2. New York, New York
Scorsese! De Niro! Minnelli! New York! ... Los Angeles! No doubt after the success of
Mean Streets and
Taxi Driver, Scorsese could have filmed the story of a couple of misfit nightclub performers in his home town if he'd wanted to. Demonstrating the kind of bold stylistic decision-making that has characterised his career, however, the choice to shoot on the West Coast was born of the fact that the film was intended as an homage to the classic musicals of Old Hollywood, such as
Top Hat and
Singin' in the Rain, which were made in studios and didn't attempt to simulate reality absolutely, but rather to strike a middle ground between a clearly fabricated set and the nitty-gritty of an actual location. In other words, Scorsese intended
New York, New York to resemble a somewhat contrived version of NYC, and in fact made use of a studio which breathed life into the period he referenced, including the musicals of Judy Garland, whose dressing room was used by her daughter, Minnelli (De Niro being relegated to Greta Garbo's!) Partly due to its lavish production costs, the film wasn't profitable, and received a lukewarm reception from critics, but perhaps only because Scorsese's creativity was at least a decade ahead of its time. From the Nineties onwards, audiences were ready to interpret apparent aesthetic incongruities as creative decisions, and appreciate them on their merits as pastiche or homage. This "education" was initiated by pioneers like Scorsese, who continually mixed up their bread and butter pieces with radical creative flair.