Show biz is big biz in NYC these days, according to a study by the Boston Consulting Group, which says the film and television industry generated $7.1 billion dollars in revenue for New York City last year, an increase of over $2 billion dollars annually since 2002. An estimated 130,000 people are employed by film and TV productions in the city, an increase of 30,000 jobs since 2004. Which we guess makes up for that one time a production assistant made us wait to cross the street.
1
Results tagged “movies”
Film And TV Productions Spent Over $7 Billion In NYC Last Year
The Avengers Made Record $200 Million Worth Of Orgasms This Weekend
They said it couldn't be done, but here we are: little-known arthouse flick The Avengers has overtaken Think Like A Man at the box office! $220 million David hath slayed $12 million Goliath! Even more remarkably, The Avengers took in $200.3 million during its opening weekend domestically, making it by far the biggest debut ever. How many orgasms did you get while watching it?
Avengers Reviews Assembled: Will This Movie Give You Orgasms?
Wedged between blockbuster releases such as Mother's Day and A Little Bit Of Heaven, obscure indie flick The Avengers was always a longshot to do any real damage at the box office. Yet somehow, this little-movie-that-could has captured the imagination of a nation with its emotionally complicated tale of a band of misfits learning to work together for the greater good. Also, a healthy serving of destructoporn hasn't hurt. But forget the hype for a moment: if you're wondering if this no-name super hero film is really worth your time, we're here to help you figure it out.
NYPD Protects Sunshine Cinema From Michael Wolff's "Fancy Juice"
Sometimes a story so important comes along that you must drop everything else you're doing to work on it: Vanity Fair contributing editor and media enemy-maker Michael Wolff was just told by the NYPD to leave a LES movie theater or be arrested, because he brought in his own "fancy juice." We asked a Sunshine Cinema employee if it was normal to call the police if someone brings in their own juice. "We're not saying anything about this, OK?" she replied. Yet somehow Rupert Murdoch's biographer and the founder of Newser didn't know that one has to sufficiently obscure outside food and drink in movie theaters to avoid the obscene price gouging at the snack stand.
Aww: 92-Yr-Old Man Sends Bootlegged Hollywood Movies To Troops Overseas
The NY Times has a wonderful feature on 92-year-old Massapequa, Long Island resident Hyman Strachman who devotedly sends care packages to troops overseas. And what's in the packages? Bootlegged copies of Hollywood blockbusters, which troops receive sometimes before they are even in the States. Strachman admitted to violating copyright laws, but explained, "Every time I got back an emotional e-mail or letter [from a soldier], I sent them another box."
New Multiplex-Esque Cinema Under Construction In Williamsburg
Waaaaay back in 2010, developer Blue Zees Real Estate announced plans to build a $9.3-million movie theater at the corner of Driggs Avenue and Grand Street—and now, construction is under way! And even though it technically will be a multiplex—with seven theaters and stadium seating—you shouldn't call it that: "We won't be a true multiplex," owner-operator Harvey Elgart told Village Voice.
Goonies Vs. Jaws: Which Beloved Flick Reigns Supreme?
On Thursday, April 19, the TriBeCa Film Festival kicks off with a free outdoor screening of the culture-shifting, Steven Spielberg-directed 1975 shark flick, Jaws. They follow that up the next night with the Spielberg-produced, generation-defining 1985 kids adventure The Goonies. The Gothamist offices were very excited when we heard the lineup, but not necessarily for the same reason. Turns out we're pretty split as to which of the two movies is worth fighting for a spot at an outdoor screening. Below, and argument for each, and a spot to place your own vote.
Finally: The Alamo Drafthouse Is Coming To NYC!
Weren't we just wondering when New York would get its very own Alamo Drafthouse? The Texas-rooted cinema has just announced plans for their first location here. The five-screen theater will be on the Upper West Side, located at the former Metro Theater (at 2626 Broadway). Alamo founder Tim League says, "My often-stated top priority for the Alamo Drafthouse has been to open a venue in New York. When we discovered the availability of the historic Metro theater, we immediately knew we had found the perfect location for our new Manhattan home."
Director Whit Stillman Talks Damsels, Staten Island, And That "Traitor" Lena Dunham
It's been three years since we caught up with independent film director Whit Stillman, on the occasion of the Criterion Collection release of his 1998 comedy The Last Days of Disco. He hadn't made a film since, but now, after a 14 year gap, Stillman is back with his fourth feature, Damsels in Distress, about a tight-knit group of young women at a fictional east coast college who strive to "rescue their fellow students from depression, grunge and low standards of every kind."
TriBeCa Film Fest's "Drive-In" This Year Boasts Jaws, Goonies!
