To begin all over again is a classic American dream, but it’s remarkably hard to do, as Irish émigrés Johnny and Sarah discover when they hit the streets of modern-day Manhattan, their two spunky young daughters in tow.  With no cash to spare, Johnny and Sarah settle into a chaotic New York tenement populated by junkies, drag queens, and assorted low-lifes, and attempt to turn a Gothic horror-movie setting into a true home. From dragging an iffy-looking air conditioner across Manhattan to finding make-do jobs, nothing comes without a fight for the couple. While they see America as rife with challenges, dangers, and weirdness, their daughters see it as a magical place where anything can happen: a place that might release them all from the anguish of what has come before. Then on Halloween, Christy and Ariel dare to knock on the door of “the screaming man,” a mysterious neighbor named Mateo, and everything changes. (2002)