The Tribeca Film Festival was a wonderful experience. I only saw one film due to sellouts and time restrictions, but the one I saw was one I'd never seen and had been wanting to for a couple of decades. It was 1957's A Hatful of Rain, being shown as part of Scorsese's New York-based film series. Fred Zinneman directed this rather dated drug addiction drama based on Michael V. (The Godfather Part 2) Gazzo's Broadway play. Anthony Franciosa's flamboyant but effective supporting performance stole the picture from leads Eva Marie Saint and Don Murray. In fact Franciosa was Oscar-nominated as Best (not supporting) Actor at the time. The view of drug addiction has changed radically in the years between. The final scene in the movie was considered quite the dramatic thunderbolt in the 50s. Now Saint's final line ("Police? I'd like to report a drug addict.") drew unintentional laughter. But it forced us to confront the changing times. The movie is unavailable on video or DVD but should be added to the list.

In any case, the Tribeca Film Festival is here to stay. It was a huge hit, deservedly so. I cannot describe the sense of release or closure it gave this New Yorker to walk the neighborhood around the former Twin Towers for the first time sinc 9/11 with a crowd with film at the back of its mind and rebirth at the front.
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