Watch Sidewalks of New York For Free

Too much of everything

Redundant and unnecessary.

Good movie, but best of all time? Hardly . . .

Awesome Movie

This film is not perfect. It's not perfect, because Heather Graham is, at times, too good an impersonator of the young Diane Keaton, and the younger Juliet Lewis. I am thinking of their performances in Woody Allen's 'Annie Hall' and 'Husbands and Wives,' respectively. It's not perfect because the documentary-style, pathos-generating device of the character-interview does not always generate pathos the way that it's supposed to, and instead leaves you feeling a little annoyed at being short-changed on the pathos you had perhaps unconsciously bargained for.However, as a film that you accidentally stumble across late of an evening (these, of course, not being circumstances that you'll be able to replicate if you're reading this review intending to watch it) it's almost, pretty near, goddamn, close to perfect. This is because of the feel, or atmosphere that the film has. This, admittedly, has a lot to do with the synchronisation of the soundtrack and the cinematography- but there are times when these aspects cohere really beautifully with the performances (particularly those of David Krumholtz and Brittany Murphy). To get the technical stuff out of the way, the shooting style is unashamedly Woody Allenesque, and so is the structure for that matter- what with the aforementioned interspersed character-interviews. It's not really fair to call it a rip-off, though: Allen stole that particular device (not to mention most of the plot of 'Husbands and Wives') from Bergman's magisterial 'Scenes from a Marriage.' Looting from Bergman's treasure-chest is something that should be encouraged. Suffice it to say, there are jump-cuts and they don't feel irritatingly stylised.But, anyway, back to 'Sidewalks of New York.' The film deals with themes of sex and love. There's a lot of cheating and declaring. Cheating, declaring, and sex. No great, new insights are offered into the subject... there's nothing here that you won't find in Anna Karenina or Madame Bovary on the subjects of marriage, sex and extra-marital sex or the consequences thereof for the two former... The great parts of the film happen when Director Ed Burns manages to create a really exciting and plausible moment.Most of these involve the brilliant David Krumholtz. See in particular his attempts early on in the film to woo Murphy's student/waitress/unhappy-concubine-to-an-unfaithful-dentist character. And his subsequent abortive serenading of that girl in the café where she works (more endearing than any song might have been). Krumholtz, who is the key Allen surrogate in the film, emerges as a great character-actor, much as Paul Giamatti did in 'American Splendor.' And much in the vein or mould of a Giamatti or Steve Buscemi (see 'Trees Lounge' and 'Ghost World'). Many of the more telegenic alumni of the class of 'Ten Things I Hate About You' have since graduated to bigger things. Notably the late Heath Ledger and, more recently, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who appeared in the more recent, more saccharine, more popular, more irritatingly shiny and happy, and more not-as-good Woody Allen homage '500 Hundred Days of Summer.' Krumholtz has kept a lower profile, appearing in the great Barry Levinson's watchable 'Liberty Heights.' Once again, though only a marginal role, his was the best performance for sheer wit, charm and believability.

When actor/director Edward Burn's The Brothers McMullan was released back in 1995, the critics likened it to a Woody Allen comedy. Now it seems that Mr Burns has brazenly gone one step further and remade Woody Allen's Husbands and Wives (1992) with slight plot changes and a younger cast of characters and of course an alternate title. Somehow this rewrite fails to capture the zany spark of the original, which is an excellent movie (try watching both movies back to back). Perhaps the only noteworthy thing about this movie are the performances: Rosario Dawson is excellent as the teacher who gets pregnant after a one night stand. As a matter a fact, her performance is the only thing that redeems this movie, since all the other characters are caught up in full Woody Allen film mimicry mode, some perhaps unintentionally. It's a shame that Mr Burns didn't run with the pregnant-after-a-one-night-stand plot thread as he might have turned out a movie of more merit and certainly one of more originality. 4/10 for effort minus 2 for borrowing heavily from another director. Shame on you, Edward Burns!

He lost his edge when he got famous. This is a film that follows the love lives of a series of characters, all of whom are dislikeable and uninteresting. Anyone who can make Rosario Dawson unappealing must SUCK as a director. This was a personal catharsis for Mr. Burns, whose inability to cope romantically has produced for us an unnecessary film. Oh, and Ed Burns is a bad actor as well.

Similar, yet different, from his other films ("The Brother's McMullen" and `She's the One'), writer/director/producer/actor Edward Burns, with his typical minuscule budget, broaches on Woody Allen territory this time as he explores the ooohs, aaahs and owwwws (mostly the owwwws) of the marriage and dating game. The sights and sounds of New York is in the air as the movie zeroes in on six disparate Manhattanites, all of whom trying their damnest to find the no-real answer to happiness. No belly-laughs here, but a lot of knowing smiles.This brash, perceptive, ultimately winning cyclical comedy first introduces us to good-looking, nice-guy Tommy (Ed Burns) who has just split up with his girlfriend and has been thrown out of her apartment. Tommy takes a sudden interest in evasive school teacher Maria (Rosario Dawson), whom he meets in a video store. Maria is divorced from small, tough-talking schlmiel Ben (David Krumholtz), a doorman and rock musician wannabe who cheated on her. Ben, still pining for Maria, finds a welcome distraction in edgy student/waitress Ashley (Brittany Murphy), who is having an affair with a much older and married dentist, Griffin (Stanley Tucci), whose suspecting wife Annie (Heather Graham), a real estate agent, has her eye on one of her customers, Tommy (back to Ed Burns again), who is (remember?) looking for a new pad since his girlfriend kicked him out. So much for the Kevin Bacon six degrees of separations and divorces angle.To punch up the thought processes of our six relationship-minded specimens, Burns has given his film a documentary/reality TV feel. Each of our protagonists express their own individual and personal philosophies on the meaning of love and sex with a `man on the street' interviewer. These telling bits are conveniently spliced here and there into each of their ongoing stories, which are not only a biting commentary on the social scene, but often humorously contradict their actions and intent. Burns, a native New Yorker, gives us a passionate, authentic, down-to-earth vision of his 'hood. No picaresque postcard images are to be found here. No tourist-like views of Rockefeller Center, the Statue of Liberty, Times Square, etc. And just as dressed-down and down-to-earth is his solid ensemble cast. The stories are evenly laid out with no one performance getting short shrift. Burns, Dawson, Tucci, Murphy, Klumholtz, and Graham all have meaty roles here and each of their stories are well-presented and attention-grabbing. The philandering Tucci character, the least sympathetic of the bunch, still manages to drum up some pity, if not sympathy, for his subsequent actions. What's more, the outside circle, the peripheral friends/instigators/colleagues, etc., add immeasurably to the humor and atmosphere of the piece, particularly Aida Turturro as a worldly wise teacher/friend of Dawson's, Dennis Farina as Burns' overt male chauvinist boss, Michael Leydon Campbell in dual roles as a rocker and male half of a bickering married couple, and Callie Thorne as the bickering wife.No one treats New York better than Woody Allen. With "Sidewalks of New York" Edward Burns pays tribute to this fair city, and he pays homage to Mr. Allen -- 1992's "Husbands and Wives" in particular. Notice Burns' analytical approach to his characters, the hand-held camera work and jump-cut style of editing (which is actually smoother and less jolting than in Allen's above-mentioned film), the pneumatic jazz score, the reflexive, conversational-like bantering between his characters, the episodic storylines, and, most importantly, the obvious devotion he has for NY. It all but spells out W-O-O-D-Y. But, in this case, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. He's learned well from the master.