Five Boroughs and a handful of genres equals hundreds of great films celebrating life in New York … or fearing it. For most of the worlds non-New Yorkers our first exposure to the Big Apple is through film. Film gives us our first glimpse of Central Park, the Empire State Building, the Statue of Liberty, Wall Street and Times Square. Some films make Manhattan elegant and regal and others give us a dark city filled with crime and depravation.
The truth is the New York of the silver screen is primarily a fantasy whether we see it like the protagonist in Woody Allen’s Manhattan where it’s “idolized it all out of proportion”, or portrayed as a nightmare of Martin Scorsese. Woody and Marty each contribute 8 and a third films to this list. Perhaps somewhere between the two divergent views of these legendary directors is an element of truth.
What follow is not a list of the best films of New York City but an alphabetical listing of memorable films many of which are among my personal favourites. In some of these films NYC is almost as much a character as it is a setting.
An Affair To Remember (1957) d. Leo MacCarey
One of the all-time great RomComs with the iconic Empire State Building scene that was so good it was recycled in Sleepless In Seattle.
After Hours (1985) d. Martin Scorsese
Griffin Dunne spends a hellish night in SoHo bouncing from one neurotic woman to another. This low budget gem may not be as bleak as Taxi Driver but it will haunt you while it makes you laugh.
After Hours
Alice (1990) d. Woody Allen
Starring Mia Farrow, Joe Mantegna and William Hurt.
American Hustle (2013) d. David O. Russell
Starring Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Jennifer Lawrence, and Bradley Cooper. Lots of Jersey in this one. Great costumes, hair and performances. Like Wolf of Wall Street, American Hustle was nominated for multiple Oscars in 2014 but was shut out.
American Psycho (2000) d. Mary Haron
Starring Christian Bale, Willem Dafoe, Jared Leto and Chloe Sevigny.
Annie Hall (1977) d. Woody Allen
Obviously not just a great New York film but a great film period. The chemistry between Dianne Keaton and Woody Allen is at it’s peak and the script, (co-written by Marshall Brickman & Allen) finds the perfect balance between Woody’s earlier comedy farces and his later serious films that examine relationships. It all paid off with Oscar Wins for Best Film, Best Director, Best Screenplay and Best Actress. AFI listed Annie Hall at number 38 in the best American films ever made. Unfortunately many of the Manhattan locations in the film no longer exist.
Annie Hall
The Apartment (1960) d. Billy Wilder
Nominated for 10 Academy Awards and the winner of five (Best Picture, Best Director, Best Writing, Best Editing, Best Art Direction). You can’t lose with Billy Wilder writing and directing. Throw in Jack Lemon, Shirley MacLaine and Fred MacMurray and you’ve got a winner for the ages. The Apartment is a smart modern tale about sexual dalliances and office politics that feels like it could have been part of a Mad Men storyline and it’s totally New York. The Apartment in question sits along Central Park West.
Barefoot in the Park (1967) d. Gene Saks
Starring Robert Redford and Jane Fonda.
Big (1988) d. Penny Marshall
Starring Tom Hanks and Elizabeth Perkins. I’m pretty sure you’ve seen this one. Sadly F.A.O. Shwartz – the toy store with the floor piano and the Chopsticks scene – is no more.
Birdman (2014) d. Alejandro G. Inarritu
Shot in and Around the St. James Theatre on 43rd street Birdman (or The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) won the Academy Award in the categories of Best Picture, Best Director and Best Screenplay. Probably the standout moment in an otherwise dialogue heavy film is when Michael Keaton’s character, Riggon, inadvertently locks himself out of the backstage door in his underwear and is forced to walk through Times Square in his skivvies to get back in to the theatre.
Birdman
Breakfast At Tiffany’s (1961) d. Blake Edwards
One of the most famous of all New York movies features Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly, un upscale flibbertigibbet in a little black dress, sort of the antithesis of Ratso Rizzo. The film won the Academy Award for Henry Mancini’s ‘Moon River’.
