A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints is a 2006 coming-of-age drama film directed by Dito Montiel, based on his memoir of the same name. The film stars Robert Downey Jr. as Dito Montiel, Shia LaBeouf as young Dito, Channing Tatum, Rosario Dawson, Chazz Palminteri, and Dianne Wiest.
The story is set in 2005, as Dito receives the call from his mother asking him to return home to Astoria, Queens, to visit his father who is seriously ill. Dito reluctantly agrees, having left the neighborhood over twenty years ago and never returned. As he travels back to his old neighborhood, he begins to relive memories of his past, growing up in a rough neighborhood with his friends and family.
The film uses flashbacks to show scenes from Dito's teenage years in the late 1980s, when he was a troubled young man. His friends also had their own problems; Antonio (played by Tatum) was a tough guy with a violent temper, Giuseppe (played by Adam Scarimbolo) was a quiet and introverted boy, Nerf (played by Peter Anthony Tambakis) was a drug dealer, and Mike (played by Martin Compston) was a Scottish transplant who ended up with the wrong crowd.
As Dito revisits his old stomping grounds, he also reconnects with some of his old friends and family members, including Laurie (played by Dawson), his former girlfriend who now has a teenage daughter, and his father Monty (played by Palminteri), who is suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Throughout the film, Dito confronts his complicated past and comes to terms with the people and events that shaped him. The film received critical acclaim for its raw and honest portrayal of teenage life, violence, and redemption.
