You guys should know by now that I basically procrastinate on well just about everything. Instead of writing this blog Friday, I baked a cake and then went to sleep. Instead of writing this blog on Saturday, I went to my brother’s birthday party and then got into a car accident. Instead of writing this blog this morning, I..well…i slept. So, now I sit here at 11PM, an hour before this blog is due watching Zombieland with our beloved Jesse Eisenberg and still avoiding writing about the actual subject of this blog. Deep Breath. Here we go:

I’m going to be honest, I hated this course for the first few weeks into the semester. Who blogs every week and then takes random pictures of landscape and abstract objects? Weird. I had a rough start too. Looking back now, my first blog was literally about 5 sentences. I just laughed out loud at myself. I was quite pathetic and not willing to try. Once I met Healey though, not trying clearly wasn’t an option. You win, Healey, you actually got me work at 9AM on Monday morning.

Now to the actual course itself. I loved every single topic we learned about in this seminar. I do admit that going to the plays and finding my way through the city was the most fun. Unfortunately, before this class I never really explored the city. I stuck to Times Square, Soho and Astor Place. Lame, right? Before Anthony Caro on the roof, I hadn’t been to the Metropolitan. I’m a horrible New Yorker, I know. I was also ridiculously handicapped when it came to using the subways. I could function perfectly anywhere in Queens with public transportation, but Manhattan was like a completely different world. I gained so much perspective about the what streets connect to others and even he subway system.

When I stop and think about this course, the one thing that comes to mind is In America. The story told through this movie was such a touching sad one that I can’t help but always relate it to this course. The message was so strong. Every single immigrant has a back story. It doesn’t matter if it is or isn’t wrong that they’re here illegally, the point is that they are human beings too. Human beings with possibly dark pasts and hopeful futures. In America was seriously one of the most touching things I’ve ever seen. I think that it is quite possibly the movie with the clearest message we saw all semester. Clear doesn’t make it any less meaningful though. I took the most from this movie than I did anything else. While it was a clear message of immigration, it was also about a racial tension between Ariel and Johnny, the relationship between a husband and wife after a serious loss, and even about growing up after a family tragedy. It was clear that every character in this film has a distinct part that was necessary to its story. I seriously couldn’t get enough from the movie, I absolutely loved it.

That being said, my least favorite thing from this semester was (dundundun) Do the Right Thing. I feel like Spike Lee could have delivered his message in a less…how can I word this without being rude?…ridiculing manner. I mean, maybe that was the point. Make every character as obnoxious as you can, hit the climax, and then end a movie with someone doing the wrong thing? Cool, iI guess, if you’re into that sort of thing…

So this is it. Good bye Arts in New York City, I will probably never be this cultured again. It’s been real.

I felt that that the display of concrete and steel structures at the Metropolitan Museum of Art by Anthony Caro was best art I’ve seen over the duration of the art seminar…NOT!

Over the past semester, I saw New York City in all shades of gray. I was taken everywhere from New York City’s brightest aspects to its darkest corners. New York City is one of the largest cities in the world, which means the range of human interpretations is boundless. Some people see New York as a means of fulfilling their dreams, a sort of sanctuary, and a place filled with hope; others perceive New York to be an urban nightmare, with hellish features, and filled with nothing but despair. So over the past couple of months I felt that I got a good taste of the various views New Yorkers have to offer.

Despite all of the point of views I witnessed, the rich, the poor, the hopeless, the racist, the selfish, the selfless, the immoral, the ethical, and even the crazy, there was one point of view that seemed to stand out among the rest… the world through the eyes of an immigrant. Now I know a majority of students loved the immigrant unit, but it’s for a good reason! Unless you were an actual immigrant who traveled long distances to live in New York City, you probably never took the time to stick yourself in their shoes and try to understand the lives they live everyday. Not all immigrants come to America poverty stricken—some are actually very well off before they come to New York City—but let’s just focus on those who migrate to New York for a better life for themselves. Carlo Alban, for example, delves into his life as an illegal alien living the false identity of an American citizen. Never in my life, have I thought about the physical, emotional, and psychological hardships that someone like Carlo goes through as they try to make a life for themselves in America. Not to mention that immigrants like Carlo work at least twice as hard as any other person born with the right to be an American citizen. If anyone deserves citizenship, it’s these men and women who work day and night for a citizenship that countless people take for granted. Intríngulis was, without a doubt, the most influential performance I’ve seen this year. However A View from the Bridge, Maria Full of Grace, and even In America, all also conveyed a perspective that brought out a feeling of sympathy and, more importantly, an understanding of what it’s like to be a foreigner in a big city.

