5 great cities in movies
There are times when a city assumes character in a film – its streets, the restless masses, the landmarks and monuments all speak in a distinct common patois – and it becomes inexorably linked with the narrative. This article is tribute to five such cities (and tips its hat to two other) that have inspired generations of film-makers.
I watched Manhattan (Woody Allen, 1979) some years before I set foot in NYC. When I did, the real city struggled to match up to the images that the cinematic version had embossed in my head. I remember the occasion like it was yesterday. As I got out of JFK, my mind was still playing out the montage of black and white pictures of the city that Woody’s Manhattan begins with, set to Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue”. And somewhere from another recess of memory Simon and Garfunkel started crooning ‘America’. As seen through the window of my cab the buzz of the real NYC hardly stood a chance against the throes of delirium my mind was in. Ah! Some cities do that you, especially, those which have been captured so lovingly on the camera.
What makes some cities stand out in works of fiction? I see two contradictory themes and their battles that contribute to the character of a city – of being rooted and being rootless. An auteur who can bring this conflict, this strife on pages or screen will make the city come alive. So it could be Joyce bringing out the rooted Dublin through the eyes of two wandering strangers in ‘Ulysses’ or Woody Allen (again) restoring the romance of old time NYC (apartment terrace, old pier et al) while his and Diane Keaton’s character go through the rough and tumble of life.
Orhan Pamuk (Turkey, 2006 Nobel Prize for Literature) brings this out magnificently in his beautifully evocative ‘Istanbul’. Pamuk, who has never strayed out of Istanbul, writes:
“But we live in an age defined by mass migration and creative immigrants, and so I am sometimes hard-pressed to explain why I’ve stayed not only in the same place, but the same building. My mother’s sorrowful voice comes back to me. ‘Why don’t you go outside for a while, why don’t you try a change of scene, do some travelling…?’
“Conrad, Nabokov, Naipaul – these are writers known for having managed to migrate between languages, cultures, countries, continents, even civilizations. Their imaginations were fed by exile, a nourishment drawn not through roots but through rootlessness; mine however, requires that I stay in the same city, on the same street, in the same house, gazing at the same view. Istanbul’s fate is my fate. I am attached to this city because it has made me who I am.”
But for the city, the rooted and the rootless have the same denomination and in capturing their everyday tribulations, mixing imagery with words do some film-makers cast the city itself as a protagonist.
Los Angeles
While New York would claim pre-eminence in such a list, I would like to start with the home of Hollywood, LA. There is a reason for this as I have long harbored a view that the film-makers’ proximity and familiarity to this city breeds a sense of contempt which is reflected in the way LA is shown in most movies – manic chaos, mean streets, a premium for time and a populace cold and insensitive to their own territory. While these characteristics might be shared by other cities as well, most notably, NYC, what redeems NYC is a certain despairing love for the city which shines through the film-makers lens even in the darkest of stories. The only LA movie which had that quality (and which according to me was the defining LA movies of current times) was Crash. Its central theme that everyone is a minority – a victim or a perpetrator of prejudices – requiring warmth and understanding is an LA I can relate to. Barring Crash, other landmark LA movies betray the characteristics I have mentioned earlier. The unforgiving night in Collateral, patrolling the streets in Training Day with a cop who is not what he appears, investigating a shooting in LA Confidential, the overbearing stench of gore, grime and betrayals in Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction, Polanski’s circle of deceit and venality in Chinatown or harking back to the aching solitude in Sunset Boulevard – all of them have the city hand-in-glove with the grotty forces. There may be redeeming films showing LA in all its positive glow but the defining genre of LA movies remain brooding and dark.
NYC
It is difficult, nay, impossible to capture that one defining spirit of NYC. When they attempted to find one by getting, arguably, the three best NYC directors (Martin Scorcese, Woody Allen and Coppola – may be they should have thrown in Spike Lee and Sydney Lumet as well into the mix to see what would come of it) together to make New York Stories, what the audience received was three distinctly different voices of the city. You have stories of love and despair, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Working Girl or even Dog Day Afternoon (after all Al Pacino wanted to pay for sex-change operation for his lover). Of crime and punishment, Godfather, Goodfellas, New York, New York, Gangs of New York and a legion others. The classic stories of an outsider in NYC, fighting to survive, battling odds in the face of the city’s unyielding efforts at dehumanizing him like in Taxi Driver or Midnight Cowboy. The entire oeuvre of Woody Allen where the city is the muse, a lover’s embrace when things seem to go wrong or a friendly shoulder to lean on. Or finally the joie de vivre of streets in Spike Lee’s Do the Right Thing and other movies which reflect that enduring spirit in the face of adversity that NYC is famous for. NYC is a kaleidoscope and aren’t we glad that so many talented film-makers have created lasting stories and images twisting and turning it.
