New York, New York: A film of two halves

"New York, New York" - released in 1977 - was (and remains) something of a departure for Scorsese, turning away from the gritty, violent realities of his earlier films "Mean Streets" and the just-finished "Taxi Driver" - the only break between "Taxi Driver" and "New York, New York" was to wait for Robert De Niro to finish filming on Bernardo Bertolucci's "1900". But the freedom provided by this departure, and the success of "Taxi Driver", turned out to have a negative impact on "New York, New York", as Scorsese says in the book Scorsese on Scorsese:

"After winning the Cannes Golden Palm for 'Taxi Driver', we got big heads and felt that no script was good enough. For example, we shot for weeks on the opening scene where De Niro picks up Liza Minnelli, and the original cut of this alone ran one hour...It was a experimental situation and, in retrospect, I don't think we should have been given that free a hand. It was a mess, and it's a miracle that the film makes any kind of sense.

Scorsese chose to shoot this film on set, rather than on location, partly to pay homage to the Hollywood musicals that he grew up watching (and as such, it ties into his more recent "film-history" film, 2011's "Hugo"). He wanted to capture the New York kerbs of these films that, he says in his introduction to the film, were always too high, and the disorienting sense of a film universe full of extras who are clearly dressed in far more expensive clothes than they could ever afford. But he also wanted to try imposing more realistic characterisation on this unrealistic universe, to see if and how the two could fit together.

One of his tried-and-tested techniques for presenting this atmosphere of realism is getting his characters to improvise, but he soon learned that the unfamiliar, artificial universe of sets and the familiar, authentic technique of improvisation were not made to fit together. FromScorsese on Scorsese again:

"We were trying to keep the technique of improvisation and documentary approach in the foreground, with the artifice of the fake sets in the background. But you have to build the sets in advance, which means you're not being practical, because once you start improvising in one set you soon improvise your way out of that set into another situation. In the meantime, they're building a different set because it's in the script! So you have to go back and shoot some more to get yourself back in line to use that second set - and that's one of the reasons why the scenes are so long."

The film consequently has its weaknesses, not least the overly long scene of De Niro hitting on Minnelli (about 15 minutes in the 163-minute extended version). But the whole first half of this extended version is packed full of scenes that go on too long, and that consequently lack the usual Scorsese-fired drive.

[SPOILER WARING] The film only kicks into life in the second half (about 75 minutes in), after Minnelli tells De Niro she is pregnant and the tensions between the two protagonists - the authentic emotion and characterisation that Scorsese wanted to impress upon this artificial world - come to the fore. The pregnancy sends the pair off in different directions, as Minnelli's (Francine Evans') inability to travel splits up her double act with De Niro (Jimmy Doyle), sending De Niro on the road with his new band as Minnelli stays at home. But her singing talent is quickly recognised and she is soon signed up by Decca records, propelling her into the realm of super-stardom. As De Niro's new band lacks the magic of his Minnelli double act, he soon loses his regular gigs and her success sends him spiralling off into jealousy and furious rages, one of which sends Minnelli into labour.

The pair go their separate ways, then seem set to reunite in a classic Hollywood - but utterly fake - happy ending, yet Scorsese resists the easy solution and has both characters fail to turn up at the Chinese restaurant at which they had arranged to meet - both having realised that, despite their love for one another, their ineluctable loves for music in something that is always going to drive a wedge between them and that it is therefore better for both of them if they lead separate lives.

It is a mature, realistic happy ending - the kind that Scorsese has himself after finishing the film:

"I was extremely disappointed when the movie was finished because I had had a really bad experience making it. But over the years I've been able to see that it has truth to it. I still don't really like it, yet in a way I love it."

If anyone out there is new to Scorsese, this is not the place to start exploring his films. But for long-standing fans of his work - especially his work with De Niro - this is an interesting, if not fully satisfying, watch.

Panicky in the UK

Originally published on AngloINFO Blogs on 25/03/11
With consumer confidence crashing to record lows in the UK in February 2011, it is fair to say that the UK is edging towards something of a tipping point.

That tipping point could be reached this Saturday, when the Trades Union Congress’s (TUC) March for the Alternative – a protest against the damage that the government’s “deep and rapid spending cuts” is doing to the UK – descends on central London.

Numbers for the march are not definite – most estimates say “several hundred thousand people” are expected – so if you’re not planning on joining the march, it might be a good idea to avoid central London tomorrow.

However, the wiser among you may wish to get involved, and if so you’ll need to get yourself to Victoria Embankment – between Waterloo and Blackfriars Bridges – by about 11:00.

The full route of the march will take it west along the Thames, past Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament, along Whitehall, past 10 Downing Street, along Piccadilly and in to Hyde Park, where Labour leader Ed Miliband will be speaking.