Although my favorite unit was the immigrant unit, and the most influential piece I saw was Intríngulis with Carlo Alban, it doesn’t mean that it was my favorite work. In fact, my favorite work was Asuncíon. Why? Simply, because I found it the most entertaining. Now I know this sounds shallow and juvenile, but among all the art works out there, I am one who finds the most entertaining to be the most enjoyable. Honestly, who doesn’t like to sit down to a performance with some friends and have a good laugh? Yes, the message might have been lost among all the comedy, but it doesn’t mean that I didn’t enjoy it. Asuncíon was the funniest performance I have ever seen and I had the most fun watching it out of all the performances. Not to mention that I got to meet not only one, but two famous celebrities in one night. I mean come on, who else can say that they met Jesse Eisenberg and Justin Bartha on the same night and got autographs and pictures to prove it. To take it all in at once, the feeling was surreal. This will be a memory that will stay with me for the rest of my life.

So as you can see, I learned a lot about New York City over time we spent together as an arts seminar class. I learned that I could go to the rooftop of the Metropolitan Museum of Art to be surrounded by pompous jerks (to put it lightly) and dull sculptures, the opera to put myself through three hours of torture, the Brooklyn Academy of Music to watch a terrifying yet interesting performance to say the least, where to find the world’s greatest cannoli, and to never watch the Bald Soprano again. But in all honesty I had a lot fun. I was happy to be exposed to the vast world of art found within the streets of New York City that I didn’t even know existed. From now on I will appreciate the value the art brings to this city. Who knows, maybe one day I’ll take a risk and try to watch a performance outside of my comfort zone just because I can. It’s just one more reason why I love being a New Yorker.

Thanks everyone for a great semester and enjoy winter break! 😀

New York City wouldn't be the city it is today without the Twin Towers.

Coming into this class, I didn’t know what to expect. At first I just knew it was the seminar class we all had to take as freshman Macaulay students. Arts in New York City sounded like something I already knew about, but never really experienced. Living in Queens my whole life, I knew that the city was inhabited by a variety of artists such as singers, dancers, painters, and costume designers. This class forced me to look deeper into the city from a new perspective. I liked the way Professor Healey separated our discussion into distinct units: Uptown and Downtown, City of Immigrants, City of Dreams or Urban Nightmare, and New York after 9/11. I felt that each one of these units told a specific story of New York through the different art works presented.

We began and ended our first unit on two very opposite ends. We started with Woody Allen’s “Manhattan” that portrayed the life of rich white New Yorkers that spend their nights partying at the museum. We went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art to see Anthony Caro’s exhibit, but became more amazed to see rich snobby people on the roof of the museum. These two experiences tied in very well as they both expressed the epitome of wealthy New York. Then we delved into more middle class affairs through the work of Yasmina Reza’s “God of Carnage” and “The Bald Soprano” performance. We still saw the minimal quarrels and convulted conversations of upper-middle class adults. It was only until we saw “Taxi Driver” and “Do the Right Thing” did we see stories of the have nots in New York. We read “In Arabia We’d All Be Kings” which featured characters that would not mix well with those of “God of Carnage.” The New York portrayed through these artworks expressed the economic divide of the city and how art of this genre must illuminate one of these divisions.