Breakfast At Tiffany’s
Bringing Out The Dead (1999) d. Martin Scorsese
An underrated gem about a burned out New York paramedic played by Nicholas Cage. If you get a chance to see this film make sure you do. John Goodman and Patricia Arquette co-star. The score is by the legendary Elmer Bernstein.
Broadway Danny Rose (1984) d. Woody Allen
Starring Woody Allen and Mia Farrow. An absolute comedy classic. The helium scene is killer.
Brooklyn (2015) d. John Crowley
Starring Saoirse Ronan. Written by Nick Hornby, Nominated for Best Picture Oscar. The charm of Brooklyn is it’s understatement as it tells the story of a young Irish immigrant who arrives in Brooklyn, struggles with homesickness, falls in love, and then must choose between her heart and her homeland.
Bullets Over Broadway (1994) d. Woody Allen
Set in 1928, Bullets concerns a gangster played by Chazz Palminterri who turns out to have a knack for playwriting, while the artists and intellectuals of the film sit around pondering and speculating but accomplishing nothing. The film was nominated for seven academy awards, and features the art deco interior of the Edison Hotel, the Belasco Theatre on West 44th Street, and obligatory Central Park scenes.
Bullets Over Broadway
Chelsea Girls (1966) d. Andy Warhol
A film (sort of) that is a quintessential piece of New York art. There’s no landmarks. No cabs, no “I’m walkin’ here!” What there is is Andy and his camera capturing the musings of the Factory denizens
Cloverfield (2008) d. Matt Reeves
Godzilla does NYC. Starring Lizzy Caplan and Zorak.
The Crowd (1928) d. King Vidor
Vidor’s stunning silent classic about the life of a working man and his family in New York mixes the influence of the German impressionist cinema with realism. The film contains a jaw-dropping montage of early 1920’s New York that must be seen.
Death Wish (1974) d. Michael Winner
Shot on location in the mid Seventies Death Wish caused an uproar because of its on-screen violence and pro-vigilante message but the film was popular enough to create an entire Death Wish franchise.
Death Wish
Do The Right Thing (1989) d. Spike Lee
Spike’s classic about a day in the life of the neighborhood of Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn is the cinematic equivalent of one of the colourful wall murals to be found in Bed-Stuy. A brilliant script brought to life through great performances by Ossie Davis,Samuel L. Jackson, Danny Aiello and John Turturro makes Do The Right Thing one of the best New York films ever.
Do The Right Thing
Dog Day Afternoon (1975) d. Sidney Lumet
Starring Al Pacino, Charles Durning and Lance Hendrickson. DDA won an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.
Dressed To Kill (1980) d. Brian DePalma
A Hitchcockian thriller with some memorable location segments on the subway and in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. In his review of the film Roger Ebert said, “the museum sequence is brilliant”. Dressed To Kill stars Michael Caine, Angie Dickinson, Nancy Allen and Keith Gordon.
Escape From New York (1981) d. John Carpenter
Long before the film version of the Marvel Universe started tearing up Manhattan in the Spider-man and Avengers franchises John Carpenter gave us this action classic. Inspired by the dystopic NYC of Death Wish John Carpenter created the Babe Ruth of Bad Ass New York films. The Rotten Tomatoes review of Escape described it as “a strange, entertaining jumble of thrilling action and oddball weirdness”. Hey, sounds like a description of any given day in New York so I guess Carpenter nailed it.
Escape From New York
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (2011) d. Stephen Daldry
A post9/11 tearjerker that pulls a little to hard on the heart strings. Starring Thomas Horn, Max von Sydow, Sandra Bullock and Tom Hanks.
Eyes Wide Shut (1999) d. Stanley Kubrick
This meditation on trust, fidelity, jealousy and lust was the last film Kubrick would compete and was the last time Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman would work together. And incredibly the Greenwich Village in the film is not actually shot on location but a set constructed in England. Stanley was a tricky one!
Fisher King (1991) d. Terry Gilliam
Nominated for six Oscars the Fisher King romps across Manhattan and into Brooklyn as a talk radio host played by Jeff Bridges tries to redeem himself from ruining the life of a man who is now homeless, played by Robin Williams.