Paris
Paris doesn’t suffer from multiple identities like NYC. It has a central theme – love. You can choose any genre of film-making, the moment you set it in Paris, love seeps through the nooks and crevices, under the doors and engulfs your story. Paris Je T’aime (Paris, I Love You) which had eighteen 5-minute arrondissements in Paris demonstrates this aptly especially the last story directed by Alexander Payne of a lonely middle aged American woman who comes to Paris and falls in love with no in particular. Just love, no reciprocation, no acceptance or denial. True love, as found in The Last Time I Saw Paris with Elizabeth Taylor and Van Johnson, or, Amelie, where a recluse waitress decides to make the lives of people around her wonderful and eventually finds love. Various colors of love in Kieslowski’s Three Colours trilogy, all set in Paris – liberating oneself from past emotions in Blue, avenging love and getting equal in the black comedy White or finding fraternal love in the most unlikely person in Red. Paris has interpreted and reinterpreted love stories over ages. Possibly the new wave with Truffaut and Goddard brought in grubby realism to the images of the city but Paris has fought back to wrest the crown of the most romantic city on screen.
Rome
Sigh! A city with a history of over two thousand years, of monuments which have seen rise and fall of the greatest kings and dictators and a city which has held up the beacon of march of civilization from time immemorial. The likes of De Sica, Fellini, Bertolucci or Tarkovsky have used Rome to unveil their most dramatic departures from the past possibly mocking with a hint of irony at all the history around them. So you have Fellini portraying the loss of tradition in the Italian society through the eyes of an impatient journalist covering the hollow lives of glamorous people in La Dolce Vita. Fellini famously uses the fountain at Trevi to show Marcello’s vain attempt to touch Sylvia and then the day breaks, the fountain’s turned off and he is snapped back to reality. De Sica’s heartbreaking The Bicycle Thief which follows a father-son duo through the streets of Rome in post-war Italy again uses the grand backdrop of the city to build-up the desperation and the eventual denouement which leaves you emotionally drained. Bertolucci also uses the city effectively in many of his movies notably, Besieged, Luna and The Conformist. Andre Tarkovsky creates poetry in motion in Nostalgia with some amazing scenes none more beautiful and symbolic than where the insane Domnico sets himself on fire on the statue of Marco Aurelio on a horse seeking a simple life. Finally, Rome also is the stage for famous fairy-tale like Hollywood romances perhaps its landscape inspiring miracles; Roman Holiday and Three Coins in the Fountain being the cases in point. At the end, its sense of rootedness has film-makers experiment with form the most often in Rome. It gives them an anchor to boldly venture into newer territory and, hopefully, Rome continues to inspire newer generations storytellers.
Bombay (Mumbai)
How is it possible to sum up all the experiences quoted for the other cities into seven different teeming islands which answer to the name of Bombay (or Mumbai)? The moral decay reflecting the political and economic realities of the time (Kismet, Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro, Ankush, Arjun), the underworld and their machinations (Deewar, Parinda, Satya, Company), the outsider who suffers or who needs to win at any cost (Shree 420, Jagte Raho, Trishul, Gaman, Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman), slice of life representing the mood of the nation (Mr & Mrs 55, Baaton Baaton Mein, Chhoti Si Baat, Gharonda, Dil Chahta Hai, Life in a …Metro), human tragedy of riots (Bombay, Dev, Black Friday) and one can go on, on and on. Bombay is impossible to classify and continues to create magic on screen. And beyond all of these are the songs, the odes to Bombay over the years – from Aye dil hai mushkil, yeh Bombay shahar haadson ka shahar hai to yeh hai Mumbai nagariya. Bombay is the quintessential Maximum City.
The Two That Got Away
Calcutta (Kolkatta) has had a rich history of being portrayed on the screen over the years. The prolific Ray ensured that we saw the changing mood of Kolkatta over 3 decades (Apur Sansar, Mahanagar, Seemabaddha, Pratidwandi) while the equally less prolific Ghatak gave us a more somber and melancholic city (Meghe Dhaka Tara and Ajantrik). And generations of directors since including Mrinal Sen, Buddhadeb Dasgupta, Rituparno Ghosh and Gautam Ghosh have continued capturing Kolkatta lovingly on screen.
London has a less hoary tradition of being seen on screen. But the few that have left strong impressions include Antonioni’s Blow-up, the cad Alfie’s numerous conquests in the city, six-track Love Actually, Mike Leigh’s Secrets and Lies and Guy Ritchie’s Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. But for some reason, London has not had the same impact on cinema screens as other great cities (though Chopras, Johars and Vipul Shahs of the world are trying hard). May be, like many other explanations in London, we can blame the weather.
