"New York, New York" is a musical. I've said before that I don't like old-fashioned musicals, especially the music and dance sequences that start suddenly. There is such a scene in "New York, New York" that clearly pays homage to old-fashioned musicals, but the style of the whole film is still very different from the musicals of the past. The singing and dancing only appear on the stage, not at any time in life.
"New York, New York" looks like a biography of a city, but it's actually just the name of a song. The whole movie is really just a story of two lovers. And it's a typical Martin Scorsese movie, it's character-driven, and all the plot and conflict is to build the characters. With Martin Scorsese's ability and full effort, the complex and diverse characters are also presented layer by layer, which is clear and credible.
It's just that an inhumane person like me is somewhat lacking in this kind of movie that is completely character-based. Including Martin Scorsese's best film "Raging Bull", I also think that the film's techniques are really superb, completely high, and let people look up, but the film itself is still less attractive to me.
The male and female protagonists of "New York, New York" are very talented in music, with different personalities on the surface, but they are imaginative in nature. It was this kind of imagination that brought them together, but it was also doomed to separate them.
Their first meeting was on Victory Day in World War II, with Robert in a Hawaiian shirt he won and Liza in a military uniform. Robert didn't want to spend the night alone on Victory Day, so he subtly asked for Liza's phone number. Liza has only one answer, No.
The two seemed so different. What moved Liza to Robert was that they were sitting in a taxi together the next day, Robert said, the three most important things in my life, the first is music, the second is money, the third is the woman I love, if I I really love her and I will put her first.
Liza must have been moved by Robert's love and music. But what she didn't know, and Robert probably didn't know either, was that he'd lied, and his only favorite was his music. To make matters worse, Liza turned out to be exactly like Robert in this regard. So they ended up breaking up.
One of the most emotional moments in the movie is when Robert sent Liza off on the night of Victory Day, walked over to the bridge and watched a man and woman in sailor suits and gauze skirts dancing under the bridge. There is no background music, the two just spin and jump under a column of cold light. Robert had been standing on the bridge watching them.
I think this is the most representative of "New York, New York". However, some people say that that section is also a tribute to the musicals of the old era.
There is a lot of jazz in New York, New York. Whether it is Robert's performance, or Liza's performance is very wonderful. To elaborate, I don't really like the early big band style, but it's a matter of my own taste.
Pros: characterization, male lead, heroine, sense of history, photography, sets, music
Cons: bland story
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