New York City on film

Few places are as cinematic as New York City. Filmmakers sometimes think of the city as a character itself. The list of movies in which New York plays a crucial role is too long to cover in depth, but some of these top New York City movies are worth renting before you visit. Possibly the best New York City promotional film is the musical On The Town, with Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra. This film is about three sailors who spend their 24-hour leave exploring Gotham. Shot on location, all the landmarks, circa 1949, are captured in Technicolor. Woody Allen is known as a New York filmmaker and proudly shoots all his films (with the exception of “Match Point,” shot in London) in the city. One of his best and a good, but maybe a bit dated, look at neurotic New York is 1977’s Annie Hall.
Following in Woody Allen’s footsteps are director Rob Reiner and writer Nora Ephron, the team who made When Harry Met Sally in 1989. It’s a gorgeous cinematic tribute to New York. By the way, the famous “I’ll have what she’s having” scene was filmed in Katz’s Delicatessen (see Chapter 10 for more on this famous deli).
“I love this dirty town,” says Burt Lancaster in the gritty, crackling Sweet Smell of Success. In this beautifully photographed black-and-white movie from 1957, Lancaster plays malicious gossip columnist J.J. Hunsecker, and Tony Curtis is perfectly despicable as the groveling publicist, Sidney Falco.
Another filmmaker identified with New York is Martin Scorsese. He has made many films in which New York plays a central role, including Mean Streets (1973), The Age of Innocence (1993), and 2002’s Gangs of New York, which was actually filmed in Italy. But the one film where New York is a character, and not a very flattering one, is Taxi Driver. The Academy Award–nominated 1976 movie about an alienated and psychotic taxi driver is tough and bloody, but if you want to see images of pre-cleanup Times Square, check this film out.
The best history of New York on video is the Ric Burns documentary, New York: A Documentary Film (1999). The seven-disc, 14-hour DVD (also available on VHS) with a poignant, post-9/11 epilogue is a must-see for anyone interested in the evolution of this great city.