To say that New York is in the midst of winter is an understatement. Wearing a t-shirt and shorts outdoors is a vague memory. You’re receiving photos from friends back in Oz of beaches, bathers/togs and bbqs. What’s a girl to do? Time for a New York City mid-winter movie marathon of course. Cosy up with a blanket, a packet of Tim Tams and a cup of hot milo and check out these New York City films.
Quintessential Classics
1. When Harry Met Sally
The thinking person’s rom-com, courtesy of Nora Ephron, with its memorable lines and streetscapes of NYC, never fails to cheer me up. It’s visual vitamin D.
2. Breakfast at Tiffany’s
Holly Golightly is the spirited yet sophisticated single girl in New York, who keeps her dreams real and her cocktails ice cold. An honorary AWNY member perhaps?
Grime and The City
3. Taxi Driver
I first saw this film, appropriately, late at night in a dank and musty building on Coney Island, that may or may not have met building code, in the midst of a hot, humid summer. Dark and disturbed, Travis Bickle is an unhinged taxi driver who hasn’t grasped the knack of blending into a crowd. This can’t end well.
4. Saturday Night Fever
Tony Manero works a dead-end job, lives with his parents, and escapes every Saturday night from “small town” Bay Ridge to his local discotheque. Do you really need a reason to apply some glitter eye shadow and rig up your disco ball?
A City With Eight Million Stories…
5. New York, I Love You
I first saw this film in NYC’s Paris Theatre, fittingly, because it’s a sequel of sorts to Paris je t’aime. A vignette of 11 short films, it’s part of the Cities of Love feature film collective, established as a “movement of love in and for a city”.
6. Chinese Puzzle
This is the third film in the Spanish Apartment trilogy, and sees main character, Xavier, moving to NYC to remain close his children, from whose mother he is divorced. It’s going to be an unrelenting winter, so you may as well crack open a box of Barbecue Shapes and sneak in the first 2 chapters, L’Auberge Espagnole (The Spanish Apartment) and Les Poupées Russes (Russian Dolls).
Neurotic in New York
7. Cruel Intentions
A modern day adaptation of Les Liaisons dangereuses, revolving around wealthy and privileged teenagers of the Upper East Side. Watch it for the soundtrack: from the opening scene when Placebo comes blasting through your speakers, until the closing scenes featuring The Verve. You’ll forget about those sub-zero temperatures outside.
8. Serendipity
Admittedly cheesy, and the storyline has more holes than an Aero bar (when you finally track down your soul mate’s phone number, why wouldn’t you call instead of descending upon their doorstep unannounced?). However, this movie demonstrates that New York is THE ultimate romantic backdrop. Fans of Sex and The City will spot the serendipity around two of the supporting characters and their unfortunate endings. If you’ve figured it out, tell us in the comments.
Sounds of the Summer
9. Begin Again
Are you ready for summer? Begin Again captures the sounds of summer in The City with an infectious original soundtrack, penned mostly by pop-songwriter wunderkind, Gregg Alexander. I’m awarding this movie a Caramello Koala for it’s realistic portrayal of a New Yorker’s apartment, that of James Corden’s character, Jimmy.
Which films are on your NYC mid-winter movie marathon list? Let us know in the comments section below.
AWNY | Australian Women in New York 