After having been to New York several times, I recently watched a movie shot in the city. When you recognize places you have been, the movie feels completely different, so I felt like watching some more and next in line came some classics like When Harry met Sally, Taxi Driver, and The Warriors.

The latter two in particular made me think. The New York they depict is very different than the one I visited.  They talk about a scary place where crime is commonplace, gangs fight to control their turf, whores tease on sidewalks, walking down the street alone at night is dangerous, and taxi drivers carry a gun and prefer to avoid some parts of the city.  Washington Square and Bryant Park were no-go areas for ordinary people.

Nowadays you’d never tell New York used to be like that.  As Travis hoped while talking with Palantine, they cleaned up the mess.  In one decade Mayor Giuliani and those who came after him made it one of the safest and cleanest places I’ve even been.

While writing this post I discovered after 29 years Paramount Pictures is re-making The Warriors movie and this time it’s going to be shot in Los Angeles.  It’s expected to hit the theaters later this year.