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Subrat Great Post.
Without any doubt NYC, Paris & LA are the 3 most imp cities on film. In that order acc. to me. Crash I think in retrospective was too contrieved. But definitely it captured the spirit of the city. I think you forgot to mention ALTMAN’s SHORT CUTS as one of the most definetive LA movie. Collateral is to me the most beautiful LA has ever been on screen. And it was mostly digital. Everytime I see a coyote around my house I remember that film. (I live near Koreatown & Downtown where most of the film is shot).
And when i was reading about the last film by Alexander Paybe in Paris Je T
Mainak – yes, I indeed forgot Altman’s Short Cuts. Wasn’t Payne’s short really good? Thanks for your comments (it’s a long post and sometimes tests the patience)
Two LA movies that come to mind that I fell in love with when I saw them – Breathless (not the original Godard version, but the 1983 American remake)and Boiling Point. I haven’t seen either film in years and have no idea how they have aged, but fell in love with them when they were released because they captured LA so well. Breathless especially so because it is one of the best treatments of the Santa Ana Winds (wind events we have here in Southern California) in a film.
Less Than Zero is another film that captured the nightlife of the time that I was living, the beauty and madness of the LA Underground.
And, two that are classics among punk rock circles – The Decline of Western Civilization and Suburbia. Both films starred friends of mine and the people I was hanging around with back at that period of time, and accurately capture the youth of LA in that period of time and the dirty, gritty, unglamorous side of LA society and nightlife.
What is funny is that when I think of films that capture LA for me, outside of the ones already mentioned I can’t think of any big or great films to add to the list, only these small ones that pay their own homage to the dark side of the City of Angels…
No city list can be complete without mentioning one of my favorite cities, San Francisco! Movies like The Graduate, The Rock, Mrs.Doubtfire, The Wedding Planner etc capture the beautiful streets, locations of the city!
It’s always been my dream to make a movie in SFO…
it’s a beautiful city but getting local crew is tricky…resources are limited..also, it’s an expensive city and putting people up raises the budget considerably…
I believe Collateral was a sequel, in a way, to representing LA-scape.
Mann’s Heat was, perhaps, more panoramic and extensive.
@Machchhar,
Subrat missed out on SF but Javed saab didn’t…
“Abhi phirta hoon main,
London, Peris, New York, LA, Sans fansico
Dil mein mere hai, Dard-e-disco”
Great rhyming of San Fransisco with Disco.. Hats off
t! – I should have included Boiling Point. I am intrigued by the two classics in the punl rock circle that you have mentioned. Should look for them
Dpac – I had to edit the article and Heat got the snip but trust me it deserved a place
Pavan – and Bappida had already rhymed Disco with “khao peeo aur khisko” (eat, drink and leg it)
I just never figured what is the big deal about HEAT.
—–
Some great movies that capture the cities it is based on -
Slackers – Austin
Bombay Boys – Bombay
Wings of Desire – Berlin
Before Sunrise – Vienna
LA Story –
Sopranos – New Jersey ( I had to add this)
U didn’t like ‘Heat’ mainak?
Of movies of that show Bombay, i really liked the cityscapes as shown in Bluffmaster … from Abhisheks house to Renaissance , Powai to Ritesh’s house on the roof top … Bluffmaster captured bombay beautifully … in fact i’d stick my neck out and say that as far pure aesthetics is concerned bluffmaster was much better than life … in a metro
Subrat,
Nice Article, Awaiting to read more
Five movies in which city becomes as important as characters:
NYC – Taxi Driver
But for his disgust for the city we couldn’t have predicted what Travis is heading to. The filth, the porn theaters, the ghettos all worked towards his mental break down.
Tokyo – Tokyo Story
An elderly couple comes to the great city. Can’t cope up with the breathtaking speed, the indifference and the sheer grandness of the city.
Tehran – Ten
One of the most experimental films of our times. Driven only by conversations on the front seat of a car. For me the most important character after the protagonist was the city.
Vienna – The Third Man
War wrecked city, sky rocket inflation, insecurity all around, still scenically beautiful. Perfect setting for probably the greatest noir of all time.
Basin City – Sin City
Need I say anything.
@apoorva: i think lost in translational shows tokyo beautifully too
@Sourav: Indeed but somehow a sinister city remains in my memory more than a benign one :D
Tokyo Story is more important in this regard because the protagonists are Japanese not American. Can imagine an equally powerful Lost in Translation set up in Shanghai, but if we move the elderly couple to some other country the impact will dilute.
How about Chicago. So many movies are shot there, and its a very important part of Hollywood.
Ankur
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