Family finds a way in ‘Fine-Tune’

By Guy D’Astolfo

Set in the 1970s, the film’s scenery stays true to the era.

“Fine-Tune” is a quirky and bright charmer with a spirit and sense of fun that informs every scene.

The debut project from Youngstown filmmaker Chris Rutushin is also a buoyant comedy, bobbing along on a surface above an undercurrent of poignancy.

It’s a lot like watching your own family movies: lots of laughs, but underneath it lies a sense of who you are. At times, it will even leave you choked up — but only for a moment.

Rutushin, who wrote and directed the film, has said it is based on stories of his own family and friends.

The film follows Jerry and Marie, a young newlywed couple living in Columbus who are drawn back to Youngstown when Marie’s grandmother dies. Rutushin makes use of that highway sign in Austintown at the I-80/-680 split that offers two choices: New York or Youngstown.

Marie’s parents guilt the young couple into moving in indefinitely with suddenly-alone Grandpa, who hasn’t liked the non-Italian Jerry since he failed to pick up Marie on prom night years before. Grandpa’s happy to have Marie around, but wages a war of terror against his shaggy-headed grandson-in-law.

Jerry, meanwhile, reconnects with Clay, an old friend who, like Jerry, is a pharmacist. But when the subtle racism of the early ’70s rears its head, Clay, who is black, and Jerry find themselves at odds.

Still, “Fine-Tune” doesn’t get heavy-handed. Things are what they are, and in the end, it’s nothing true friendship can’t survive.

It’s an example of the optimism that imbues the film, a source of strength that carries the family through the tough times. And that might be “Fine-Tune’s” ultimate message.

Brendan Gauntner is nearly perfect as Jerry, giving his character a cockeyed slacker cool. His bemused, occasionally bewildered character comes garnished with striped tube socks (or wide ties when he goes to work).

But the film revolves around Marie, capably played by Noelle Nackino. As the straight person amid a cadre of crazies, she carries the movie.

Stealing his every scene is John Maluso as the crusty and coarse Grandpa Vic. He’s a headstrong immigrant who can switch from English to Italian in midsentence, and menaces Jerry with a hilarious look of cool intention.

Rutushin’s clever camera angles give the audience a voyeur’s view of his hijinks as they unfold, which ratchets up the humor.

Barbara Malizia and Joe Martuccio play Marie’s mother and father; Jessie Black is her mouthy sister, Gina; and Regina Reynolds and John Kreuscher are Jerry’s parents. Kreuscher sports a cheesy mustache and a redneck mentality. Jonathan Eldell plays Clay, flashing anguish and anger.

Casting kudos also must extend to the film’s two dogs, especially the expressive mutt Bella.

Rutushin’s dedication to capturing the ’70s doesn’t end at clothing, and won’t go unnoticed to anyone who lived through the decade. Scour the background: The scenery stays true to its era.

There are yellow Ohio license plates, boxy rotary dial phones and plenty of old cars. And then there’s the unique-to-Youngstown touches: Handel’s original ice cream stand, the art-deco entrance of the Home Savings and Loan Building, and a scene inside the old-style Royal Oaks bar (with a campaign poster of presidential candidate George McGovern in the background). On second thought, Youngstown doesn’t have to change much to stand in for 1972!

With Rutushin’s innate knowledge of his hometown’s look and feel, he could wind up as a film auteur who uses Youngstown as his pallet, the way John Waters did with Baltimore. He’s indicated that he has such designs.

While watching “Fine-Tune,” you might be reminded of “All In the Family,” the ’70s sitcom in which hard-headed Archie did battle with his “meathead” son-in-law (a la Grandpa and Jerry). And the culture clash that occasionally flares when dealing with an old-school ethnic family is terrain traveled in “My Big Fat Greek Wedding.”

But Rutushin’s first feature-length film ultimately stands apart, and deserves a wider audience. Sure, it’s low budget and locally made with a largely amateur cast, but it hits the right tone from the start, and never strikes a sour note. It has likable characters and multiple storylines that get sewn up with satisfying results.