After experiencing art through an economic lens we began to view the immigrant culture of New York and its impact on the artwork of New York. This was my favorite unit because I feel deeply about the immigrant culture of the city in that it makes the city unique from any other place in the world. Carlo Albán told us his immigration story and put a face to a group that is openly discriminated against. I thought it was an especially important piece because it discussed the important issue of illegal immigration from a side not portrayed in the news. The similar theme of illegal immigration was portrayed in the film “Maria Full of Grace.” I thought the film had the strongest message out of all the other pieces we experienced. “Maria Full of Grace” is my personal favorite artwork because it educated and evoked emotion within me to the struggle that some people must endure to fight for a life worth living. Although I enjoyed “Asuncíon,” “A View from the Bridge,” and “In America,” they did not top the message of either “Intringulus” or “Maria Full of Grace.”

We began to discuss whether New York was more of a dream or a nightmare from the very first day of class. I felt that Adam Rapp’s play fit well into this unit because of Dennis’ mother’s last wish to experience New York as she continued her decline into the worst stage of terminal cancer. The dream of Dennis’ mother was the nightmare for Dennis himself, as he couldn’t stand to see his mother suffer. We experienced the dreamy Metropolitan opera in all its wonder to the highest seats in the theater. It was the dream experience that the wealth of New York can offer and even though I particularly didn’t like “Don Giovanni” itself, the opera itself was something I only saw portrayed in movies.

I felt like the last unit about 9/11 was something important to the current culture of New York City because of the shift of history since that day. I didn’t think I was going to learn much from this unit, but Michael Moore’s “Fahrenheit 9/11” got me thinking again about how 9/11 is still a relevant topic. The shift of recent history is important to that day and New York was the iconic city that was impacted most. I felt that “The Mercy Seat” and the Peace Quilt did not boast a strong enough message to a still current issue.

The artworks we viewed and discussed all evoked messages about New York through different media and genre. I found the films to be the most effective of these pieces because I felt it to be easily accessible compared to plays, performances, and fine art. I also thought film was straightforward and I was able to understand it better because I grew up watching movies. The plays, performances, and fine art were also expressive in their messages, but it was more work for me to uncover the message behind some of these works.

I’m glad that I was forced to take this class because it opened me to a new side of the New York City that I hadn’t experienced before. The photojournal forced me to look at my everyday life through a different lens and I still end up taking pictures even though it’s over. Thanks Professor Healey for taking us on these performances and exposing us to different artworks in the distinct units.

I will be honest and admit that coming into this class, I wasn’t all that enthusiastic since I never really was a fan of opera, theatre, or pretty much any type of aesthetic art of performance. This might be because I have had little to almost zero amount of exposure to this type of art but that is beside the point. Although I did not absolutely love anything in particular that we watched in this course, the experience and cultural awareness that this course has brought me is very valuable to me. I had the opportunity to experience the high side of New York, which I had never experienced by going on the rooftop of “The Met”(which I have newly incorporated into my vocabulary) while seeing all of these fancy people with their drinks. I had the opportunity to go to the Metropolitan Opera House and view my first Opera, and the opportunity to explore one of the many cultural epicenters of New York, Chinatown. Having said this, I think it is finally time to reflect on the works we have experience in the class, individually and collectively.

In our first unit, we went through the “Haves and the have nots” of New York City and my favorite piece from all the works we discussed in that unit would have to be In Arabia We’d All be Kings Stephen Adley Gurgis. This piece appealed to me more than the other’s because I thought that it was one of the more truthful depictions of New York, and one that I could relate to more than the others (definitely not to that extreme but you get what I mean). To me, the characters were very realistic, and you couldn’t help but feel bad for them, because they were trapped in their world of poverty which is very hard to break free from if everybody around you is the same way. Do The Right Thing by Spike Lee also had a parallel affect on me. Reflecting back on the film now, I realize that in the movie there were many racial subtleties that I had not noticed before. I adore Spike Lee (other than the fact that he is a die-hard Knicks fan) because I think he accurately depicts the racial tensions in a specific part New York during a specific time (sorry but I can’t leave this out since the season is finally starting, GO KNICKS!!!).