Hey you guuuuyyyssss! For the last few years the TriBeCa Film Festival (which comes back soon!) has been screening free outdoor family movies as part of its "Drive-In" series and this year they've outdone themselves. They've just announced that not only are they going to screen the summer classic Jaws, they're also going to be screening everyone's favorite children's adventure movie, The Goonies!
Audio: Woody Allen Spoiled The Plot Of Midnight In Paris 50 Years Ago
The delightfully light Midnight In Paris turned out to be Woody Allen's highest grossing film ever, as well as one of his best-reviewed films ever. As it turns out, the winner for this year's Oscar for best original screenplay came from an idea from almost 50 years ago—the bits about the Lost Generation were first used in his standup routine in the mid-'60s, as you can hear below. It seems people in the '60s thought Gertrude Stein jokes were utterly hilarious.
Bret Easton Ellis Mulls American Psycho Sequel On Twitter
Author Bret Easton Ellis took to Twitter early this morning and began spitballing ideas for a sequel (or prequel?) to his most popular work, American Psycho. "Well, if this American Psycho sequel pans out I'd get in touch with my agent first but will have to spend the weekend seeing if it works…" he writes. Maybe Patrick would invite Scott Disick over to listen to Sports? Either way, he was taking suggestions for the book, (but won't credit them) so tell Ellis whether you think Patrick would wear Vineyard Vines or Brooks Brothers madras shorts when summering on Fire Island.
2012 Tribeca Film Festival Features James Franco As Franco, Val Kilmer On A BMX, And Creationists
The Tribeca Film Festival just announced its first slate of feature and documentary films that will be at this year's 11th annual program. And the selections go from the arty (Harmony Korine's The Fourth Dimension which features Val Kilmer on a BMX) to pressing current issues (Chinese bloggers doing investigative work while avoiding persecution in High Tech, Low Life; America's sex-saturated culture in Sexy Baby) . And then there's James Franco, with his movie, Francophrenia, which repurposes's Franco behind-the-scenes footage from his General Hospital stint "into an experimental psychological thriller set amid the spectacle of a celebrity’s escalating paranoia, creating a mind-bending exploration of identity."
Ooh, See Pretty Young Actors In The On The Road Film Adaptation!
Yay, young athletic movie stars with hot bods brooding and smoking cigarettes and furrowing their brows in a completely unnecessary and unwanted movie adaptation of On the Road! Why, who do we have here? Remember Garrett Hedlund, the laconic wisecracking bro man dude from TRON: Legacy? He's been cast as the iconic febrile high-adrenaline maniac Dean Moriarty. This seems like extremely bad casting judgment, until you step back and remember that this whole production is a living embodiment of bad judgment. Seeing this movie is gonna be like playing William Tell with your wife in Mexico, only you're the wife!
Tribeca Film Festival To Open With Five-Year Engagement, Starring Jason Segel And Emily Blunt
The Tribeca Film Festival has announced what movie will kick off the festivities on April 18: Five-Year Engagement, about an engaged couple, played by Jason Segel and Emily Blunt, and their journey to the altar. The couple even has a wedding website and a video from groom-to-be Tom:
So Many Movies Are Leaving Netflix After Tomorrow
This Wednesday, February 29th, a lot of great movies (and just as many terrible ones) will be disappearing from Netflix. The company's contract with Starz has run out, and when they leave, they're taking all of their titles with them, both in DVD and streaming form. When Starz first announced the split last September, they exlained:
41 Films For 41st New Directors/New Films Fest, Including The Rabbi's Cat, Gimme The Loot
The Film Society of Lincoln Center and the Museum of Modern Art just announced the lineup for its 41st New Directors/New Films Festival, and 41 films will be screened between March 21 and April 1: 29 feature films (24 narrative, 5 documentary) and 12 short films representing 28 countries.
Boozy Movies Are Leading Our Children To Drink
Children, constantly ruining things for the rest of us! Smoking is much rarer on the screen now because seeing pretty people puffing apparently makes kids want to smoke. And now a new study is trying to persuade us that watching stars get wasted with no consequences is turning our nation's impressionable youth into a bunch of alcoholics (what, they didn't see Knocked Up?). Soon grown-ups won't be allowed to see grown-ups having fun in their own entertainments.
Five Simple Etiquette Rules Every Moviegoer Should Follow
If you want to find examples of awful people disregarding their fellow human beings, you don't have to look far in New York—just ride the subway! But there is another place where folks seem to increasingly forget that they are in public and that others might not like what they are doing: Movie theaters. Ladies and gentlemen, it is time we all did something about the plague of poor patrons defiling our nation's cineplexes!
Movies You Can Watch Alone (So, So Alone) This Valentine's Night
Don't have any Valentine's Day plans tonight? Join us, as we hate-watch others fall in love Hollywood-style, in the comfort of our own homes. Netflix and Amazon streaming will wrap you in their warm embraces with romantic plot devices that will make you wonder why you can't find love. Below, our picks for some rom coms you can watch tonight while you're celebrating this day alone. So so alone.
