MovieChat Forums > The Panic in Needle Park (1971) Discussion > Unispiring what did you make of it??

Unispiring what did you make of it??

posted 18 years ago by monkey_face_26
19 replies | jump to latest

I have just watched the movie and then rewatched it for a second time and im just baffled as to the focal point of the film, the whole concept just seems so obvious I just cant comprehend the producers green lighting the project when they were sent an outline of the script? what is the film conveying what message is it conveying other than a life of drugs is a *beep* way to live you go back and forth through jail and relationships break up and u become a slave to the drug??? Which aspect of the film is supposed to be enlightening, or inovated, or whatever..... The most comprehendable explanation is that it was the first of its kind and had to be viewed in its historical time period and loses it impact when viewed in july 2006 Can anybody just give me any part of the film which they thoroughly enjoyed and why, id just like to know what anyone else thought about it..... thanks

[–] missvalentine_69 18 years ago

Hey, I just saw The Panic In Needle Park quite a while ago now I thought Al Pacino was brilliant in this film but the film in general was kind of a disappointment. The characters didn't really go on any real arch's and I was lost at the ending with no real conclusion (the point is...the whole thing goes on and on?) And the plot seemed the same throughout, like there was no real plot to the plot (if you get what I'm saying) all it was, was the relationship between Pacino and his girl and you're constantly waiting for something drastic to happen and nothing ever does. But somehow (unbeknown to me) I enjoyed going on the journey with the characters. But I can totally undersatnd why you'd be disapointed with the movie. There's honestly nothing your missing but rather the story is lacking something i.e. better script and a little swift kick up the backside.

Hope this helped lol x x x x

U don't wanna talk you wanna poke dancin' on my baby's head!

Drew Barrymore - Home Fries

[–] jakesaccount 18 years ago

I liked the movie. It had a refreshing bleak feeling to it, a sense of realism not often found in films. What real story has a conclusion anyway? Al Pacino was great too, not to mention the gloomy looking scenery perfect for a grey rainy day when your loved one is on rehab..

[–] monkey_face_26 18 years ago

Perfect 4 when ur loved one is in rehab !! HAHA ur a fuunny guy!

[–] monkey_face_26 18 years ago

The poster eats his own words!! Having slated the film previously I have now returned to voice my opinion that the film aint as bad as I first thought when viewed amongst other films of that period, namely a film called Born to win which i rented on the promise of a early piece of De Niro genius.... boy how I was wrong! great as the guy is the dvd obviously suckers people like me into tracing the thing down only to find out he has about 10 slim pickings of screen time! yet the cheats marketed the thing as if it was pure DE niro all the way!! haha never known nething like it! Neway Born to Win is like panic in needle park also made in the early 70's and shot on a fairly low budget on the streets of new york with a plot line amongst others of, a drug dealer having the moral dilema of going to jail or ratting on his boss to enable the police dept to bust the top guys. Neway the film has many similarities to panic in needle park plot and character wise and looking back it must be said although panic in needle park still feels a slight let down plot wise, I can now appreciate the job the cast and crew did with the mediocre screenplay as it leaves the likes of Born to win slumped on the ground like a needle sinking junkie

[–] gawightman 18 years ago

i could be wrong, but i think this films plot was the downward never ending spiral. its not 28 days where the hot chick gets to rehab and comes out clean. How many people know addicts who neer really get clean? At least 50-75%. For accuracy, and unflinching realism, this film hits every mark. For comedy, joy, emotional triumph, moral uprising, well, this film never pretended to have any of that.

I imagine thats why they had a cast of unknowns (plus weak budget), but more than that, kitty wynn and pacino - not exactly Cary Grant and Rita Hayworth in the looks department. They looked under fed and sickly and addicted...as addicts are.

glad you found some liking to it.

[–] Howlin Wolf 18 years ago

It's just telling a story. Whatever messages you want to draw from it are up to you. If you don't glean any major insight from it doesn't suddenly become a bad film on that basis alone. It didn't really open my eyes either; I mean, it's hardly a revelation that drug addicts lives are squalid. That's why I don't rate it as a classic, but all in all I'd say it was worthy of watching. For its realism and Al Pacino's performance if nothing else I'd still recommend it. As a general rule films about junkies shouldn't be misconstrued as 'motivational tools' anyway, so in that sense it competently fulfils its remit. 6/10.

I'm sorry, I don't speak monkey...

[–] 18 years ago

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[–] Howlin Wolf 18 years ago

... because I'm well aware that this film came out before Trainspotting & Requiem for a Dream...

If just a little bit more care is taken regarding where you click the 'reply' button, the person you're responding to has more chance of actually seeing the message, plus it saves me the annoyance of receiving notification for a message that really has nothing to do with me...

Thankyou for bearing this in mind.

I'm sorry, I don't speak monkey...

[–] 18 years ago

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[–] Howlin Wolf 18 years ago

... but believe me; it's incredibly frustrating to have people who aren't talking to me waste my time by doing the exact same thing... !

5 is directly between 0 and 10... so accordingly '6' is above average... which means I did "dig" the movie, although obviously not as much as yourself. It's a shame if this irks you; although I don't see why it should, since it's only my opinion and doesn't affect yours, after all...

If you believe my opinion is "feeble", then why don't we discuss it in-depth, and politely?

... and since I've cleared up the fact that I know when Panic in Needle Park was released, I believe I'm done, for now...

I'm sorry, I don't speak monkey...

[–] 18 years ago

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[–] Howlin Wolf 18 years ago

If I thought there was 'arrogance' anywhere in my posts then I would gladly lose it... I haven't made any assumptions about your personality yet, have I?!

I'm sorry, I don't speak monkey...

[–] 18 years ago

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[–] Howlin Wolf 18 years ago

The first one: There isn't a part of that that isn't true; and you may not need to know how the thread system works (as I now know... ) but there are plenty of people who DO need informing because oftentimes people do reply to the wrong person. We've now established that this isn't one of those times, so what's the problem?? There's no hostility toward you on my part; but you're misreading my intent...

Secondly: It IS "annoying" to me when this happens, considering it can be so easily avoided! How else do you want me to sugarcoat it???! I was just making a simple statement, that's all.

On the other hand; you were immediately dismissive of my opinion, calling it "wrong" right off the bat (something I never did to yours... ) and yet somehow I'M judged as the "arrogant" one? Quite apart from calling me "arrogant", you've thrown other unflattering labels in there, too, again a type of response that I haven't yet resorted to...

I'm not on a horse, I'm in a chair.

I'm sorry, I don't speak monkey...

[–] 18 years ago

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[–] Howlin Wolf 18 years ago

... !

... and I haven't seen the last movie you mentioned, so I can't comment either way...

I'm sorry, I don't speak monkey...

[–] twiggy232 16 years ago

ye pretty boring movie in general, was just about worth watching tho. 6/10

[–] 16 years ago

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[–] jshane2002 13 years ago

It's worth watching for the natural style of acting, seeing Pacino before he was big, seeing the surprising chemistry between the 2 leads who both showed pretty impressive promise. For some reason, only Pacino went on to greater things.

The one character who didn't seem natural at all was the young cop. His acting was exactly the style of forced, one note, walk on, uninvolved acting that you want to stay away from. He didn't seem like a New York cop at all. It was kind of jarring to see him mix in with rest of the realistic scumbags in this movie that he just seemed like he had walked onto the set from a California movie set.