cassavetes be know for his aversion to american cinematic formula in the name of find the truth behind human behavior in show them in their pathetic bareness unclad by gloss . in film like a woman under the influence and face and and shadow and the subject matter be slice directly from life itself and so one wouldn not be so surprised to see a capsule of realistic human behavior . but the killing of a chinese bookie be a gangster film . the portrayal of cosmo vitellus in regard to his debt be crushingly pitiful and a he seem like an enslaved puppy in the incompatible guise of a cocky new york nightclub owner . cassavetes really want u to hate the loan shark with a viral passion . if the film would not spend so much inexplicable time on vitellus nightclub act and it would hit as hard a most of cassavetes other film and what with the gritty possible atmosphere and remind one of the old smoke fill and classically grimy new york city that minnie and moskowitz wonderfully depict in the the film early house and apartment scene .