Yeah, What The World Really Needs Are More 9/11 Movies
Though Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close has gotten more buzz for its ill-placed ads and traumatic flashbacks than anything actually on screen, at least one person thinks that what the world really needs are more 9/11 movies. While introducing his film in Berlin (which he admits some thought was "too soon") director Stephen Daldry told reporters that he'd like to see more movies about the tragedy and its repercussions.
Suck My Big Hard Camp: Wet Hot American Summer Sequel Is On!
With both Arrested Development and Party Down returning as movies, we are now officially living in a golden age of cult comedy resurrections. So it's appropriate to learn that everyone's favorite summer camp parody, Wet Hot American Summer, will also "absolutely" be coming back for a sequel. "Yes, 100 percent yes," Michael Showalter said on Watch What Happens Live. "The whole gang, everyone's doing it." Funny enough, "Everyone's Doing It" sounds exactly like one of the rejected titles for the film.
Spider-Man Trailer Introduces Awful New Subway Behavior
The Avengers isn't the only superhero movie threatening to destroy New York this summer. We've also got the Spider-Man reboot, Amazing Spider-Man, coming. And though we were antsy after the first trailer, we're much less so now. The Spidey we grew up with would say things like "You seriously think I'm a cop? In a skin-tight red and blue suit?" And that's the wallcrawler we've seem to have here.
Abel Ferrara Confirms He's Directing DSK Movie
Ending weeks of wild speculation, filmmaker Abel Ferrara has finally confirmed that he's going to bring former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn’s big silver head to the big silver screen. Le Monde reports that Ferrara—the man responsible for the films Bad Lieutenant, The Funeral, and, the seminal classic, 9 Lives of a Wet Pussy—has cast French actor Gérard Depardieu as the titular character and Isabelle Adjani as his wife Anne Sinclair.
Time Warner Cable Launches "Ryan Gosling On Demand"
Hey Girl, Time Warner Cable wants to make right by you for all those times they were late, or unresponsive, or simply unavailable. For all those times they left you feeling helpless, and unconnected to the world. For every phone call where they just left you hanging. They want you to love them again, or at least not cancel your services, and they're smart enough to know that the best way to do that is with Ryan Gosling. They're so cunning!
Mayor Bloomberg Can't Stop Talking About Spies
It is safe to say that our billionaire mayor from Boston will not be following in the footsteps of former mayor Ed Koch when he leaves office. Where Koch has spent almost a decade now reviewing movies as a side gig (see: The Mayor at the Movies), Mike Bloomberg "once told a friend he had seen only 10 movies in his life." Make that 11—he admitted he went to see Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.
Oscar Nominees Are In: Hugo Leads With 11 And Jonah Hill Has 1!
And we're into the final stretch. The nominees for the 2012 Academy Awards (now hosted again by Billy Crystal, not Eddie Murphy) are out! And they are, well, you'll see.
Want To Watch Edward Scissorhands While You Ice Skate?
Bryant Park has just announced their annual Winter Film Festival (that's right, outdoor movies aren't just for balmy summer nights), and they've got a pretty sweet lineup. On January 23rd they'll be screening When Harry Met Sally, followed by Groundhog Day on January 30th, on February 6th it's Edward Scissorhands, and there will be one more TBA on the 13th. All movies start at 7 p.m., but we recommend getting there early to fill your hot chocolate up with some contraband cinnamon Schnapps.
Golden Globes Honor The Descendants, The Artist And Madonna (And Harvey Weinstein)
Ricky Gervais didn't burn down the house while hosting the Golden Globes for the third time last night—though he did get to talk about Jodie Foster's Beaver ("I haven't seen it myself. I spoken to a lot of guys here, they haven't seen it either. That doesn't mean it's not any good")—and the show did its part to honor movies that producer Harvey Weinstein had a hand in. Madonna, always modest while winning Best Song for her ditty in W.E., referred to Weinstein as "the Punisher." All in all, business as usual, as was spotting Rupert Murdoch and wife Wendi sitting at the Fox table.
Demi Moore To Play Feminist Gloria Steinem In Porn Star Biopic
Freed from the clutches of Kutcher, Demi Moore is back to work playing feminist icon Gloria Steinem in an upcoming movie about Bronx-born Linda Boreman, who—under the name Linda Lovelace—is most noted for her appearance in the notorious 1972 adult film Deep Throat. At the time, the film grossed millions, launched Lovelace into spotlight, and sparked a firestorm of debate on cultural permissiveness. Not since her starring role as a single mom stripper with knack for political bribery has Moore grasped a role with such gravitas.
send a tip
tips@gothamist.comsubscribe
Use an RSS reader to stay up to date with the latest news and posts from Gothamist.