Although I did some-what like the first unit, I liked the immigration unit more than any of the others because after all, New York is the city of immigrants. Immigrants make up a large population of New York and I think that they are the one’s who give New York a lot of its unique culture. The heartfelt stories of the characters in Maria Full of Grace and In America, are what New York is made up of. New York can be both, a “City of Dreams or Urban Nightmare,” it depends all on what you make of it. In both of these movies, the main characters have to make the decision to move to New York in order to provide for a better life for themselves and their sons/daughters. On their journey’s to create a better life, they must endeavor through a myriad of obstacles, which is the reality for many New Yorkers.

My favorite piece of work this semester would have to be Asuncion, but I don’t really want to count that because I don’t think that it was really truthful to New York, all it did was make me laugh as there wasn’t too much meaning to the play. Discounting I would say that my favorite works for the semester would be those that I have already mentioned above. They are the views of New York which I find the most truthful.

All in all, I would again like to repeat myself saying that I really did appreciate this class for all of the art that it has exposed me to, and the opportunities that it has provided me with. Now I most definitely won’t say that I will be ritually attending the Opera, going to the museum, or attending a performance just for fun, I might actually think twice next time if an auspicious opportunity does present itself, which I believe is a big step for me.

Before I even started this class, upperclassmen left and right were telling me “You’re going to have so much fun in this seminar. It was my favorite one!” Indeed, they were all correct. This seminar was by far one of the best classes I’ve ever been in. We’ve been exposed to so many different kinds of great shows, plays and movies that I never would have given a second thought. I really gained a new perspective and learned a lot about New York from this seminar. Out of all of the units we’ve discussed, the Immigration unit had the most effect on me. Although I can’t relate to most of the characters we were introduced to, they taught me the importance of pursuing one’s dreams, no matter how difficult the journey can be.

My two favorite pieces of the semester were definitely Maria Full of Grace and Intringuilis. Maria Full of Grace, besides being a very entertaining movie, taught viewers that many people, especially immigrants, deal with great burdens everyday. The film was very realistic in showing that many teenagers in many countries go through extremes in order to survive. It also showed a darker side of New York, one that isn’t always optimistic, lively and fun. It gave me a better-rounded perspective on the city. More importantly, this movie gave me a new respect for immigrants. Intringuilis is similar to Maria Full of Grace in that the main characters are both immigrants coping with daily struggles when in New York. I was actually quite surprised with Carlo’s touching performance. I really wasn’t expecting much from this show, but I was extremely impressed by how he was able to pull off such a phenomenal show by himself. Carlo put the audience on an emotional roller coaster, with heartwarming scenes when he sings “Los Hermanos” (I hope that’s the name of the song!) to more carefree, relaxing scenes when he just casually drinks and plays cards. I admired how strong he was when arriving to America. As a teenager, he fought through loneliness and discrimination and still managed to make it as a successful actor, influencing people all around the country. Maria and Carlo were the two people who really intrigued and affected me throughout the semester.

Oh wow, I just realized, these two pieces also answer the second question to this blog. “Which view of New York City is the one you find most truthful?” I think they perfectly portray a very “truthful” side of New York. Unlike God of Carnage and The Matchmaker (these two plays both show a very trivial part of New York), these two pieces show that this city, as prosperous and glamorous as it may seem to many, it is also a place where people struggle and strive to fit in and live a normal life. It also shows that New York is a place that opens many new doors for people and allows them to start fresh. New York is a symbolism of hope and ambition for many.

On a final note, I’m really glad Macaulay offered this class to us. I really learned a LOT from this seminar, beyond the arts in this city. I’m going to miss attending all these amazing shows and performances (for free!!). I don’t think I’m ever going to come across an opportunity to see an opera such as Don Giovanni free of charge again. Although I didn’t exactly enjoy the performance, I still really appreciate the new experience. I doubt our next seminar will be nearly half as fun as this one, but who knows? I might be pleasantly surprised, just like I was with many of the works we’ve read and seen in this class.