Cutting confidence

As for consumer confidence, that is measured by the Nationwide Consumer Confidence Index, which was started by the Nationwide Building Society in May 2004.

According to Nationwide, it “measures the population’s view of the current position and future prospects of the UK.”

It does so by asking people:

• what they think of the current economic situation
• what they think the economic situation will be like in six months’ time
• what they think of the current employment situation
• what they think the employment situation will be like in six months’ time
• their expectations for their household income in six months’ time

The drop to an all-time low at the end of last month was driven mostly by a crash in people’s expectations, with only 14% of people saying they thought the UK’s economic situation would be “good” in six months’ time (compare to 39% in February 2010), and 42% saying they thought it would be “bad” (compared to 15% in February 2010).

Meanwhile 63% of people said they thought there would be “not many/few jobs available” in six months’ time – treble the proportion that felt the same way when the Index began in May 2004.

Don’t cut culture

When capitalism lets us down we can always turn to culture to enrich our lives, and while London may have some of the world’s steepest ticket prices, it also has plenty of free museums and exhibitions.

So if you’re feeling the pinch as much as the rest of us, why not try one of the following free events in the capital.

Oh, and by the way, the March for the Alternative is free to attend as well.

Free events in London

This is Whitechapel at Whitechapel Gallery, 77-82 Whitechapel High Street, E1 7QX

Photography by Ian Berry documenting the changing face of Whitechapel in the 1970s as the established Jewish community moved away and a south Asian population took their place.

Beat the Champ at The Barbicam, Silk Street, EC2Y 8DS

Cory Angel’s latest art installation, featureing 14 bowling video games from the 1970s to the 2000s.

Cafechurch at Caffe Nero, 31-33 Warwick Way, SW1V 1QS

Churchgoers and non-churchgoers discuss issues such as fair trade, the environment, stress, adoption, parenting, debt and divorce over coffee. Fourth Wednesday of the month.

Beatrix Potter: An Awkward Education at the Victoria and Albert Museum, Cromwell Road, SW7 2RL

Still life drawings by the author of “The Tale of Peter Rabbit”.

Who is The Guardian’s Secret Footballer?

Originally published on Talking Sports on 04/04/11

As anyone who has seen any of the three Goal! films will know, attempts to dramatise the football world are, and I hate to generalise, disgustingly hideous flops.

Now you could make the easy mistake of confusing this hammed-up, wooden, predictable, celebrity-ridden piss fest of a trilogy for a tongue-in-cheek, postmodern masterpiece, or you could say: “Hold on a minute. These films are probably shit because real-life football is imbued with enough of a genuine sense of drama to make any staged version of a 94th minute winner seem like a poor imitation of the real thing.”

And you’d be right to do so.

But football doesn’t just have drama on the pitch. It has air rifles at training grounds, people shagging each other’s girlfriends, rivals saying nasty things about one another and the farcical spectacle of men getting dressed up in glorified PE kits.

It’s like Eastenders stuffed into the mouth of Lock, Stock and shat into the toilet bowl of Carry On.

What makes Eastenders so great, apparently, is its history of baddies, and everyone’s favourite moment is when a new baddy appears. But there’s only one thing that can top a new baddy, and that is a baddy with a secret identity.

As Guardian readers will know, football has just acquired its own mystery baddy in the shape of The Secret Footballer (TSF), a Saturday columnist who “lifts the lid on the world of football”.

Conjecture about who he might be is, well, I won’t say flooding online forums, invading pub airspace and sending footballers into paroxysms of terror – I recently met John Salako, not exactly the dumbest ex-footballer out there, and he’d never even heard of the column – but it has got a certain group of people feeling quite curious.

So, I’ve combed through TSF’s 12 columns, picked out any hints as to his identity, and tried to figure out who the fucker is.

Here are my findings:

He is a Premiership player, who grew up on a council estate. He has played for at least two Premiership clubs, has an agent, and says he has played for “great managers” – one of whom he played under for “a long time” – and “one or two where I would happily have faked my own death if it meant not working with them a minute longer”.

He has also said: “Another manager I played for was more proactive. He felt he had to step in when he became concerned about the card school on the back of the coach getting out of hand.”

He knows a fair bit about Twitter, and was once “fined for going out to a pub with a couple of friends while injured”.

He is “a more senior member of the squad”, he seems to refer to Tottenham quite a lot, says he will need hip and knee replacements when he retires, and has been in contract negotiations where “the Bosman ruling hung over proceedings”.

He has a lifelong Scandinavian friend in football, played with “a group of French players… at one club who were not interested in communicating with anybody else”, and has a wife and, probably, kids.

Astonishingly, he also once won a free-kick at Old Trafford. This, plus other comments, means I am assuming he is an outfield player.

