Steve Pulaski

(2012-04-30 16:13:49)

Smile, you're on camera!

I wasn't sure how I felt going into Bill Cunningham New York. I thoughtto myself this is a man who goes around New York photographing men andwomen wearing their attire, and doing a lot of cutting and pasting intomaking it a weekly section in The New York Times. But I also thoughtthat this couldn't be the end of the story. Something about BillCunningham had to be interesting, creative, and unique to get his ownfilm.Thankfully, I thought correctly, and now am fully intrigued by the lifeof eighty-year old Bill Cunningham. His job is not only a differentone, but one he tirelessly continues to do as he rides around on histwenty-ninth Schwinn bicycle up and down lower Manhattan to photographboots, hats, scarfs, clothes, pants, etc. This is a man who throughthick and thin keeps on smiling. You'd never know he was having a badday because he'd most likely smile during that too.Bill lives in a tiny, rent-controlled apartment in Carnegie Hall wherethere is no kitchen, but dozens of file cabinets filled with negativesand positives of photos he's taken over the past several years. Hesleeps on a mattress that lies on top of several more file cabinets.All I can say is if you think you're a dedicated lawyer, do you sleepon your briefcase? The film is 90% about Bill and his photography, andthe other 10% tries to nudge him in the side trying to dig deeper inhis personal life when he won't let you. We keep asking questions like"Is Bill straight?," "Does he date?," and etc, but we get little to noanswers. Maybe because this is a documentary about his work not hispersonal life. But the neglection of something a documentary on aspecific person needs, a little background, just brings this gem down atad bit.Bill explains how when he was a young child, at Church on Sundays,instead of listening to the preacher he'd be too busy staring at otherpeople's hats. This shows that his passion for fashion, a relativelyeclectic thing, started early and never held up.Many of us work at a job that keeps us satisfied and puts food on thetable. Bill works a job that keeps him over-joyed and puts food on hisfloor next to his file-cabinets. Rarely do a lot of people truly lovewhat they are doing, but Bill is one of them. He's a person who if youwatch be happy for a while, it begins to make you smile. He's the kindof person that just fills you with glee.Bill Cunningham New York is short and sweet, but still leaves manyquestions unanswered that I'm sure will remain unanswered forever. Billis a closed book, but open if you ask him anything about fashion. He'sa mirror-image of what you can become if you take life on the slowtrack and live a very basic, yet eventful life. It's almost inspiringwith its storytelling of just a simple, yet so complex man of interest.Starring: Bill Cunningham. Directed by: Richard Press.

sick_desperation

(2012-04-30 04:45:52)

Beautiful and moving

Wow. Just wow. I really have no words that emphasize enough thebrilliance of this documentary.I am a complete fashion illiterate. I mean, the only things i wear aresports clothes, jeans and t-shirts. So i've never heard before of BillCunningham. He's a fashion photographer for the New York Times, and adamn fine one, it seems.This is his story, and what a story! Like a modern-day Thoreau, helives alone in his tiny apartment, filled only with art books andfilers full with negatives of his work of this last 60 years. He stilluses an old analog camera and rides his bike everywhere, only replacingit when it gets stolen.But, what's really special in this little marvel, at least for me(because of the fact that i don't do for living something that i reallycare about... if i think about it, i don't really know what could thatbe...) is the chance to watch someone who is completely and utterly inlove with what he does. He exudes happiness and content, because he isright where he wants to be, doing what he really wants to do, with allhis heart. He's 80 years old, and still kicking it like the best, whenmost people would be wasting away, retired after 30 or so years ofunfulfilling work.His elation transpires into his personality and daily interactions withhis colleagues and acquaintances, he's always smiling and good-humored.He's fiercely independent, and seems to be in a never-ending search forbeauty in all its forms.I believe that the world is a candid place with people like BillCunningham in it. Now it's up to the rest of us to find that which wecan be passionate about.

chaz-28

(2012-04-29 14:55:52)

