Beyond Black and White

Paul Sherman expands the definition of Boston filmmaking in his new book, Big Screen Boston.

By Jared M. Gordon

From the once-banned Titicut Follies.  [Click to enlarge]

Former Improper Bostonian and Boston Herald film critic Paul Sherman has been keeping busy.  This month he releases his self-published Big Screen Boston: From Mystery Street to The Departed and Beyond, an exhaustive compilation of 250 motion pictures shot in the city.

Sherman defines a Boston movie as any film that, “takes the trouble to bring cast members to Boston to shoot action here.”  His collection includes recent favorites such as Martin Scorsese’s The Departed, Clint Eastwood’s Mystic River, and Gus Van Sant’s Good Will Hunting as well as oft-forgotten, under-the-radar gems such as Jan Egleson’s Billy in the Lowlands, Peter Yates’s The Friends of Eddie Coyle, and Christine Dall and Randall Conrad’s The Dozens. 

While a Big Screen Boston reader will very likely happen upon a long-overlooked film to go out and rent, Sherman hopes that a strong grassroots spirit as well as the upkeep of state tax breaks will inspire today’s filmmakers to make their own contributions to Boston’s independent scene.  The following is an interview with Mr. Sherman, exclusive to NewEnglandFilm.com. 

Jared M. Gordon: Why did you write Big Screen Boston? 

Paul Sherman: There have been a lot of impressive movies that have been done in the Boston area.  Especially in the late 1990s, when independent film was booming and money was easier to find, a lot of very interesting movies were made.  From Monument Avenue to The Blinking Madonna and Other Miracles, I wanted to remind people of these movies.  It’s also my hope that, given the tax breaks and the financial cycle, there will be more good, locally made movies. 

JMG: You mentioned that, in a film such as Down to the Sea in Ships, the Boston area offered something to filmmakers that they could not recreate elsewhere.  What is the most attractive thing that Boston offers to filmmakers? 

Boston through the lens of Billy and the Lowlands.  [Click to enlarge]

Sherman: There are two separate beings: films that locals make, and films by people who come from elsewhere.  Indigenous films are typically more authentic, but it’s not as if there’s a fine line of distinction.  It’s what makes a movie like The Departed so good.  Screenwriter William Monahan, who adapted the story, was a local.  He took a great Hong Kong thriller and gave it a great Boston overlay and ethnic infusion.   

What Boston filmmaking has brought to Hollywood is a mixture of old and new.  Boston films of the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s put an emphasis on Boston’s academic and medical worlds, such as in Coma or Blown Away.  Thankfully, Boston filmmakers look beyond this today, as these worlds have become cliché.  Even as far back as the 1930s and 1940s, Boston was shorthand for a stick-in-the-mud and a real party pooper.  Nowadays, Boston offers everything to everyone with its tax breaks.  Even so, Boston filmmaking seems to be in a transitional period, and it will be interesting to see the next phase for the city as a filming location. 

JMG: How did you do the research for your book? 

Sherman: Many of the movies were ones I had already covered through the years.  Most of them I learned about while they were being made or released.  Through the years, I developed a first-hand knowledge of what was going on around town.  I also tracked down media coverage of the films that predated my time as a journalist.  There was plenty of Internet searching, and even visiting the locations at which these films were shot.  Sometimes, I was in even in touch with the filmmakers themselves. 

JMG: In your book, you attempt to define what makes a Boston movie.  Aside of course from the setting, have you discovered any common plot or character themes inherent in what you would describe as a Boston movie? 

Sherman: If you look at movies that really nail things as far as dramas, like Monument Avenue, The Departed, Mystic River, or Gone Baby Gone, it shows people who are truly stingy with their emotions and have a chip on their shoulders.  The Farrelly brothers really nail that smartass, New England humor.  The most authentic Boston movies don’t sugarcoat anything.  A movie like The Friends of Eddie Coyle doesn’t once try to paint a scenic picture, and it works.  This is also why Hollywood comedies that are shot here are often unsuccessful. 

JMG: What attitude changes, in a political and artistic sense, make Boston filming more attractive than it has ever been before? 

Sherman: It always helps to have a good and popular movie like The Departed.  You also have those 1990s films such as Monument Avenue and Next Stop Wonderland that keep Boston on the fringe of independent filmmaking.  Having popular movies like Mystic River and The Departed certainly help draw attention to the city, but not as much as tax breaks.  It’s still the bottom line that counts more than anything else.  Before the tax breaks, you had the Farrelly brothers shooting in Toronto, and even parts of The Departed were still shot in New York.  If another state offers a better deal, then productions simply won’t come to Boston. 

JMG: You seem to have a lot of respect for filmmakers who not only shoot in Boston, but especially for those who invest time and energy into the smaller details, such as character names with local significance, or whether Boston accents are convincingly portrayed.  What else do you look for when analyzing a Boston-based production? 

From The Dark End of the Street.  [Click to enlarge]

Sherman: It’s easy to spot authenticity.  In a movie like Good Will Hunting, when they talk about Kelly’s and T passes, you have the feeling that they know what they’re talking about.  There’s nothing worse than a Boston movie in which they call Boston Common, “Boston Commons.”  Then there are the movies that come to Boston for nothing more than a generic, pointless, postcard moment, such as the walk in the North End in Mrs. Winterbourne.  It’s cliché and it doesn’t add to the movie any more than a walk by Philadelphia’s Independence Hall would have.  Movies that have the details right, like The Departed and The Friends of Eddie Coyle, are more interesting.  Plenty of movies fall into that generic picture of New England, portraying it as bookish and full of antique stores.  Anyone who spends any time here knows that it’s not all a glossy greeting card. 

JMG: You give a lot of credit to films like Jan Egleson’s Billy in the Lowlands and The Dark End of the Street for legitimizing production in Boston.  Has the American film landscape changed as a result of Boston films? 

Sherman: I don’t think I could pinpoint any changes that Boston movies are single-handedly responsible for, but films like Billy in the Lowlands and The Dark End of the Street have certainly helped to create independent film as we know it today.  As Hollywood has become more hit-oriented, it makes it all the more important for there to be a thriving grassroots film industry.  I give films like The Dozens credit for being part of the independent movement and for helping to inspire the resurgence of indie films that continues to this day. 

Sherman will be appearing at the Remis Auditorium at the Museum of Fine Arts on Saturday, May 3^rd for a screening of Frederick Wiseman’s formerly banned documentary Titicut Follies.  For more information about Big Screen Boston, visit www.bigscreenboston.com.

Jared M. Gordon owns and operates film/video production company, Winter Twilight Productions LLC. His writing has appeared in Some Other Magazine and The Gamer's Quarter. His creative work has been seen on NBC's Today Show, CNN, Nickelodeon, Der Spiegel Magazine, New York University's Directors Contact Series, CollegeHumor.com, and in the Tribeca and Kent Film Festivals. In addition, he likes chai tea, bakes homemade berry pies, can read Tarot cards, and can make balloon animals.

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