If you worship Martin Scorsese, then maybe you think this movie is a masterpiece, or whatever.But, if you are anyone else, you are likely going to find two-and-a-half hours of Robert De Niro and Liza Minnelli endlessly yelling at each other VERY hard to take! They pretty much just argue constantly. And, De Niro seems like he's playing a character so unlikable, it's like he's warming up for "Raging Bull." He treats Minnelli like garbage, and you just want to take a baseball bat to him pretty much throughout the whole film.The Kander and Ebb songs are great. And, some of the music staging works very well. But, that's pretty much it. One conceit is that Scorsese seems to be wanting to recreate that shot-on-a-backlot feeling. But, for someone from New York City, it definitely seems odd that Scorsese is shooting this movie pretty much anywhere BUT New York City!I think this is the movie where Scorsese said he was hopped up on drugs the whole time. Not much of an excuse, considering he was spending other people's money.The only good thing to come from this movie is that the song "New York, New York Theme" which was soon after recorded by Frank Sinatra.***** (5 Out of 10 Stars)

While some reviewers were raving over the newer, restored length version, I, for one, would like it cut down again. This film is an adaptation of What Price Hollywood and the later remakes titled A Star Is Born. Two talented individuals meet and the woman soon surpasses her husband in fame; something he cannot endure. Unfortunately unlike the predecessor films, the male lead (DeNiro) doesn't walk out into the sea and spare us anymore of his vile character. He is petty, childish, jealous, lying, manipulative, angry....there wasn't a redeeming aspect to this character. And Liza Minelli's character was the polar opposite. She was a weak co-dependent that just couldn't swallow enough abuse. Hard characters to sit with for 3 hours. The story takes place in the 40's just after the war but you often feel the staginess of it. It has that very 70's feel to the look and sound. It looks dated, but not to the 40's sadly. While Ms. Minelli does some nice renditions of standards, there is a very long montage of songs in the last hour as we watch a movie within a movie that goes on forever. Minelli belting one out after the other with all stops removed accompanied by lavish dancing and scenery a la those big MGM movies of the period. The songs, however, are not memorable and I was squirming for it to end already. A quick blend of each song would have sufficed but we got one full song after another. And of course, the big show stopper of NY,NY at the end. Personally, I don't like the song, even when Frank sings it. It's a let down. This is the big number that both people have been lovingly slaving over for years to get just right? There are a few great moments where the real Scorcese comes through such as a scene where DeNiro is hauled out of a nightclub down a hallway of light bulbs. Nicely composed with that touch of grunge as a struggling DeNiro kicks out bulbs. Another is a fantastic screaming match in the car between the two stars. Otherwise, the director gets lost in all the production and staging.

Martin Scorsese combined the splashy atmosphere of the old studio musical with an unromanticized marriage story in his valentine to Hollywood and the Big Band era.New York, New York is a musical-drama film directed by Scorsese. It is a musical tribute, featuring new songs by John Kander and Fred Ebb as well as standards, to Scorsese's home town of New York City, and stars Robert De Niro and Liza Minnelli as a pair of musicians and lovers.It features Minnelli's signature song,"New York New York".On V-J Day 1945, newly minted civilian saxophonist Jimmy Doyle meets USO singer Francine Evans at a dance, but she rebuffs every advance that he makes. A day and a hotel lobby meeting later, Jimmy finally wins Francine over after she uses her pop instincts to save his too-jazzy audition at a nightclub. When she goes on tour with Frankie Harte and his Orchestra, Jimmy tracks her down, taking a job with the orchestra to be with her. Together on stage, they make beautiful music; off stage they marry, but the struggle between two artists begins to take its toll. Unable to understand that Francine's needs and talents are just as important as his, and unwilling to compromise his music for security, Jimmy abandons Francine after their baby is born. Separately, the two succeed even more, as Francine becomes a music and movie star, while Jimmy has a top hit and opens a jazz club. When they are reunited several years later, the pair must decide if their relationship is worth another try.A downbeat homage to bright-lights showbiz dramas, an epic orchestration that indulges in stubbornly obsessive riffs, Martin Scorsese's New York, New York seems to value awkwardness and indecision above all else considering that it never pulls itself together into a coherent whole.But nevertheless,one cannot deny the fact that we're left with a good time considering the great amount of entertainment and satisfaction this musical provides.Also,Scorsese created a very handsome and dynamic film reveling in the costumes and music.Overall,it may not be the a classic but it surely does leave the viewer a wonderful time.

V-J Day in 1945, saxophonist Jimmy Doyle (Robert De Niro) is mercilessly pestering girls for phone numbers. He eventually spots Francine Evans (Liza Minnelli) sat on her own and so he begins working on getting her number, but she refuses. After an eventful night, the two end up sharing a cab, and Francine ends up joining Jimmy at his saxophone audition. She also begins to sing, and the two and snapped up as a double act. And so begins a journey through the glitzy heights of 1940's and 50's showbiz, as the two fall in and out of love and experience the highs and lows of the business.Martin Scorsese's epic homage to the musicals of the 1950's was originally cut down from four and a half hours to just over two hours for its cinematic release, only to be panned by critics. It was then re- released years later with 20 minutes of footage restored, to critical acclaim. The section that was restored was the musical number that showed a film-within-the-film called 'Happy Endings', that Minnelli's character stars in. Much like the long ballet sequence in The Red Shoes (clearly an influence here - one of De Niro's alias' is M. Powell), it's a dazzling twenty minutes that looks less like a homage and more like a scene taken directly from an MGM musical. Mr. Scorsese clearly knows his cinema.Yet when the film is not pleasing the eyes with the musical numbers and sweeping cinematography, we are forced to sit through the breakdown of a poisonous marriage between two generally unlikeable characters. Jimmy and Francine are both fiercely career-driven, and the film shows how damaging this can be, but De Niro's egotistical musician is virtually the same character that was developed better in the likes of Mean Streets and Raging Bull. Minnelli, an actress/singer I've always failed to see the appeal in, is just not good enough to breath life into her already thinly-realised character.However there is much to admire. Nobody can capture the spirit of the old films like Scorsese can, and he goes some way homaging the likes of Singin' In The Rain and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. The sets, cinematography, camera movements and every else in the technical sense are excellent. It's only the story that is lacking. It seems to be determined to be labelled an 'epic', but the 160+ minute running time does not have enough going for it to hold the attention that long.www.the-wrath-of-blog.blogspot.com