Martin Scorsese and New York go hand in hand. Growing up in the city’s Little Italy, Scorsese’s cinematic DNA is embedded with the city. There aren’t many filmmakers who can claim to have had their imprint on the city, but Scorsese is certainly one of them.
Now, Scorsese has decided to list the 30 essential New York films. And modest man that he is, doesn’t mention his own three NYC classics (“Mean Streets,” “Taxi Driver” and “Goodfellas”).
Instead, there are three Safdie films, which is the same amount as Sidney Lumet, and an assortment of stone-cold classics (via IndieWire). The full list can be seen below …
Daybreak Express (Pennebaker)
The Naked City and Kiss of Death (Dassin)
Fourteen Hours (Hathaway)
Cry of the City (Hathaway)
A Double Life/The Marrying Kind (Cukor)
It Should Happen to You (Cukor)
On the Waterfront (Kazan)
The Wrong Man (Hitchcock)
Sweet Smell of Success (Mackendrick)
Shadows (Cassavetes)
Midnight Cowboy/Marathon Man (Schlesinger)
The French Connection (Friedman)
Heaven Knows What (Safdie)
Prince of the City (Lumet)
Manhattan (Allen)
Bad Lieutenant (Ferrera)
Good Time (Safdie)
Uncut Gems (Safdie)
The Apartment (Wilder)
Do the Right Thing (Lee)
Dog Day Afternoon (Lumet)
Midnight Cowboy (Schlesinger)
The Musketeers of Pig Alley (Griffith)
On the Waterfront (Kazan)
Regeneration (Walsh)
When I think of NYC and save for Scorsese, one cannot escape Sidney Lumet’s imprint on the city. Ditto Woody Allen, but only one of Allen’s films is listed on Scorsese’s list (“Manhattan”). I guess some room could have been made for “Annie Hall,” “Hannah and Her Sisters,” and Crimes & Misdemeanors.”
There are so many ‘New York filmmakers’ – everyone has his or her own individual vision,” Scorsese said in a press statement. “I collaborated with the city when I made [my own films like] “Mean Streets,” “Taxi Driver,” “Raging Bull,” “The King of Comedy,” “GoodFellas,” “Bringing Out the Dead,” and “The Wolf of Wall Street.”
Scorsese curated the list for the “Living, Breathing New York” series at the Roxy Cinema, tied to Olmo Schnabel’s film “Pet Shop Days,” which Scorsese executive produced. Four of the films on his list will be screened in the upcoming week.