It’s weird looking back on the semester as a whole. You almost forget how many things we saw, read, watched, or listened to until you’re forced to. It’s interesting because despite liking or not liking each piece of art, I feel that everything we interacted with during the semester was useful in our journey to understand New York on a deeper level.

Now, anyone can talk about the pieces they really liked. (Intringulis and Maria Full of Grace for the record) I thought it would be more interesting to look back on a few of the things that I wasn’t as fond of.

We can start with Anthony Caro. To be fair, my view of this exhibit was a bit biased. Because the event on September 11 was cancelled, it was the first class outing. Exciting right? Except I wasn’t able to go.  So while everyone else was able to discuss the beautiful sunset over Central Park and the interesting posh New Yorker scene, for me, the art was left to stand on its own. Needless to say, I was a bit annoyed, so when Zohar and I met on a Sunday to go check out the exhibit, I might not have been in the best mood. Whether because of this, or simply because it wasn’t really my style, Anthony Caro’s sculptures did not speak to me. However I do think they made an interesting statement on the industrial nature of New York City, especially against the backdrop of Central Park. Additionally, for everyone else it definitely fit into the Haves and Have Nots unit.

I’ll group the plays together. I was not the biggest fan of God of Carnage or In Arabia We’d All Be Kings. However I think they were such great representations of caricatures of New York inhabitants. Interestingly enough, they were total opposites. God Of Carnage gave us a sneak peak into the over privileged, back stabbing, pretentious group. (I’m not sure if was ever explicitly said, but I assumed the play took place on the Upper East Side) In Arabia We’d All Be Kings then took us on a trip to the opposite extreme. The people with no money, no education, and no hope. Since I assume few people in our class belong to either of those categories, I think the plays were worth reading despite my not enjoying them. [The same type of thinking can and should be applied to The Bald Soprano. Great social commentary, but I wish I would have understood it more while I was watching.]

Do The Right Thing was the only movie I actively didn’t enjoy. No character was actually likeable. There were too many and yet not enough things going on.  It just all in all dragged on for way too long. And yet the message still resonated with me. I can still remember the scene where each character just stares straight at the camera spewing racial stereotypes. I think it was an especially interesting movie to watch from the viewpoint of people living in Queens, one of the most culturally diverse neighborhoods. No matter how understanding we are, there will always be times when sparks will fly, and we have to watch where they land or they can start a fire. (Did I go too far with the metaphor?)

Now I could keep going, discussing the pieces that deepened my understanding of New York as a center of art, a residential area, a tourist attraction, and a mythical wonderland, but we’d be here all day. Call me an optimist, but I think everything we saw this semester was worthwhile.

Although the dense cloud of Jewish holidays in October was a bit inconvenient, missing a lot of the performances afforded me the opportunity to go on some nice adventures around New York City to see the performances: Zohar can attest to that.

Also, if anyone is actually still reading this, I just want to thank you all for a terrific semester! I loved hearing everyone’s thoughts. They were actually really helpful in understanding things on another level. If you ever feel like your opinions don’t matter, you should just know that Zohar and I bought tickets to see Asuncion on Wednesday night because of the rave reviews you guys gave it.

(I just read that back and I think I came off sounding a bit too cheery, but you know what? With finals coming up, I’ll take any opportunity to sound really happy!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-euE70YCzc

Hola! Namaste! Hello! to all my good friends of a multiplicity of ethnicities. My how time flies! It’s already the final blog post…I remember when I was just a tiny zygote differentiating into a myriad of complex structures (OK, that’s way too far back). Well, if there is one thing I can say with much assurance it is my experience of New York City changed dramatically via this course. I have learned to witness New York City in ways I would have never imagined before, both good and bad. Through this course, I definitely gained a profound appreciation for the arts and realize the tremendous amount of work required to be successful in the spheres of drama and theater. Kudos to all the performers out there for their industrious efforts! Now let me share with you my scintillating journey of the arts in this class.

