5 Cult Movies Shot in New York
Hollywood may house some of America’s biggest film companies, but New York has always been the epitome of classic American films. New York’s film history started with Thomas Edison’s invention of the Kinetoscope in his New Jersey laboratory. By the mid 1900s, it was in New York that Americans first saw moving pictures. The city’s cinematic heritage continues today through Bard College, which is considered one of the best film institutions in the world.
New York has played an important role in film as one of the most iconic and popular filming locations. In this article, we are going to look at 5 cult films that were shot on the streets of New York.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze (1991)
image credit: Blu-Ray
The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles were well known in the 90s, and recently they have made a comeback with a new set of live-action films. In the 90s sequel to the first highly successful film, Leonardo, Raphael, Michelangelo, and Donatello roam New York and showcase to the world some of the most popular tourist sites of the city including Times Square.
While the film includes many famous locations, perhaps the most symbolic part of New York featured in the film is the city’s pizza culture. The turtles love pizza, and since the food is one of the most iconic delicacies in the city, it’s only proper that the opening scene of the movie pays homage to the food. Check out the first 60 seconds of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II, and see just how inseparable pizza is to the Big Apple.
Ghostbusters (1984)
image credit: Pinterest
There are so many sites in New York featured in Ghostbusters that it’s impossible not to include the cult classic in this list. In the 1984 version of the film, the iconic “Spook Central” is an actual building located at the 55 Central Park West on 66th Street.
The film’s first scene takes place in one of NYC’s most historic buildings, the New York Public Library, where viewers first see a glimpse of supernatural presence in the city.
The West 67th Street was also featured in the film. It was the scene where Louis was running away from a demon dog. The restaurant where he seeks help from is today an actual establishment called Tavern on the Green.
Like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Ghostbusters is making a comeback through new movies and games. Apart from the all-new female cast that starred in the 2016 remake, the franchise has an online slot game titled Ghostbusters Triple Slime, which features some of the movie’s most beloved characters, sound effects, and music. Despite last year’s remake, the online game features the original characters of the franchise. As the remake and online game show, the Ghostbuster franchise still has plenty of life in it yet.
Check out the demon dog scene below.
The Godfather (1972)
image credit: The Hollywood Reporter
The Godfather is one of the most famous movies of all time, with most of the filming done on the East Coast. The exterior shots of the Corleone mansion was an establishment owned by a rich New York-based family.
The trilogy’s most recognizable scene, the first film’s opening wedding celebration, was shot in the backyard of the aforementioned New York family’s ancestral home. The outdoor festivities that followed after the wedding were filmed along affluent neighborhood of Emerson Hill.
Check out the clip below that features the mansion itself.
Manhattan (1979)
image credit: Letterboxd
As the name implies, Manhattan is a movie that takes place within the borough. It opens with a montage of pictures of Manhattan, and other parts of NYC, accompanied by background music of George Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue.
The New York landmarks featured in the prologue include the Empire Diner, which is located in 210 Tenth Avenue, the Staten Island Ferry, Lincoln Center, Temple of Dendur, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Below is a clip of the opening scene.
Do the Right Thing (1989)
Do the Right Thing is a movie that tells the story of a Brooklyn neighborhood’s simmering tension, which comes to a head and culminates in tragedy.
The comedy-drama was shot in the Bedford-Stuyvesant area of Brooklyn, where all of its locations can be found from Stuyvesant Avenue to Quincy Street.
The film’s “Sal’s Famous Pizzeria” was built from the ground up on an empty lot at the southwest corner of Stuyvesant and Lexington Avenue. The Korean grocery store was also built on a vacant lot just opposite of Stuyvesant.
