The Yards

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The Yards

R

2000

1h 55m

Crime

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

65%

Tomatometer

95 Reviews

51%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

After serving time in prison for taking the fall for a group of his friends, Leo just wants to get his life back on track. So he goes to the one place he thinks will be safe -- home. There he takes a new job with his highly connected and influential uncle. But in the yards, where his uncle now pulls the strings, safe is not how they do business. Unwittingly, he's drawn into a world of sabotage, high stakes payoffs and even murder.

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Critics Consensus

Featuring strong performances and direction, The Yards is a richly textured crime thriller with an authentic feel.

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Richard Brody

The New Yorker

Jun 28, 2021

The tangle of family, business, and crime, with its resulting loyalties and betrayals, is the volatile stuff of which the drama is made.

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Todd McCarthy

Variety

Aug 5, 2008

An On the Waterfront wannabe, directed with a heavy portentousness that smothers the drama in a thick sauce of self-importance.

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Andrew Sarris

Observer

Apr 27, 2007

I can't remember when a film so well-acted and so well-rendered visually was also so oppressive to sit through.

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A.S. Hamrah

The Baffler

Sep 16, 2020

The outer boroughs in James Gray's New York are forlorn, and The Yards is a lament for a good-hearted white loser...

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Antonia Quirke

Independent on Sunday

Nov 28, 2017

It has a terrific subject, an unimprovable cast and a trio of trustworthy, even hip, producers. And no life.

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Nick Rogers

Midwest Film Journal

Dec 15, 2010

3.5/4

How "The Yards" shifts toward crime drama through character rather than pure plot is hard to disclose without divesting twists. Inspired by real-life scandal, James Gray lets personal insight color Shakespearean shenanigans of privilege, panic and power.

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Robert P

@Superbad Oct 19, 2026

The Yards is a *2.5* star Movie!

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Thomas V

@TomVee Sep 8, 2026

A slow burn tale of city corruption with fine performances from a stacked cast. There's some fine but not flashy cinematography as well, which really does a good job establishing its cynical tone and tense mood. In addition, there's just the right amount of action to keep audiences awake (it is noticeably slow paced, which isn't a criticism, just a fact).

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Jack H

@JackaDie Jul 12, 2026

i found this a surprisingly delicate film. It clearly deserves a higher RT score

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Matthew D

@OceanSage Jan 27, 2026

Darkness is in the train yards and the souls of wicked men in James Gray’s fantastic crime drama. Mark Wahlberg and Joaquin Phoenix are fantastic in James Gray’s dark and gritty crime drama The Yards (2000). I don’t know how I had not seen this, but it’s fantastic. Gray portrays the seedy underbelly of the corrupt business of train yards that have their own payoffs and mafia style hits to knee cap the competition. Mark Wahlberg is excellent as the perpetual fall guy Leo Handler. Wahlberg feels like a gullible, if well intentioned rube, who keeps taking the morally bankrupt path. Wahlberg gives one of his best acting performances in The Yards. Joaquin Phoenix is amazing as the sleazy Willie Gutierrez, who deals with bribes, all for his own benefit. He’s great as a selfish prick who would turn on his old friend. His lying and glares all look so sinister. Charlize Theron is gorgeous and touching as Phoenix’s Goth girlfriend Erica Soltz, who doesn’t know what type of guy she’s dating.

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keven q

@kevenquinlan Oct 7, 2025

It's ok. Worth a watch if you have nothing better to do. Great cast but the story doesn't really evolve into much and it ends rather abruptly and unceremoniously. I'm not going to keep it in my collection but not bummed I watched it.

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Arthur D

@RT98367285 Aug 4, 2025

Acting was good. Interesting plot and resolution to the issue. Sometimes it seemed to lag. At times the viewer did not know what was going to happen next.

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James Gray

Director

Mark Wahlberg

Leo Handler

Joaquin Phoenix

Willie Gutierrez

Charlize Theron

Erica Stoltz

James Caan

Frank Olchin

Ellen Burstyn

Val Handler

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56%

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Synopsis

After serving time in prison for taking the fall for a group of his friends, Leo just wants to get his life back on track. So he goes to the one place he thinks will be safe -- home. There he takes a new job with his highly connected and influential uncle. But in the yards, where his uncle now pulls the strings, safe is not how they do business. Unwittingly, he's drawn into a world of sabotage, high stakes payoffs and even murder.

Director: James Gray
Producer: Kerry Orent, Paul Webster, Nick Wechsler
Screenwriter: James Gray, Matt Reeves
Distributor: Miramax Films
Production Co: Miramax Films, Industry Entertainment
Rating: R (Scene of Sexuality|Language|Violence)
Genre: Crime, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Apr 27, 2000, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Oct 8, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $882.7K
Runtime: 1h 55m
Sound Mix: SDDS, DTS, Surround, Dolby Digital, Dolby SR
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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