gallery world, but his interactions with Gloria are some of the best sequences throughout the film, as they raise questions about what exactly the power of art is. Can art spark change? Is it better to showcase work in a gallery or can graffiti reach more people? These are questions Gloria and Kadir confront.

This is also a film where the setting is paramount. The Bronx very much feels like a living, breathing setting here, integral to the film, from the focus on specific neighborhoods, to subway stops, to the hip-hop that pulsates throughout the runtime. Overall, Story Ave is a decent coming of age film with fantastic performances by Blackk and Guzmán.  This is one beautiful love letter to both the Bronx and the power of art.

6.5 Out of 10