Synopsis: Corruption--personal and political--is the subject of this film, a piercing look at a decaying East Coast city. From the heights of City Hall, where favors are bought and sold, to the steaming streets, where petty punks are harassed by racist cops, Sayles explores every gritty detail of urban life. Weaving a story filled with humor and irony, he addresses the most volatile issues of city life: bigotry and violence.

Cast:
Vincent Spano .... Nick Rinaldi
Stephen Mendillo .... Yoyo
Chris Cooper .... Riggs
Tony Lo Bianco .... Joe Rinaldi
Joe Morton .... Wynn
Charlie Yanko .... Stavros
Jace Alexander .... Bobby
Todd Graff .... Zip
Scott Tiler .... Vinnie
John Sayles .... Carl
Frankie Faison .... Levonne
Gloria Foster .... Jeanette
Tom Wright .... Malik
Angela Bassett .... Reesha
David Strathairn .... Asteroid
Maggie Renzi .... Connie
Marianne Leone .... Joann
S.J. Lang .... Bauer
Anthony John Denison .... Rizzo
Kevin Tighe .... O'Brien

Favorite Quotes:
• "Turn out the light! Shut off the light! Turn out the light! Shut off the light!" - Asteroid

• Asteroid: "Help! Help! We need help!"
Jeanette: "Look, man, who the fuck are you?!"
Asteroid: "I am the lost. Who the fuck are you?!"

• "Nobody talks, nobody walks. Nobody talks, nobody walks." - Asteroid

• "Why settle for less when you can have it all? You can have it. You can have it all!" - Asteroid

• "We need help?! Yeah, help!? Over here! In the building! Help! Help! We need help!" - Asteroid

Notes:
• City of Hope reunited David with many other regular John Sayles actors, including Chris Cooper, Joe Morton, and Maggie Renzi. It was his fourth time working in a Sayles picture.
• For his brilliant portrayal as Asteroid, David won the Independent Spirit Award in 1992 for Best Supporting Actor.
• David's "appearance" as Asteroid was so convincing that on the first day of filming, he was initally banned from the set because the crew did not recognize him.

Critical Praise & Commentary:
• "The performances are so uniformly good that only a paid advertisement could possibly list everyone who deserves credit. In addition to those already mentioned, add the names of David Strathairn (as Hudson City's most conspicuous homeless person), Rose Gregorio as Nick's mother, Joe Grifasi as a City Hall wheeler-dealer, Gloria Foster as the mother of one of the two young muggers, Gina Gershon as Nick's sister, and Kevin Tighe as a detective on his way into politics." -Vincent Canby, New York Times

• "In all his [John Sayles] body of work there is no image as powerful as the final scene in City of Hope, a study in urban decay, where Strathairn, playing a town vagrant, wrings his hands and cries over and over, 'We need help! We need help!'" -Ella Taylor, LA Weekly

(David On His Role:)
• "City of Hope was one where I came close to what I was hoping to achieve." -David Strathairn, 2006

(John Sayles On David:)
• "So whether it was the mud boat guy he played in Passion Fish or Eddie Cicotte, who had to throw a real curve ball, or the crazy street guy in City of Hope, physicality is an important part of his acting." -John Sayles, co-star (Carl) & director