Fisher King
Five Corners (1987) d. Tony Bill
This quirky crime drama is set in the Bronx of 1964 and stars John Turturro, Jodie Foster and Tim Robbins. It’s produced by George Harrison’s Handmade Films which helped give ‘little’ films a much needed push in the eighties.
The French Connection (1971) d. William Friedkin
Is it the greatest non-Woody, non-Marty NYC film? It very well could be. The French Connection was the winner of five major Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Screenplay, and Best Editing. Of course it also features one of the best chase scenes ever filmed – car vs. subway and it features the classic ugly/gritty New York of the early 1970’s.
The French Connection
Gangs of New York (2002) d. Martin Scorsese
What do you do when you’ve been telling the story of New York street violence for thirty years? Tell the story of New York street violence 150 years ago. And then pick up a truckload of Oscars for it including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Screenplay, Best Editing, Best Cinematography … I’m hoping someday Marty will give us the NY sci-fi epic Manhattan 3333 A.D.
Ghostbusters (1984) d. Ivan Reitman
Someone suggested I consider Ghostbusters for the list and I was surprised to see just how location heavy the film actually is. The movie starts at the Public Library on 5th Avenue, then goes on to hit the Lincoln Center, the Manhattan Bridge, Columbus Circle, Columbia University, Times Square, City Hall, 30 Rock – the Busters get around! Dana Barrett’s apartment is located at 55 Central Park West & 66 Street not far from the Dakota, while the Ghostbusters HQ is at North Street & Varick in Tribeca.
HQ of the Ghostbusters
Godfather 1 & 2 (1972 / 1974) d. Francis Ford Coppola
It’s pretty much all been said about these two films which many consider to be the best one-two punch in the history of cinema. This list does not consist of many films with Staten Island locations yet the Corleone household still stands, located at 110 Longfellow Avenue on Staten Island. Obviously we get lots of Little Italy locations throughout. One of the things that makes The Godfather films such spectacular viewing is the cinematography of Gordon Willis who went on to shoot the Woody Allen films Annie Hall, Interiors, Manhattan, Stardust Memories, Zelig, Broadway Danny Rose, and The Purple Rose of Cairo. In 1990 Gordon Willis joined Coppola to shoot The Godfather Part III.
Goodfellas (1990) d. Martin Scorsese
It’s Goodfellas, People. Freakin’ Goodfellas. F’get about it! (The film was nominated for six Academy Awards for Picture, Director, Editing, Screenplay, Supporting Actress & Supporting Actor yet only Joe Pesci won for Supporting Actor. F’get about it, indeed.)
Director Martin Scorsese and his Goodfellas cast
Ball of Fire (1941) d. Howard Hawks
Starring Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck. A mob connected moll hangs out with a group of professors working on an encyclopedia of slang. Of course they all end up on the run from gangsters. Hilarious and sassy!
Hannah and Her Sisters (1986) d. Woody Allen
You could make a case for this film being one of Woody’s very best. I’m not sure why but Allen can really write for women. The list of Best Actress or Supporting Actress awards for parts in Woody Allen movies is staggering. Hannah and Her Sisters is a female heavy film starring Mia Farrow, Barbara Hershey, Diane Weist, Carrie Fisher, Maureen O’Sullivan, Julie Louis-Dreyfus and Julie Kavner. Michael Caine won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor.
Inside Llewyn Davis (2013) d. Joel Cohen
This brilliantly subtle film has become a personal favourite of mine. Oscar Isaac plays the title character who was inspired by real life folk singer Dave Van Ronk. The film is set in the winter of 1962 minutes prior to Bob Dylan’s arrival in Greenwich Village. Llewyn is the quintessential struggling artist who undertakes a quasi-homeric journey (along with a cat named Ulysses). Like all of us Llewyn is searching for a modicum of recognition and respect. And like all Coen Brothers films it features outstanding performances by the entire cast. Inside Llewyn Davis won the Grand Prix at Cannes in 2013.
Inside Llewyn Davis
Kill Your Darlings (2013) d. John Krokidas
The story of the early days of Beat poets Lucien Carr, Allen Ginsberg, William S. Burroughs and Jack Kerouac starring Daniel Radcliffe and Dane DeHall.