A fascinating documentary about a guy who loves interesting clothes

Bill Cunningham can't be bought. He is there to observe and to takepictures, not to consume the fancy meal or mingle with the celebrities;a line which most individuals in his position would most likely blur.Bill has a section of the Sunday New York Times Style section where hewill point out a new clothing trend he sees on the streets, what peoplewere wearing at a recent evening gala, or just profile an interestinglooking person. I used to skip over this section every week; however,now that I know about Bill from the excellent documentary BillCunningham New York, I will never skip over this section again.Even though Bill is now 80 years old, he still dons his signature bluejacket every day and rides his bicycle all over Manhattan searching andtaking pictures. If it is raining, he will duct tape a garbage bag overhis shirt. He is searching for interesting clothing and it does notmatter if a celebrity is wearing them or not. A major separationbetween Bill and other photographers is he is just fine not taking acelebrity picture; he does not care at all about a person's fame level,just in their choice of clothing.Bill is usually the first to notice a new trend. While frequentingstreet corners, crosswalks, and the outside of department stores, hewill immediately stop his bike (sometimes in the middle of traffic) tosnap a few shots. During the first week of August, he happened tonotice that a lot of New Yorkers were wearing black and made that a hiscolumn's focus. Bill has become a celebrity on his bicycle as hecruises the streets and there are many influential people, who Billcould care less about, who crave his attention. There are interviewsfrom Anna Wintour, Tom Wolfe, and other very powerful people in thefashion industry who will also take time out of their day to find outwhat Bill knows.Even though he has the power to affect clothing trends, until veryrecently, Bill lived in Carnegie Hall as one of the few remainingvisual artist tenants before the final lot of them were evicted to newpremises. He slept on a cot in what could be described as closet spacesurrounded by dozens of file cabinets containing his life's work. IfBill thinks he has seen something before, he is pretty sure he can goback and find it. One example is of a designer who revealed a newcollection only for Bill to find a 1972 photo montage of an eerilysimilar line.Bill Cunningham New York is a documentary I was not eager to seebecause I assumed it was just about the fashion world. I was completelywrong. It is not about fashion, it is just about Bill and his routinewhich is completely absorbing and perhaps the best documentary of theyear. It is also the second documentary this year dealing with the NewYork Times released just before Page One: Inside the New York Times.Now that I have seen them both, there is a reason the story on BillCunningham is on the short list of 15 documentaries which are eligiblefor this year's Best Documentary Oscar. If it happens to win, it willnot matter very much to Bill. He will be doing what he does every day,riding his bicycle to find the next interesting pair of shoes.

nathanschubach

(2012-04-29 06:20:25)

Kindest New Yorker with a heart of gold deserves this celebration about his life

I can't positively gush about this movie more than any other viewercan. This documentary warms the heart and allows people to see a sideof life not many seem to slow down enough to view. I had never heard ofhim before watching this, but Bill truly is a great man. This moviemakes me want to slow down and appreciate the everyday styles thatpeople choose. I loved the various side-interviews with notablesubjects of his photographs and colleagues, many of whom have similarlyquirky yet important stories to tell. The music was so well graftedinto the scenes that you may overlook it, but it guides the times andNew York-living so well that it shouldn't be overlooked, either. Ifyou're looking for a heart-warming documentary about a very importantfigure and artist in modern fashion photography, you'll enjoy learningabout Bill as much as I did.

ihrtfilms

(2012-04-28 14:28:19)

Brilliant film, Brilliant man.

I had very little idea of who Bill Cunningham was other that he is aphotographer, works for the New York Times and that's about it. Thisdocumentary is a stunning insight into a man who is really an unknown.At 80 years old Cunningham stills works for the Times, he cycles aroundthe streets of NYC taking photos of everything and anything, but hisreal passion is fashion. The images that get into the Times are ofeveryday people in NYC, who for what ever reasons, perhaps a unusualcoat, or pair of shoes, stand out from the rest. As he himself says,he's not interested in celebrities, the everyday is more beautiful.His passion for what he does is immense and consuming, he admits he hadno time to do very little else, but has no interest in the glamour sideof fashion and lives incredibly humbly, prefers cheap sandwiches tofancy dinners or repairing a cheap rain mac with tape to save buying anew one 'that will eventually tear anyway'. He is a wonderful characterwith a seemingly endless joy for his work and the world around him. Acareer spanning decades has lead to him meeting an array of people andphotography thousands more, his work fills endless filing cabinets inhis tiny studio apartment above Carnegie Hall (which sadly came to anend, after the Carnegie artist director kicked out the last remainingtenants) much of which will never be published. His passion for hiswork shows clearly when he is awarded a medal by the French government.Not only his acceptance speech wonderful and moving, before hand he isbusy working, snapping guests, which as one woman describes, 'You areworking at your own party?!' The film follows Cunningham as he goes onhis daily journeys, as well as a trip to Paris for fashion week and wealso get to see him putting his column together, remarkably he stilluses old film cameras and choices to get them developed at a smallshop. He has absolute perfection for his column, ensuring the photosare in the right order. We also see a handful of Cunningham's subjectsfrom over the years, an array of wonderful if not eccentric NewYorkers, all individual and delightful in their own way. The excitementthey have for appearing in Cunningham's column is great to see andshows what a wonderful job he does. As he is never rude or horrid aboutwhat he sees, it's almost a stamp of approval, Anna Wintour, editor ofVogue, even says that Cunningham foresees fashion well before desingersdo and suddenly next season, an idea is everywhere.Cunningham remains an unknown in the sense that the film reveals verylittle about him. Nor does it seem that those who have known him foryears, know much about him. When near the end of the film he is askedif he has ever had a relationship, he laughs and says no, he never hashad time. He opens up briefly about family and desire. It is afascinating moment, one that becomes ultimately sad as Cunninghambreaks down momentarily, for what reason we can only guess.This film is a fantastic insight into one person and their passion, onethat is simply told but is uplifting and often funny and if anythinginspiring. It shows that some people lead the most simplistic life andyet achieve so much happiness and that is a glorious thing.More reviews at my site iheartfilms.weebly.com

