Subway Stories (1997)

Admirable film.

Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

It's funny watching the elements come together in this complicated scam. On one hand, the set-up isn't quite as complex as it seems, but there's an easy sense of fun in every exchange.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

A mixture of hit and miss tales, comedic, tragic and sometimes more of a fantasy than "Harry Potter", this outrageous stew of New York goulash is worth seeing for a few segments, a few memorable character bits and most of all, memory of a time where technology didn't ruin your morning commute. Set in 1996 (based upon stories submitted in 1995), this features advertisements of Broadway shows which were playing that year ("Big" prominently featured; "Phantom" nowhere in sight), and a collection of characters whom only New Yorkers and a few select others can understand.We can all relate to Bill Irwin's plight of ending up on an empty car (reeking of a bag featuring an undisclosed stench) or the con-games of a small percentage of pan-handlers. There's also a sexually aggressive woman who won't talk but basically gets a cheap thrill every morning for months from a well-dressed (and newly married) businessman that wreaks of being totally gratuitous. More touching is the beat-up young man who finds compassion from an older woman (the unforgettable Mercedes Ruehl) who refers to him as an angel in a scene that only hints of a sexual encounter but other than their kissing never goes there. A disrespected nightrider (the outlandish Rosie Perez) gets vengeance on a drunken masher in the middle of the night, while some rowdy passengers realize that a young woman singing on the telephone isn't your standard New York whack-a-doodle. A morning rider (Gregory Hines) looks concerned over at an obviously pregnant woman he believes is about to jump onto the tracks as a train approaches. A young couple have two different conversations at once and she storms off, convinced he doesn't give two crap-loads about her political feelings, or even her feelings at all, and the follow-up with her brief conversation with a passenger in another car on the same subway. Extremely interesting is a segment between a young stock broker and an older man (the always scene-stealing Jerry Stiller) which, in the wake of 9/11 and the 2008 market crash seems a bit prophetic and is certainly more than just a bit Capra-esque. Whether or not you relate to any of these experiences (such as a paranoid white woman taking a late night train for the first time whose fear results in her being locked up overnight in a closed off exit) or of the various scary looking "creatures" whom New Yorkers know that deep inside are totally harmless, is based upon chance, but there are enough subway stories in the naked city to keep this theme going on at infinitude. While each segment has a different director, unlike other similarly multi-storied films, it never feels like its going from one place to another, but suffers from lack of believability in certain circumstances while others will win you over totally.

I had the good fortune of catching Subway Stories, by accident, trying to get away from the Astronauts Wife. What a wonderful grouping of shorts. I have to say, I couldn't leave the room. Some were better than others, but they all kept my interest. Don't let this Subway pass you by.

HBO's critically acclaimed special, "Subway Stories," lived up to most of the potential its high-profile stars injected into it. Based on real-life stories sent in my NYC underground rail riders, I found myself dazzled by the situations people claimed to have experienced. The program was divided into smaller segments, each one a little story. Although you were barraged by scenarios, you could not delve too deeply into each one. That proved to be a disappointment, since some of the stories were much more intriguing than others. The other difficulty in the series was the line between heavy drama and melodrama, and the fantastical elements peppering each segment. Also some of the skits were fuzzy in meaning, leading me to believe that they were aiming too high and forgetting who really rode the subway. It was nice to see Hollywood elite in smaller, more elusive roles than usual. And the subject matter was new and exciting. You'll find yourself studying that subway car a little more carefully to find your own "Subway Story."

I really loved these weird stories about the New York City subway, especially the one with the boy and the older woman, and the one with Dennis Leary. That's what I want to say about it. It's underground, it's a different world...go and rent it