When I first read the play God of Carnage, I was thinking “Oh my goodness, these adults are so sophomoric.” Personally, I was just shocked about how indecisive and childish the parents were in this play. Rather than making a peaceful attempt to solve their problems, the two families exacerbated the situation by vilifying one another. Furthermore, the play In Arabia We’d All Be Kings was a great example of the haves and have nots in New York City. Nevertheless, I was astonished at the amount of profanity utilized. I do not use profanity myself and maybe that is why I did not enjoy the book as much. But when I think about it, I believe the author had to incorporate the vulgarity in his play to demonstrate a “realistic” view of New York. I feel that the other plays read in class, such as Mercy Seat, The Matchmaker, A View from the Bridge, and Yellow Face all did their fair share in describing to us various vantage points of New York City. I do not think that one play did more than the other in delineating New York because they all discussed about different aspects of New York, such as immigration, haves and have nots, and fantasy/nightmare. In my opinion, I enjoyed The Matchmaker the most because of its humor and the fact that it had the happiest ending of everything I have read or seen in this class. Honestly, reading some of these plays just made me more cynical and depressed because of how low some humans can stoop to be satisfied. I’m just glad I had the opportunity to read these plays because it was indeed an eye-opener. I think it’s about time we jump ahead to the movies part of the class.

After watching Manhattan, Taxi Driver, and Do the Right Thing, I was contemplating over “WHAT HAS THIS WORLD COME TO?” So many negative events transpired in these movies and I could not handle it anymore. My innocence was gradually being reduced to zilch viewing these films. There is too much corruption and many immoral deeds in this world. These films showed to me a side of New York that utterly made me speechless (yes, in a bad way…). All I could think was reform is necessary in New York. Moreover, when I viewed the films Maria Full of Grace  and In America, I noticed how difficult it was for immigrants to adjust to life in New York City. Sure it may be the city of opportunities and magnificence, but many immigrants struggled to become successful in this very city, including my friend Carlos in Intringulis. Seeing Maria swallow the drugs down her throat made me commiserate with her. Yes, Maria was doing the wrong thing, but only to enhance her life. Also, In America revealed to me the struggle of an Irish family to assimilate with the environment and life of New York. The Irish family may have been off than Maria in the end, but they still had to work arduously to earn a living.

Finally, let me talk about the performances I have seen. Asuncion was by far my favorite performance all semester. I never laughed so hard before and it was the first chance I ever had to meet celebrities! Even though I liked Asuncion the most, I feel it was not as successful as the other performances in conveying its message due to the large amounts of levity in the play. I think that Intringulis by Carlos was the most powerful performance because through his music and acting he manifested to us college students the hardships he and his family endured as an immigrant. Very meaningful, indeed. In addition, I loved the Supernatural Wife because it portrayed Greek mythology in such an entertaining form. Yes, some portions of the dance were awkward, but Hercules playing the drums and his witty remarks made me laugh out loud. Even better were the amazing seats we had in that theater. You may be wondering why I left out Don Giovanni, but how can I say anything if I was asleep half the time watching it?!?! All I recall, is the extremely cool fire effects, in which Don Giovanni perished (yes, he deserved it big time!).

Overall, my favorite work as a whole was Asuncion because it made me laugh and not depressed like some of the other things read or seen in this class. Nevertheless, the view of New York City I found most truthful was the one depicted in the film Maria Full of Grace because some scenes were so graphic that I could vicariously feel the pain of some of the characters, especially Maria’s. I think that all the films, performances, and reading demonstrated a new side of New York to me and were all successful to some extent in transmitting their messages. I really appreciate it Ms. Healey for exposing not just me, but all my other fellow classmates to the two different sides of New York City. I feel that your explanations regarding these performances, movies, and plays elucidated several things for me. I am very happy I had the opportunity to take this course because now I feel more educated about New York City. Once again, thank you very much Ms. Healey and I can say without hesitation that I learned soooooo much in this class!

What was my favorite work from this semester?  If we’re talking about performances, I’d say Intringulis or Asuncion.  But I’ve already written blogs about how much I loved those, so…what about the plays?  My favorite of those was The Mercy Seat, but I don’t think I have enough else to say about it that would fill an entire blog.  That leaves me with the movies, something we really didn’t blog about, and my favorite of those was definitely Taxi Driver.  So now I’ll finally get my time to profess my love for Robert De Niro!

