Cinematic City So, here I find myself waking up in the city that never sleeps. The best of everything in the world is here -- fashion, finance, food -- but what is it that lights the corners of my mind as I walk the sidewalks of New York? Films. More specifically, fi lms about New York. It i s not th at surp ri si ng, cons ider ing that this most ci ne mati c of cities has inspir ed fi lmma kers si nce fi lm was a one reel wonder. Af te r al l, motion pictures were born here -- or just across the Hudson River at the Edi son Laborator y in New Jers ey. The earli est product ions were shot on these ver y street s, and the fi rs t Amer ican motion pi ct ur e st udios, such as Vi tagr aph, Biograph, and Kalem were founded here. This is wher e D. W. Gr if fi th, Mary Pi ckford, Li ll ian Gish, Blanche Sweet, and Douglas Fairbanks all began their careers in cinema. Even though the center of produc tion eventua lly moved three thousan d miles away to a little hamle t calle d Holly wood, movies never forgo t where they started. The silent era saw many films utilize the Great Gotham, including two of my favorites from 1928, The Crowdand Harold Lloyd's last silent feature , Speedy. Movies have alway s had a love affai r with Manhatt an, but the adve nt of sound made loc ati on fil min g prohibit ive , and wha t was once a fil m maker' s playground was relegated to replicated sets on studio back lots. Thus, "naughty, bawdy, gaudy" 42nd Stree t was in rea li ty a sou nd stage in the San Fer nando Val ley , and the "li ght s ofFourteenth Street" were florescent bulbs strung on an outdoor set in Century City, California. With rare ex ce pt ion (suc h as 19 45's The Lo st Weekend)New York fi lming was li mi ted to qui ckbac kgro und shots to es ta bl is h location, and then product ion quickly headed bac k to the cont roll ed atmos phere of the sound stage . It wasn't until On the Town (1949), whe n Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen co nvi nce d a ske pti cal MGM to all ow the m to fi lm the open in g nu mb er, "New York, Ne w York" entirely on Manhattan locat ions, rathe r than on the back lot, that the singular joys of the city's characterwer e re- dis covere d. Aft er tha t, fi lm ste adi ly bega n to dip it s toe into the ri ch New Yor k wate rs, and thr ough the 1950s fil ms suc h as How to Marry a Millionaire (1953), I t Shou ld Ha pp en To You
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Cinematic CitySo, here I find myself waking up in the city thatnever sleeps. The best of everything in the world
is here -- fashion, finance, food -- but what is it
that lights the corners of my mind as I walk the
sidewalks of New York?
Films.
More specifically, films about New York. It is not
that surprising, considering that this most
cinematic of cities has inspired filmmakerssince film was a one reel wonder. After all,
motion pictures were born here -- or just across
the Hudson River at the Edison Laboratory in New Jersey. The earliest productions were shot
on these very streets, and the first Americanmotion picture studios, such as Vitagraph,
Biograph, and Kalem were founded here. This iswhere D.W. Griffith, Mary Pickford, Lillian
Gish, Blanche Sweet, and Douglas Fairbanks all
began their careers in cinema.
Even though the center of production eventually moved three thousand miles away to a little
hamlet called Hollywood, movies never forgot where they started. The silent era saw manyfilms utilize the Great Gotham, including two of my favorites from 1928, The Crowd and Harold
Lloyd's last silent feature , Speedy. Movies have always had a love affair with Manhattan, but
the advent of sound made location filming prohibitive, and what was once a film maker's playground was relegated to replicated sets on studio back lots. Thus, "naughty, bawdy, gaudy"42nd Street was in reality a sound stage in the San Fernando Valley, and the "lights of
Fourteenth Street" were florescent bulbs strung on an outdoor set in Century City, California.
With rare exception (such as 1945's The Lost
Weekend) New York filming was limited to quick
background shots to establish location, and then production quickly headed back to the controlled
atmosphere of the sound stage. It wasn't until On theTown (1949), when Gene Kelly and Stanley
Donen convinced a skeptical MGM to allow themto film the opening number, "New York, New
York" entirely on Manhattan locations, rather than on
the back lot, that the singular joys of the city's character were re-discovered. After that, film steadily began
(1954), The Marrying Kind (1955), The Seven Year Itch (1955), The Sweet Smell of Success
(1957) and North by Northwest (1959) captured the particular joys, romance, and chaos of post-war Manhattan. These films, though shot primarily in studio, featured key scenes filmed on the
streets of the city, thus providing added dimension to the finished product.Some brave film
makers, however, jumped into the New York waters feet first -- literally. Elia Kazan filmed On
the Waterfront (1954) in and around the docks of Hoboken, New Jersey, and the film won the
1954 Best Picture Oscar in the process. The following year, director Delbert Mann repeated the
feat, filming 1955's Best Picture winner, Marty, in and around the area that New Yorker's refer
to as "uptown and to the right": the Bronx.
Hollywood's love affair with New York hit
its zenith in 1961 with the release of what isconsidered by many to be the ultimate New
York romance, Breakfast At Tiffany's. That
year saw the release of another New York story, this one centered on the city's chaotic
and often violent West Side. While the
former remains a classic in escapistromance, the latter, West Side Story,
suggested that not all was huckleberries andrainbows; there were some pretty turbulent
times "waitin' round the bend". Indeed, asthe decade wore on, what was post-war
euphoria turned into a cosmopolitan nightmare for many, and film began to reflect the
growing sense of urban paranoia. In Rosemary's Baby (1968), Midnight Cowboy (1969), The
Out of Towners (1970), Mean Streets (1973) , Dog Day
Afternoon (1975), Taxi Driver (1976) and Cruising (1980), the
city was often cast as an adversary - in both comic and tragicvein.
But, as in all fairy tales, the hero arrives in the nick of time tosave his damsel in distress. In this instance, Manhattan's
Prince Charming was the ultimate New Yorker himself,
Woody Allen. Beginning with Annie Hall (1977), andespecially the lyrical Manhattan (1979) , Allen began creating
cinematic valentines that reflected his romantic vision of his
battered but beautiful lady. Set to the strains of Gershwin andRogers and Hart, it was impossible not to be moved by the
cinematic splendor of the tarnished cityscape, and Manhattan
began a cinematic renaissance. This renewed passion for
the magnificence of the city dovetailed with its economicresurgence, and throughout the next two decades films such
as Arthur (1981), Tootsie (1983), Moonstruck (1987), When Harry Met Sally (1989), The Prince
of Tides (1991), Sleepless in Seattle (1993 ), As Good As it Gets (1997) and You've Got Mail
(1998) depicted a veritable wonderland. With the sudden influx of millions of dollars into the
urban renewal of the 1990s, the city rose to even greater heights. By the end of the twentieth
century, New York was second only to Paris as the most romantic city in the world.
So, this summer, I will be taking a trip to classic Hollywood in New York, and highlighting some
of my favorite New York stories. I hope you'll come on along, and we'll take a look at howfilmmakers from Griffith to Ephron have turned Manhattan into a cinematic isle of joy.