Slaves of New York

When I saw this movie, I thought it was surreal. Then I moved to New York and realized that it was just being honest. The movie takes place against the colorful (sometimes to a ridiculous extent) new york artist scene. I never read the book, so I don't really know (or care) if the movie was true to it or not, but I thought that all the characters were well developed and gave some hilarious performances. The plot flowed seamlessly and by the end you know that, despite the fact that little of what you saw made much sense, there is some strange order to the world and that it's all good. I find myself recommending this movie to all my friends as I would recommend it to anyone interested in New York, art, or the simultaneous crappiness and lovableness of humanity.

Struggling hat-maker Eleanor (Bernadette Peters) lives with her unstable struggling artist boyfriend Stash in a rundown New York City neighborhood. They are deep into the art scene.

James Ivory is the director. Ismail Merchant is the producer somewhere. Tama Janowitz is the writer based on her New York stories. This has a good sense of time and place although I want them to talk more about money. Maybe he gets enough from his art. It would be more compelling if there is some drug dealing, tricking, or minor scamming. I love "Dad I'm In Jail" which is a big moment in Pump Up the Volume a year later. The scene is not actually that memorable but it's about the song. The movie drifts from one situation or party to the next. At times, I wondered if there is any point to any of this. Maybe that is the point. New York may not be a good place for Merchant Ivory.

this is a very cool little film.i rented it because i really dig the actors that are in it.this film apply represents the artsy community and how they all hang out and go to parties together.maybe its not for everyone, because since its independent its not effervescing with action scenes. the pace of the movie is cool because it is just like real life.you go places and meet people and try to pursue goals that may or may not work out. its important that artsy people should see this film, because everyone in it represents someone they know.great cameos from mercedes ruehl, stanley tucci, steve buscemi, and bernadette also does a great job as eleanor who lives with her crass and selfish boyfriend.

Why did Eleanor put up with Stash? Why is Daria so annoying? Why didn't this movie get any play at all?

It has a great cast, with (literally) hundreds of "New York" types, and every single SoHo type is represented, eventually. I like Bernadette Peters so I appreciate this movie cause its one of her only starring roles.

For a touch of trivia, at the party Eleanor throws at the end, the woman who spends the party hiding in the bathroom is Tama Janowitz, who wrote the novel "Slaves of New York".

Often disjointed adaptation of the volume of intertwined short stories by Tama Janowitz is most interesting for its examination of the avant garde art scene in Manhattan. The story is less compelling; the personal evolution of hat designer Eleanor (Peters) is fine, but other story threads hold less interest. Peters gives an unusual performance (owing much to her scattered, unassuming personality) which doesn't really fit with the other characters, though that is a large part of the point of that plot: Eleanor is much more honest and unironic than the pretentious, pseudo-intellectual types who populate the milieu. The parties, openings, shows, and gatherings keep the screen interesting, though the occasional split-screen scenes are an unsuccessful experiment. Performances are generally good, including a funny two-scene cameo by author Janowitz as Eleanor's friend Abby. My reaction to this makes me think it might have made a good sitcom.