King Kong (1933) d. Merian C. Cooper & Ernest B. Schoedsack
Alright. Yes there are three different Kong films in this list. And, yes, each of those films spends at least 75% of their screen time thousands of miles away from New York. But each film has a turning point the begins where an entrepreneur has a dream of making it big on Broadway and ends with a visit to a popular NYC tourist attraction.
The original film is one of the first feature films I saw as a boy that didn’t involve Don Knotts or Herbie the Love Bug. And it blew me away. I developed a life long love of both Kong and the Empire State Building.
The original King Kong
KIng Kong (1976) d. John Guillerman
Kong gets a make over by Dino De Laurentis and this time Kong scales the then new World Trade Center twin towers. A young bearded Jeff Bridges tries to save the girl while looking like The Dude from The Big Lebowski.
King Kong (2005) d. Peter Jackson
Personally I will take Peter Jackson’s Kong over his LOTR trilogy any day. Firstly because you can watch it in a single sitting, and secondly because of Naomi Watts. The final act in which we see the ape set loose on Broadway of the 1930’s is a thing of beauty. The climactic scenes from atop the Empire State Building still give me vertigo.
Peter Jackson’s King Kong
Laura (1944) d. Otto Preminger
Essential film noir starring Gene Tierney, Dana Edwards and Vincent Price.
The Lords of Flatbush (1974) d. Martin Davidson
Low budget greaser flick set in Flatbush, Brooklyn and starring Sylvester Stallone and Henry Winkler.
Manhattan (1979) d. Woody Allen
I first came across Manhattan as I was discovering ‘film’ and ‘women’. After watching this brilliantly shot and scripted film I wanted to discover the real Manhattan next. More than any other factor Manhattan is the reason I made my first visit to NYC.
Manhattan
Marathon Man (1976) d. John Schlesinger
New York City, Espionage and Dentistry. What could go wrong? Add Dustin Hoffman and Laurence Olivier – two of the finest actors of the 20th century and you’ve got yourself a film.
Mean Streets (1973) d. Martin Scorsese
Scorsese committed to film the people and places he knew growing up in Little Italy. De Niro and Harvey Keitel star as small time wise guys. Critic Pauline Kael called the film “a triumph of personal fimmaking.” This is the template for many of Scorsese’s films that follow.
Mean Streets
Midnight Cowboy (1971) d. John Schlesinger
Perhaps the first time I saw a realistic view of New York and it’s underbelly. Midnight Cowboy tells the story of a naive Texan (Jon Voight) who moves to New York hoping to make a living as a male prostitute. He befriends the down and out, Ratso Rizzo (Dustin Hoffman). After a number of misadventures the two dream on escaping to the sunny climes of Florida. The film won Oscars for Best Film, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay.
Midnight Cowboy
Mighty Aphrodite (1995) d. Woody Allen
Like many Woody films Mighty Aphrodite is filmed entirely in New York. It features a scene shot in the legendary but now defunct F.A.O. Schwarz. Mira Sorvino gave a hilarious performance and became the second consecutive actress in a Woody Allen film to win the Best Actress Oscar. Dianne Weiss won the previous year for Bullets Over Broadway.
Miracle on 34th Street (1947) d. George Seaton
A Christmas classic set in New York featuring Macy’s and a wee Natalie Wood. Edmund Gwen won an Oscar for his portrayal of Kris Kringle.
Mr. Deeds Goes To Town (1936) d. Frank Capra
Starring Gary Cooper and Jean Arthur. Capra won the Oscar for Directing.
Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle (1994) d. Alan Rudolph
Although this is one of the few films not actually shot in New York it still manages to capture the spirit of Manhattan’s artistic community during the Jazz Age. The film stars Jennifer Jason Leigh as Dorothy Parker and co-stars Matthew Broderick and Wallace Shawn.
