Sidewalks of New York (2001 film)

Last updated
Sidewalks of New York
SidewalksOfNewYorkPoster.jpg
Original theatrical release poster featuring the World Trade Center towers at the top right. The towers were removed in later posters.
Directed by Edward Burns
Written byEdward Burns
Produced byMargot Bridger
Edward Burns
Cathy Schulman
Rick Yorn
Starring
Cinematography Frank Prinzi
Edited byDavid Greenwald
Distributed by Paramount Classics (United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Japan)
Buena Vista Film Sales (International) [1]
Release date
  • November 21, 2001 (2001-11-21)(Limited)
Running time
108 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$1 million (estimated) [2]
Box office$3.5 million [3]

Sidewalks of New York is a 2001 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Edward Burns, who also stars in the film. The plot follows eight cycles in the lives of six Manhattan residents whose inter-connections form a circle that places each of them less than the proverbial six degrees of separation from the others.

Contents

Plot

The circle begins with Tommy Reilly, a onetime wannabe writer who became the producer of a weekly television entertainment news show by design rather than choice, and has stayed with it for the money rather than any professional satisfaction. Dumped by his live-in girlfriend without warning, he temporarily moves in with colleague Carpo, an aging Lothario ready to offer unlimited — and sometimes useless — romantic advice.

At a video store, Tommy meets grammar school teacher Maria Tedesko. The two flirt, meet for coffee and begin to date. Maria, recently divorced, finds it difficult to commit to a new relationship and stops taking Tommy's calls. When she discovers she's pregnant, she attempts to reconnect with him, but at the last moment opts to lie and tell him she's leaving town and chooses to raise the child on her own.

Maria's ex-husband, who longs to reconcile with her, is Benjamin Bazler, an apartment house doorman and aspiring songwriter whose obsession is 1960s/1970s rock music. He shares his dream of becoming a full-time musician with Iowa transplant Ashley, an NYU student working as a coffee shop waitress to support herself.

Ashley is involved in an affair with considerably older married dentist Griffin Ritso. Although he professes to love his mistress, the once divorced Griffin shies away from leaving his wife Annie Matthews for fear of being a two-time loser at matrimony. Eventually, Griffin's inability to commit to their relationship causes Ashley to dump him and reject his advances to get her back as she becomes involved in a relationship with Benjamin.

Real estate broker Annie is unhappy with her marriage but too moral to consider having an affair. She finds herself confiding in and flirting with one of her house-hunting clients — Tommy Reilly. Thus the circle is complete. She finally leaves Griffin.

The narrative segments are intermingled with documentary-like interviews in which of the characters address the camera with their thoughts about sex, love, and relationships.

Production notes

The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, 2001. Following the terrorist attacks three days later, Paramount Classics withheld its release until late November. Although the World Trade Center looms behind Tommy during his interviews, the image of the twin towers in the original promotional poster was later deleted.

In an episode of the Sundance Channel series Anatomy of a Scene that focused on the film, Burns revealed he shot the film in only seventeen days, working with a budget of $1 million. Many of the locations used were within the same neighborhood in order to facilitate a quick move from one to the other.

Cast

Release

The film played on 224 screens and grossed $2,402,459 in the United States. The international box office accounted for another $1.1 million. [3]

Reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes the film holds an approval rating of 56% based of 94 reviews with an average rating of 5.50/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "Though well-acted, Sidewalks of New York generally comes off as a second-rate Woody Allen film. The characters seem self-absorbed, the problems trite." [4] Metacritic gave the film a weighted average score of 49 out of 100, based on 29 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews" [5]

In his review in The New York Times , A.O. Scott said: "Though it fails to be very interesting, Sidewalks of New York, like the people who populate Mr. Burns's New York, is impossible to dislike. If it's not especially funny, it is appealingly good-humored, and the actors perform well within the limitations of the script ... [Burns] deserves credit for avoiding the sudsy happily-ever-after clichés that deform so many contemporary romantic comedies. The view of love that emerges from Sidewalks, while it is not particularly deep or insightful, is refreshingly hard-headed without being altogether cynical." [6]

Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times observed: "The movie lives at the intersection between Woody Allen and Sex and the City ...[It] is funny without being hilarious, touching but not tearful, and articulate in the way that Burns is articulate, by nibbling earnestly around an idea as if afraid that the core has seeds." [7]

In Variety , Scott Foundas called the film "not just instantly forgettable, but beginning to fade from memory even as its images still play across the screen" and one "seized by fitful bouts of hilarity and charm," a picture whose "overall impression is one of overindulgence and underimagination - a sponge cake without the yeast." [8]

Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle said: "In the world of this picture, just about everything people do with their clothes on is a sham, or at best some lame diversion between the spasms of real life that take place only in a bedroom. This may be the way very young adults think, but as a presentation of grown-ups, Sidewalks of New York is just weird. It's also, scene by scene, well acted and well written. Burns writes clever dialogue, and he knows how to work with actors." [9]