No, seriously.  I love Robert De Niro.  I’ll admit that originally I actually wasn’t too thrilled to have to watch Taxi Driver.  I was expecting it to be another one of those “classic” movies that I wouldn’t love but would feel important for having watched.  Needless to say, I was really surprised to find myself hooked.  Taxi Driver made me think about the Vietnam War and its consequences—we always hear about the questionable politics behind it, the protests, and the death toll, but what about the people who physically survived but were mentally ruined?  It’s a thought that really affected me personally, because my dad would have served in Vietnam had he not gotten deferred.  If he’d actually had to go to war, would he be a completely different man?  Would he have become like Travis, wandering lost without a purpose in life?  Would he have even survived?  Of course, it’s crazy to get into hypotheticals like that when he never even went to war in the first place.  But Taxi Driver actually made me think about those things.

I feel like in Taxi Driver Martin Scorsese was really able capture that post-Vietnam turmoil.  America was still reeling from Watergate, there was an oil shortage, and inflation was getting out of control.  In short, we were in dire straits.  And in the middle of all that is Travis Bickle, up a creek of his own.  He’s an unlikely hero at best, and I don’t even think I would call him a hero.  Rather, he’s a man who is completely and utterly lost.  He needs help, but who’s going to give it to him?  Not the government—the government has too much on their hands right now to deal with veterans like Travis.  Not Betsy—she really wanted to like him, but I don’t blame her for backing away.  Certainly not Iris—she’s got her own issues to deal with, and she’s only 12 years old.  Ironically, the one man in the film who wants to bring about social change and help people like Travis is the very man Travis plans to kill.  So Travis really is stuck rolling in neutral with no place to go.

I actually watched Taxi Driver twice:  once with my brother and once with Natasha and Alyssa.  The first time I was on edge nearly the entire movie, waiting for what I thought was the inevitable assassination of Palantine.  The second time, since I knew what was going to happen, I was able to focus more on the way the movie was put together.  I love the creepy paranoid shots of Travis looking through his rearview mirror, the sleazy jazz music that plays throughout, and the way Scorsese always cuts off part of Palantine’s face when his ads are in the background.  I feel like it’s kind of strange to say that I loved Taxi Driver, because I don’t feel like it’s the kind of movie you’re supposed to love—it’s definitely not a fun film you’re going to watch with your friends on movie night.  I think what I’m really trying to say is that I love the way that movie made such an emotional impact on me.

I also feel like Taxi Driver is the movie that displays what is closest to the most truthful image of New York for me.  On one hand, we see it as a place for where people succeed and thrive, like Betsy and Palantine.  But we also see that nightmarish side it has as well, where those who aren’t up to speed quickly get left far behind.  Although I’ve said that New York is my personal Eden, I also definitely realize it’s not that perfect place that Hollywood wants you to think it is, and I think it’s incredibly intelligent for a Hollywood film to acknowledge that.  So I can’t be the only one who finds it pretty ironic that Robert De Niro is now starring in New Year’s Eve.  Poor, poor Robert De Niro…what has your career been reduced to?

Now, for the title of the post- I sat for the longest time trying to think of one that fit.  I finally settled on the opening lyrics from the Strokes song “I’ll Try Anything Once”.  To me it fits both Travis Bickle and my experience in this class.  Travis’s decision not to try killing Palantine and to instead kill Iris’s pimp made the city view him as a hero when what he really needed was help.  His life would’ve taken a completely different shape had he pulled the trigger at the rally.  As for me, being in this class was one of the best decisions I never knew I made.  I pretty much just picked this class at random, but I’m so happy that I did.  My first semester at QC/Macaulay was made even better by our class!  I’ve had so many amazing experiences this semester that some people don’t even have in a lifetime, and I feel really lucky to have met everybody (and Professor Healey too, of course!)