Moonstruck (1987) d. Norman Jewison
A Brooklyn RomCom written by John Patrick Shanley who also gave us Five Corners has a giddy energy that always feels like it might go off the tracks maybe because of Cher but more likely because of Nick Cage. Or maybe it’s just the precarious premise or the volatile Italian-American families that carry the film. Cher and Olympia Dukakis won Oscars for acting while Shanely won a golden man for his script.
Moonstruck
Moscow On The Hudson (1984) d. Paul Mazursky
Written, directed and produced by Paul Mazursky whose grandfather defected, stars Robin Williams as a Russian musician who defects while on tour in New York City. Although technically a comedy Moscow On The Hudson is a nuanced film that sheds light on the immigrant experience. The first half hour of the film is set in Russia where Williams actually speaks the language.
The Naked City (1948) d. Jules Dassin
A great blend of film noir meets neorealism gives the viewer an unrestricted look at Post-War NYC as well as a gritty thriller. Producer Mark Hellinger employed famed crime scene photographer Weegee as a consultant to help add to the visual authenticity of the film. It won two Oscars for Best Cinematography and Best Film Editing. Beware: The Naked City looks superb – the opening aerial scene is breathtaking – but the voice overs have not aged well.
The Naked City
New York, New York (1977) d. Martin Scorsese
It’s odd that a film entitled New York, New York should be his least New York film on this list. After the success of Taxi Driver Scorsese decided to make a more uplifting film and chose to go the route of an artifice filled musical. Though the film is considered one of his least successful ventures it did give us ‘The Theme From New York, New York’, which most consider to be the unofficial anthem of NYC.
New York Stories (1987) d. Scorsese/Coppola/Allen
Three greats of cinema contribute a segment each to this New York anthology. Scorsese’s opening segment is the real chance taker as he gives us a portrayal of a Soho painter (Nick Nolte) and his muse (Rosanna Arquette). Coppola mails it in with a safe and soppy tale which I assume is an ode to his daughter Sofia. Woody wraps things up with a humourous story about the mother of all jewish mothers.
The Odd Couple (1968) d. Gene Saks
Starring Jack Lemon and Walter Matthau.
On The Town (1944) d.
The MGM musical has three sailors on shore leave in The Big Apple and blurting out songs to the music of Elmer Bernstein. The segment New York, New York features a great touristy blitz of Manhattan’s most famous sites.
On The Town
On The Waterfront (1954) d. Elia Kazan
Shot across the Hudson River in Hoboken, New Jersey, the Manhattan skyline looms in the background as the drama unfolds. The story of corruption among longshoreman gave us one of Marlon Brando’s most memorable performances as Terry Malloy. On The Waterfront was the winner of eight Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor and Supporting Actress.
Once Upon A Time In America (1984) d. Sergio Leone
Sergio Leone returned to filmmaking after thirteen years to create his epic swan song about New York street gangs. Look for the superior 229 minute European cut of the film. The score is one of the best ever by Ennio Morricone. The film stars James Wood and Robert De Niro.
Once Upon A Time In America
The Pope of Greenwich Village (1984) d. Stuart Rosenberg
Starring Eric Roberts, Mickey Rourke and Daryl Hannah.
Pride of the Yankees (1942) d. Sam Wood
Admittedly Pride of the Yankees would come very close to the bottom of this list if films were ranked numerically. The story of baseball’s Lou Gehrig was shot entirely in California with B-role of old Yankee Stadium spliced in. Still just as the Yankees are essential to New York, they also need to represent the city on celluloid.
Radio Days (1987) d. Woody Allen
More classic Woody and an ensemble cast that could fill Madison Square Gardens.
Rear Window (1954) d. Alfred Hitchcock
Set in Greenwich Village where a photographer with a broken leg witness a murder in a nearby building. An all-time great starring James Stewart and Grace Kelly. It boggles my mind that it didn’t win an Oscar. Oh, right, On The Waterfront.
Rosemary’s Baby (1968) d. Roman Polanski
The film that kick started the horror/occult boom of the 1970’s has to be included in the best of the best NYC flicks. A great film that has essential New York locations, particularly in the Central Park West vicinity. The apartment that Rosemary and Guy move into is The Dakota at 72nd Street and Central Park West. It’s hard to imagine the film being as effective as it is if it were shot in, say, a modern Toronto condominium.