In USA Today , Mike Clark rated the film two out of a possible four stars, and commented: "Any goodwill the performers build up is quickly shot down by the incessant interviews, which restate the obvious when they're not showing how self-delusional some of these characters are. Those who teach public speaking sometimes advocate telling your audience what you're going to tell them, then actually telling them, then telling them what you've told them. Sidewalks reproves this isn't a wise path for movies." [10]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Woody Allen</span> American filmmaker, actor, and comedian (born 1935)

Heywood Allen is an American filmmaker, actor, and comedian whose career spans more than six decades. Allen has received many accolades, including the most nominations (16) for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. He has won four Academy Awards, ten BAFTA Awards, two Golden Globe Awards and a Grammy Award, as well as nominations for a Emmy Award and a Tony Award. Allen was awarded an Honorary Golden Lion in 1995, the BAFTA Fellowship in 1997, an Honorary Palme d'Or in 2002, and the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award in 2014. Two of his films have been inducted into the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.

<i>Beautiful Girls</i> (film) 1996 film directed by Ted Demme

Beautiful Girls is a 1996 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by Ted Demme and written by Scott Rosenberg. Its story follows New York jazz pianist Willie Conway, as he heads back to his hometown of Knight's Ridge, Massachusetts for his high school reunion, where he finds his friends evaluating their lives and relationships. It stars Matt Dillon, Noah Emmerich, Lauren Holly, Timothy Hutton, Rosie O'Donnell, Martha Plimpton, Natalie Portman, Michael Rapaport, Mira Sorvino and Uma Thurman.

<i>Annie Hall</i> 1977 film by Woody Allen

Annie Hall is a 1977 American satirical romantic comedy-drama film directed by Woody Allen from a screenplay written by Allen and Marshall Brickman, and produced by Allen's manager, Charles H. Joffe. The film stars Allen as Alvy Singer, who tries to figure out the reasons for the failure of his relationship with the eponymous female lead, played by Diane Keaton in a role written specifically for her.

<i>Manhattan</i> (1979 film) Film by Woody Allen

Manhattan is a 1979 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by Woody Allen and produced by Charles H. Joffe from a screenplay written by Allen and Marshall Brickman. Allen co-stars as a twice-divorced 42-year-old comedy writer who dates a 17-year-old girl but falls in love with his best friend's mistress. Meryl Streep and Anne Byrne also star.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diane Keaton</span> American film actress (born 1946)

Diane Keaton is an American actress. She has received various accolades throughout her career spanning over five decades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and two Golden Globe Awards, in addition to nominations for a Tony Award and two Emmy Awards. She was honored with the Film Society of Lincoln Center Gala Tribute in 2007 and an AFI Life Achievement Award in 2017.

<i>Tommy Boy</i> 1995 film by Peter Segal

Tommy Boy is a 1995 American buddy comedy film directed by Peter Segal, written by Bonnie and Terry Turner, produced by Lorne Michaels, and starring former Saturday Night Live castmates and close friends Chris Farley and David Spade. The first of many films that Segal has filmed with former SNL castmates, it tells the story of a socially and emotionally immature man (Farley) who learns lessons about friendship and self-worth, following the sudden death of his industrialist father.

<i>The Gift</i> (2000 film) 2000 American supernatural thriller film

The Gift is a 2000 American paranormal thriller film directed by Sam Raimi, with a screenplay written by Billy Bob Thornton and Tom Epperson based on the alleged psychic experiences of Thornton's mother.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edward Burns</span> American actor and filmmaker (born 1968)

Edward Fitzgerald Burns is an American actor and filmmaker. He rose to fame with The Brothers McMullen (1995), his low-budget independent film that became successful worldwide. His other film appearances include Saving Private Ryan (1998), The Holiday (2006), Man on a Ledge (2012), Friends with Kids (2012), and Alex Cross (2012). Burns directed films such as She's the One (1996), Sidewalks of New York (2001), and The Fitzgerald Family Christmas (2012). On television, he appeared as Bugsy Siegel in the TNT crime drama series Mob City and as Terry Muldoon in TNT's Public Morals.

<i>Crooklyn</i> 1994 film directed by Spike Lee

Crooklyn is a 1994 American semi-autobiographical film produced and directed by Spike Lee, who wrote it with his siblings Joie and Cinqué. Taking place in the Bedford–Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York, during the summer of 1973, the film primarily centers on a young girl named Troy Carmichael, and her family. Troy learns life lessons through her rowdy brothers Clinton, Wendell, Nate, and Joseph; her loving but strict mother Carolyn, and her naive, struggling father Woody.

<i>A Prairie Home Companion</i> (film) 2006 film by Robert Altman

A Prairie Home Companion is a 2006 American musical comedy film directed by Robert Altman in his final film. It is a fictional representation of behind-the-scenes activities at the long-running public radio show of the same name. The film received mostly positive reviews and was a moderate box-office success on a small budget. The film features an ensemble cast including Woody Harrelson, Tommy Lee Jones, Garrison Keillor, Kevin Kline, Lindsay Lohan, Virginia Madsen, John C. Reilly, Maya Rudolph, Meryl Streep, and Lily Tomlin.