Harold S. Levine

(2012-04-28 03:52:24)

Not to be missed

I have lived in Manhattan for 32 years, 31 of them a very short walkingdistance from the corner of 57th and 5th, where Mr. Cunningham huntshis prey during the year. I have met him and seen him at work, but knewvery little about him. This wonderful documentary not only showsCunningham going after his shots, but is a wonderful window into therole of fashion and society in New York, with incredible images goingback to the 1970s (and in some cases, even earlier). I admit that Icried for about 15 minutes in the beginning, so beautifully do thefilmmakers create Cunningham's world -- and a New York I have had theprivilege of experiencing. If you liked "The September Issue," or therecent Valentino or Yves St. Laurent documentaries, run don't walk toBill Cunningham New York. And if you're a gay man of a certain age,bring Kleenex.

Angela Carone

(2012-04-22 22:05:10)

I loved this documentary...

I love Bill Cunningham. He's the original street fashion photographer -the one who mastered today's trend - and a New York institution. Foryears, he's been documenting fashion trends on the streets of New York,which he traverses on his trusty Schwinn, reporting for The New YorkTimes.Cunningham does a regular feature for the Times called "On the Street"in which you hear him talk about the photos he's taken. He's always sounabashedly enthusiastic.Who knew you could be so happy about trench coats, leggings, andleopard print? OK, so I've been happy about those things (maybe not theleopard print). But Cunningham's appreciation for statement andexpression makes fashion seem like a place for everyday adventureinstead of a consumer trap.A new documentary called "Bill Cunningham: New York" opens in San Diegothis weekend. In it, we learn that Cunningham's life is his work. He'sin his 80s and has lived something of monastic existence in the name offashion - or as he might put it - the pursuit of beauty.He's never had a romantic relationship. He attends church every Sunday.For years he lived in a tiny apartment above Carnegie Hall packed withfile cabinets where he stores copies of every photograph he's evertaken (he's still shooting film). The apartment had no kitchen and apublic bathroom down the hall. He stored his bike in a hall closet,retrieving it daily to hit the streets with his camera and rolls offilm.Cunningham and the last remaining tenants (paying rent-control prices)at Carnegie Hall moved last year, forced out by the owners who wantedto expand and renovate the apartments into offices and classrooms.The film also introduces us to Cunningham's former and eccentricneighbors at Carnegie Hall. The most fascinating is Editta Sherman, a99-year-old photographer who was once a muse for Andy Warhol. Shermanhas been called the "Duchess of Carnegie Hall" where she lived for over60 years.For all the artifice and pretense of the worlds he covers (fashion andNew York society), Cunningham is humble and completely without airs.He's a chronic smiler and his sense of humor is refreshing in anindustry known for pouty lips and raised eyebrows.For more of this review, go to the Culture Lust blog on www.kpbs.org

Caleb Chadwick

(2012-04-22 21:06:08)

One 2011's best films

This feature about one of the worlds leading photographers is somethingnot to be missed. It paints the portrait of a man who see's the worldfrom a different view than most. It shows the beauty in the mind of onewho's view on fashion is something that comes from a deeper place. Weget to see snip-it's of Bill Cunningham's deepest emotions and also thevision of a true visionary. These moments captured are charming,slightly funny, and relevant. Of all the documentaries scoping the lifeof one person I've seen, they really don't get much better than this.This film, which does have much critical acclaim now, is one that isdeserving of it's praise, and at the same time is not in any waypretentious. It is not only one of the most heartfelt films of theyear, but also one of the very best.