Rosemary’s Baby
Saturday Night Fever (1977) d. John Badham
Sure, Disco Sucks but Saturday Night Fever captured the dance floor zeitgeist of New York in the late seventies. The film was entirely shot in Brooklyn and starred John Travolta as Tony Manero.
Serendipity (2001) d. Peter Chelsom
Yes it’s a RomCom Deluxe and can perpetually be seen on channels such as W and MovieTime. But because it is the stuff of fancy and fluff really it could only be made in Paris or Manhattan. John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale star as the star crossed lovers who meet serendipitously. Kate tasks her suitor with the responsibility of finding a book which she will leave in a used bookstore the following day, If he finds the book he can have her. Awww! Lots of lovers locations in this one: Bloomingdale’s, the Waldorf Astoria, the Central Park skating rink, Grand Army Plaza, The Mall in Central Park. You can sneer but you know you’ll probably watch if you come across it.
Serendipity
Serpico (1973) d. Sidney Lumet
Undercover cops on the mean streets of the Big Apple starring Al Pacino.
Seven Year Itch (1955) d. Billy Wilder
On September 15th 1954 one of Hollywood’s most iconic images was preserved to film. Sex symbol Marilyn Monroe, who played The Girl in The Seven Year Itch simply stood over a subway grate fighting in vain to keep the bottom of her dress down. Shot on Lexington Avenue between 51st and 52nd street at 1 a.m. it caused a mob of leering men to gather. Monroe’s husband of the time, Joe DiMaggio was at the shoot and became irate with the scene that was taking place. By the beginning of October they were divorced. Seven Year Itch still stands up in its comedic take on a married man left alone in the big city.
Seven Year Itch
Single White Female (1992) d. Barbet Schroeder
Finding a decent apartment in Manhattan is hard. Try finding one with a sane roommate! Impossible. Starring Bridget Fonda and Jennifer Jason-Leigh.
Six Degrees of Separation (1993) d. Fred Schepisi
Will Smith fools a posh 5th Avenue family into thinking he’s the son of Sidney Poitier. Also starring Stockard Channing, Donald Sutherland, Heather Graham and Ian McKellen.
Shaft (1971) d Gordon Parks
MGM had a surprise hit with their blaxploitation offering Shaft. Not only did the film, starring Richard Roundtree as the title character, earn them $13 million dollars on a film with a budget of $500,000, it also had a hit soundtrack lp featuring Isaac Hayes’ smash single ‘Shaft’.
Summer of Sam (1999) d. Spike Lee
In 1977 David Berkowitz a.k.a. The Son of Sam terrorized New York by going on a murder spree. Spike Lee perfectly captures the fear and hysteria that gripped the city.
Summer of Sam
The Taking of the Pelham 1-2-3 (1974) d. Joseph Sargent
I assume the producers were thinking of the famous chase in The French Connection when they devised this film, and why not? Pelham is still an exciting thriller with lots of retro NYC in it. Starring Walter Matthau, Robert Shaw and Martin Balsam.
Taxi Driver (1976) d. Martin Scorsese
Forty years later and Taxi Driver still feels like the quintessential New York film. DeNiro’s portrayal of cabbie Travis Bickle is note perfect. Bickle is a ticking time bomb caged in a city populated by degenerates and waiting for his chance to act out. As usual Scorsese shows us the New York of the day, and in this case it’s the seedy pre-Disneyfied NY of the middle seventies. Scorsese won the Palme d’Or at Cannes for the film.
Scorsese and De Niro on the set of Taxi Driver
Tootsie (1982) d. Sidney Pollack
I don’t remember the last time a comedy was nominated for ten major Academy Awards but Tootsie did. Dustin Hoffman stars as a struggling NY actor who is forced to into drag and wins a female role on a soap opera. Roger Ebert wrote that Tootsie “manages to make some lighthearted but well-aimed observations about sexism. It also pokes satirical fun at soap operas, New York show business agents and the Manhattan social pecking order”.