<i>Losin It</i> 1983 American-Canadian comedy film by Curtis Hanson

Losin' It is a 1983 comedy film directed by Curtis Hanson, and starring Tom Cruise, Shelley Long, Jackie Earle Haley and John Stockwell. The film follows four teenagers trying to lose their virginity. It was filmed largely in Calexico, California.

<i>Rumor Has It</i> (film) 2005 American film

Rumor Has It is a 2005 American romantic comedy film directed by Rob Reiner, and starring Jennifer Aniston, Kevin Costner, Shirley MacLaine and Mark Ruffalo. The concept of the screenplay by Ted Griffin is that a woman learns that her mother and grandmother may be the inspiration for the 1963 novel The Graduate by Charles Webb. The film received negative reviews from critics and was a box office disappointment, grossing $88.9 million against its $70 million budget.

<i>Lovely & Amazing</i> 2001 film by Nicole Holofcener

Lovely and Amazing is a 2001 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Nicole Holofcener.

<i>She Hate Me</i> 2004 film by Spike Lee

She Hate Me is a 2004 American independent comedy-drama film directed by Spike Lee. The film stars Anthony Mackie, Kerry Washington, Ellen Barkin, Monica Bellucci, Brian Dennehy, Woody Harrelson, Bai Ling, and John Turturro. The film touches on a variety of themes such as corporate greed, race, sexuality, and politics. As with many of Lee's films, the film garnered controversy. Unlike many prior works, Spike Lee does not have an acting credit in this film.

<i>Joe Somebody</i> 2001 film by John Pasquin

Joe Somebody is a 2001 American comedy-drama film written by John Scott Shepherd and directed by John Pasquin. The film stars Tim Allen as an ordinary man forced into violence by a workplace bully. The film also stars Julie Bowen, Kelly Lynch, Greg Germann, Hayden Panettiere, Patrick Warburton, and Jim Belushi.

<i>Cassandras Dream</i> 2007 film by Woody Allen

Cassandra's Dream is a 2007 crime thriller drama film written and directed by Woody Allen. Shot in England, the film is a co-production between the United States, France, and the United Kingdom.

<i>Unhook the Stars</i> 1996 film by Nick Cassavetes

Unhook the Stars is a 1996 American drama film directed by Nick Cassavetes, and starring his mother Gena Rowlands, Marisa Tomei, Gérard Depardieu, Jake Lloyd in his film debut, David Sherrill, David Thornton, Bridgette Wilson and Moira Kelly.

<i>Starting Out in the Evening</i> 2007 American film

Starting Out in the Evening is a 2007 American drama film directed by Andrew Wagner. The screenplay by Wagner and Fred Parnes is based on the novel of the same name by Brian Morton.

<i>Wendigo</i> (film) 2001 American psychological horror film

Wendigo is a 2001 American independent psychological horror film written and directed by Larry Fessenden, starring Patricia Clarkson and Jake Weber. The film concerns a photographer, George, and his family who experience the presence of a dark force in a cabin during their wintry weekend at upstate New York while being stalked by a local hunter after accidentally hitting a deer on the road. Meanwhile, George's son, Miles, begins to have vivid hallucinations of the legendary Wendigo, who he believes to be responsible for the dark forces.

<i>Irrational Man</i> (film) 2015 film by Woody Allen

Irrational Man is a 2015 American mystery comedy-drama film written and directed by Woody Allen, and starring Jamie Blackley, Joaquin Phoenix, Parker Posey, and Emma Stone. The film had its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival on May 16, 2015. It was given a limited theatrical release in the United States on July 17, 2015, by Sony Pictures Classics, followed by a wide release on August 7.

References

  1. ↑ Lyons, Charles (16 February 2000). "Burns, Graham hit 'Sidewalks'". Variety . Retrieved 14 November 2021.
  2. ↑ Macauley, Scott (18 March 2011). "Breaking Down Ed Burns' $9000 Budget". Filmmaker . Retrieved 23 July 2012.
  3. 1 2 "Sidewalks of New York (2001)". Box Office Mojo . IMDB. Retrieved 2012-04-02.
  4. ↑ Sidewalks of New York , retrieved 2022-10-09
  5. ↑ Sidewalks of New York , retrieved 2022-10-09
  6. ↑ Scott, A. O. (2001-11-21). "FILM REVIEW; A Green Light for Love at the Frazzled Corners of Life". The New York Times . Retrieved 2012-04-02.
  7. ↑ Ebert, Roger (November 21, 2001). "Sidewalks Of New York". Chicago Sun-Times . Retrieved April 2, 2021– via RogerEbert.com.
  8. ↑ Foundas, Scott (April 21, 2001). "Variety review". Variety.com. Retrieved April 2, 2012.
  9. ↑ LaSalle, Mick (November 21, 2001). "N.Y. tale is warmed-over Woody / 'Sidewalks' a trite Manhattan sex story". The San Francisco Chronicle . Retrieved April 2, 2021.
  10. ↑ Clark, Mike (November 21, 2001). "USA Today review". USA Today . Retrieved April 2, 2012.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.