New York: A Documentary Film

Sure Ric Burns (related directly to TV-documentary maestro Ken) may not provide a documentary that is outright 'entertaining' like a Michael Moore film, or isn't strangely engaging in its montage like Errol Morris' The Fog of War, but he understands something that all good documentary filmmakers know. If you get your subject down, and what story of the subject you want to tell, the rest is just history, literally. And if you are a history buff at all, or just interested in the tales and lineage and drama that made what is New York City what it is today, this is the documentary to see. Of course, it's not an easy feat; like his brother Kens's Jazz documentary, New York is split up into seemingly countless hours of detail, going over its 300+ year history, from the days of Henry Hudson, to the Revolution, the the draft riots (covered brilliantly in Gangs of New York), the trials and tribulations of the immigrants, and leading up to 9/11.

It's basically the kind of documentary in which once you see one part of it, say part 2 covering 1830 to the 1870, or part 5 covering the early 1900's, and you want to see more, you'll know what you're getting. One could criticize the over-abundance of dramatic, TV-esquire music, the emphasis on piling on the weight on certain subjects over others, or that (ironically) the time given still isn't enough. But as one interviewee says, there is not one definitive book or books by an author that give a totally clear idea of what New York was like in such a time and place or another. For someone who has been to the Apple countless times, seen many of Manhattan and Bronx's sites, and recognized that New York carries with it the residue of dozens of passing generations and cultures and tragedies and joys, this serves as THE documentary, at least with information terms, what New York was. At the least, you can impress (some of) your friends and family with bits of information, like about Alexander Hamilton or how the formation of all the NYC roads were built, or the bits within the massive scope of the immigration stories.

This is a history of New York, and by extension a history of the U.S.

It is a loving history of a great city, beautifully executed. Like a sibling or parent of a flawed man, the historians and other contributors see the flaws but love the subject despite them.

A serious history of New York, like of the U.S., reflects the contradictions that go back to the very early days of this city and this country: A melting pot where people of many classes, nationalities, languages and religions learned to live and get along in close proximity – and where many people hated everyone unlike them, or who resented or oppressed everyone whose group arrived in a wave after their own. Where a spirit of democracy, community, equality, public service and a hand up for everyone who needed it resided side-by-side with unbridled greed, indifference to the suffering of others not doing as well as oneself, stupendous corruption, exploitation of slaves and virtual (wage) slaves.

Some of the other reviews seem to miss the message by a mile – the historians and other contributors provide useful insights – and accurate ones. I don't know if every numeric and temporal statement is dead-on accurate, but the thrust and the many, many details and nuances discussed throughout the series are correct. From the first line uttered by the narrator in Episode 1: "On September 2, 1609, Henry Hudson…"

The superlatives, too, are on the mark. Like it or not, New York has not only been a city of all kinds of "firsts" and "biggests" and "bests" but also has a more dynamic and interesting history than most others -- which is why these superlatives are so frequently present. If some day Burns chooses to make a documentary about St. Petersburg or London or Beijing, I'm sure there will be a lot of talk about those cities to the exclusion of all others. In other words, this is a documentary about New York, not a city in Australia, Egypt, France or Russia - where the 19th Century rural peasants DID live much as they had in the Middle Ages.

How anyone watching this series and paying attention, could miss the many, many more things Burns covers besides race, class and greed – is surprising. That the series discusses these frequently is not surprising – since long before Hudson sailed up the river later named for him – all 3 have been factors in the history of New York from 1609 to today. To ignore this fact would have been to whitewash the truth. Watch "Rambo" or "X-Men" if you want fiction. Burns and his contributors report these truths – and extol the many virtues – or strengths of New Yorkers famous and anonymous by way of explaining the evolution and rise to the top of the city.

Too slow? Really? It covers 400 years , an hour and a half per century for heaven's sake. Personally, I couldn't get enough.

This documentary (7 DVD's) takes you from the beginning of New York City as a Dutch colony to somewhere around 1990. Unfortunately, much of the wonderful photography of the modern skyline is tragically dated, since the project was completed well before September 11th, 2001.

Regardless, what this documentary does best is to give you an insight into the most important personalities that shaped this city, e.g., Robert Moses, Al Smith, LaGuardia, Stuyvesent, etc. As a viewer, you get a feel for what it was like to live during all of the periods that were covered. The real detail of the series ends around 1970, so its better for covering earlier New York History.

It's huge It's exhausting. It's exciting and educational. No, not New York City, but the 20 something hour documentary about it. The labarotory for capitalism, food, art and just about everything else you could imagine, NYC's history from its beginnings as New Amsterdam to 9/11 is done up well by Ric Burns (the not as famous brother of Ken). You may have to grease the palm of your significant other to pull off the time and effort required, but New York wouldn't have it any other way.

I happened along this documentary one Sunday afternoon after 9-11 in 2001. I originally was intrigued because I am a New Yorker but also because, sadly, I really didn't have as much knowledge about this great city that I live in as I should have and of course also because it was soon after that tragic day in September and I wanted to watch anything and everything relating to that day. To my surprise it didn't have anything with regard to 9-11, being completed before 2001. I continued to watch because I wanted to know more about the history of my city. Sure I knew about the Dutch, about the English taking over, the changing of the name but this film taught me a lot about people I didn't know much if anything about - Fiorello Laguardia, Al Smith, Walt Whitman - and whereas I knew about Lincoln and FDR to name two, my knowledge about their relation to New York was pitiful.

Anyone who has any desire to gain some knowledge about New York should watch this. I picked up the CD today because the songs on it are amazing - very deep and very emotional. Anyone who enjoys history will probably enjoy this film. I got it as a Christmas present in 2001 and it's been one of the best presents I've ever received.