Torch Song Trilogy (1988) d. Paul Bogart
Harvey Fierstein stars in this adaptation of his play about a gay man struggling to find acceptance. The film also stars Ann Bancroft and Matthew Broderick.
Vanilla Sky (2001) d. Cameron Crowe
The English remake of Abre los ojos stars Tom Cruise, Cameron Diaz and Penelope Cruz. It’s a mind bender of a film and certainly benefits from repeat screenings as the viewer tries to distinguish what is and isn’t real. Many great locations in Vanilla Sky most notably the chilling entirely empty Times Square scene at the beginning of the film.
Vanilla Sky
The Walk (2015) d. Rober Zemeckis
I still have vertigo from watching this one. Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s bilingual performance is very good but it still comes down to the actual re-creation of Philippe Petit’s stunning high wire walk between the WTC Twin Towers. If you can watch this try the doc Man On A Wire.
The Walk
Wall Street (1987) d. Oliver Stone
Stone’s Wall Street captures the zeitgeist of the 1980’s avarice perfectly.
The Warriors (1979) d. Walter Hill
Sure it feels like a comic book and it was intended to. But The Warriors captures that late 1970’s sense that New York is a crime pit while also hitting a number of important NYC locations as the Warriors attempt to get back home to Coney Island.
The Warriors
West Side Story (1961) d. Robert Wise
Perhaps the mother of all the New Yorks-That-Never-Were films. Yes, streets gangs that dance and snap their fingers, and a Puerto Rican Natalie Wood. Audiences and critics were able to suspend disbelief though as it was nominated for eleven Academy Awards and won ten including Best Picture.
When Harry Met Sally (1989) d. Rob Reiner
It feels like a Woody Allen movie, a kind of Annie Hall Redux but in place of Keaton and Allen we have Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal, a fabulous soundtrack by Harry Connick Jr. and Manhattan locations out the wazoo – Washington Square, Central Park, The Met, Katz’s Deli …
When Harry Met Sally
The Wolf of Wall Street (2013) d. Martin Scorsese
Starring Leonardo Dicaprio, Matthew McCo , and Margot Robbie Wolf ended up on most critics best Films of the Year list in 2013 and despite being nominated for seven Academy Awards it came up empty. Wolf has all of the financial district shots that a film about Wall Street requires but unlike Oliver Stone’s 1987 offering it has much more heart and humour.
Working Girl (1988) d. Mike Nichols
Working Girl’s charm comes from the mix of a great cast (Melanie Griffith, Harrison Ford, Sigourney Weaver, Joan Cusack, Alec Baldwin) with a killer story that merges classic screwball comedy with modern sensibilities. And what’s not to like about Sigourney Weaver in lingerie and a leg cast? Shot predominantly in the Financial District and on Staten Island the film opens with a montage of the Staten Island Ferry and the Statue of Liberty. Her performance earned Melanie Griffith the Oscar for Best Actress.
Working Girl
World Trade Center (2006) d. Oliver Stone
For thirty years the Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre were the defining elements in the Manhattan skyline. Stone’s film presents the events of the day the skyline changed forever. Avoiding conspiracy theory the film tells the story of two Port Authority policemen who were trapped underneath the rubble. The film stars Nicholas Cage, Michael Pena, Maria Bello and Maggie Gyllenhaal.
You’ve Got Mail (1998) d. Nora Ephron
It’s hard not to be a little cynical about You’ve Got Mail. It’s essentially a retelling of the James Stewart classic The Shop Around The Corner and everything about this updating feels contrived towards success – which it was – but it ends up being annoying. In it’s own way it’s like modern New York – sparkly clean and user friendly with none of the low key charm of a film like Brooklyn. Still it’s almost impossible not to be drawn in by Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan as bookstore rivals and eventual lovers. Damn you, Nora Ephron!
You’ve Got Mail
New York Films By The Numbers
9 1/2 Weeks (1986) d. Adrian Lyne
25th Hour (2002) d. Spike Lee
42nd Street (1933) d. Lloyd Bacon & Busby Berkley
54 (1998) d. Mark Christopher
*61(2001) d. Billy Crystal
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