Who could it be?

I’m automatically discounting Manchester United players, because they are likely to be too high profile to do something like this. In addition, most of their British players haven’t been at more than one club – bar Rio Ferdinand, who ticks a lot of the boxes (married; Twitter user; played for great managers; been at a few clubs; probably has won a few free kicks at Old Trafford) and Michael Owen, as he has nothing else to do. By the same token I am ruling out Chelsea (Lampard and Cole are unmarried; John Terry is a one-club man) and Arsenal players.

We can also dismiss many newly-promoted teams, as most of their players haven’t got much Premiership experience or played for more than one Premiership team. So, count out Wigan, Blackpool (James Beattie is their only viable option, but he’s a posh lad, and in all likelihood didn’t grow up on a council estate), Wolves, Blackburn (David Dunn is the only option there, but he hasn’t played under any great managers), Stoke and West Brom (only Nicky Shorey seems to fit the bill, but he hasn’t played that much in the Premiership, and only for one arguably kind-of-great manager, Martin O’Neill). In addition, no one at Everton fits the bill.

So that leaves us with quite a small group of players that it could be:

Manchester City – Joleon Lescott, James Milner, Gareth Barry
Tottenham Hotspur – Jonathan Woodgate, Jermaine Jenas, Peter Crouch (not married), Jermain Defoe (not married)
Liverpool – Joe Cole
Bolton – Zat Knight, Kevin Davies
Newcastle – Sol Campbell, Joey Barton, Alan Smith, Kevin Nolan
Fulham – Steve Sidwell, Danny Murphy, Damien Duff, Jonathan Greening, Andy Johnson, Bobby Zamora
Sunderland – Titus Bramble, Anton Ferdinand, Kieran Richardson
Aston Villa – Luke Young, Stephen Warnock, Richard Dunne, Emile Heskey, Darren Bent
West Ham – Matthew Upson (not married), Wayne Bridge (not married), Scott Parker, Robbie Keane
Birmingham – Bowyer, Kevin Phillips, James McFadden (not married)

TSF said in his April 9 column that “My wife told me that last week… I came in for a particularly vicious barrage after miscontrolling a pass”.

Jonathan Woodgate, Jonathan Greening and Emile Heskey didn’t play on April 2/3 weekend. Zat Knight, Stephen Warnock, Titus Bramble, Sol Campbell, Alan Smith, James Milner, Gareth Barry and Kieran Richardson also didn’t play, so that leaves us with:

Manchester United – Rio Ferdinand, Michael Owen
Manchester City – Joleon Lescott,
Tottenham Hotspur – Jermaine Jenas
Liverpool – Joe Cole
Bolton – Kevin Davies
Newcastle –Joey Barton, Kevin Nolan
Fulham – Steve Sidwell, Danny Murphy, Damien Duff, Andy Johnson, Bobby Zamora
Sunderland –Anton Ferdinand
Aston Villa – Luke Young, Richard Dunne, Darren Bent
West Ham –Scott Parker, Robbie Keane
Birmingham – Lee Bowyer, Kevin Phillips

If we’re after someone who has played with a bunch of Frenchies, is big pals with a Scandinavian and has played under “great managers”, one for “a long time”, I’d say Lescott, Jenas, Barton and Anton Ferdinand are out. For my money, that also rules out Darren Bent and Damien Duff, and probably Luke Young and Richard Dunne. This leaves:

Manchester United – Rio Ferdinand, Michael Owen
Liverpool – Joe Cole
Bolton – Kevin Davies
Newcastle –Kevin Nolan
Fulham – Steve Sidwell, Danny Murphy, Andy Johnson, Bobby Zamora
West Ham –Scott Parker, Robbie Keane
Birmingham – Lee Bowyer, Kevin Phillips

In all likelihood we could also get rid of Bowyer and Phillips.

Another clue is that, on Twitter, @TSFGuardian follows Michael Owen; Rio Ferdinand; Chris Kamara; Robbie Savage; Radiohead; Oasis and Biffy Clyro.
For those reasons, I’d knock off Rio and Owen.

Most people in web forums seem to think it is Kevin Davies, who is very active on Twitter and apparently mates with The Guardian’s Barry Glendenning

But from what’s left, I’d go for Murphy. He’s been around a few clubs, arguably played for some great managers (Hodgson, Dario Gradi) and some clowns (Houllier), was around for the tail end of Liverpool’s Spice Boy period (fits with the card school and the Owen Twitter follow). He also played with a few French players at Liverpool, and a few Scandinavians.

It’s also fair to say that, even though the column must be quite liberally edited, TSF must be reasonably intelligent, which rules out Joe Cole, Andy Johnson and Bobby Zamora for my money.

So, who do you think it is?