New York Sleazy: Street Smart

Right around Christmastime, I watched John Frankenheimer's 52 Pick-Up, a film I hadn't seen since its theatrical run in 1986. (For truly, what spells Christmas more than a film about a pornographer blackmailing an adulterous businessman?) I was all prepared to write about the film when I came across two other recent pieces – one by Vince Keenan, and another by pal Glenn Kenny, who gave us a who's who of the porn superstars that appear in the film. In an email exchange with Glenn, we discussed other great pieces of studio sleaze from the decade, and agreed that Street Smart (coincidentally, another Cannon/Golan-Globus production) would rank high on the list. Directed by unsung genius Jerry Schatzberg, Street Smart is set during the final throes of the old Times Square – when pimps, prostitutes and pushers would leisurely stroll the Deuce, offering their services in front of the Lyric, Victory, Rialto and other palaces of projected porn. Set in the glass offices of the Fourth Estate as well as the dilapidated brownstones and by-the-hour motels where streetwalkers ply their trade, it's a gritty, rough street tale that suffers from a few cracks in its facade. Harvard educated and whiter-than-white journo Jonathan Fisher (Christopher Reeve) is itching for a cover story. His editor at the New York Journal (the always wonderful Andre Gregory) pays little attention until Jonathan offers to give him 2000 words on 24 hours in the life of a pimp. Problem is, Jonathan doesn't know any mack daddys, and none are too eager to speak with him. His solution? Fabricate the entire story. (Screenwriter David Freeman did exactly that for New York magazine back in 1969.) Unfortunately, Jonathan's fictional creation too closely resembles real-world pimp Fast Black (Morgan Freeman), who is busy trying to fight a murder charge. It's not long before our Harvard boy is drawn deep into Mr. Black's web. Freeman, who picked up a handful of best supporting actor awards for the role, is the best thing about the film. Of course, this was before he became the go-to guy for expository voice-over and warm-hearted goodness. With gold tooth and bottle of Yoo-hoo always in hand, Freeman manages to elevate the character from mere stereotype; the threat of violence is ever present, even when he's at his most charming. Fast turns on a dime more than once, and Freeman pulls it off swimmingly. Equally impressive is Kathy Baker as Punchy, a prostitute who befriends Jonathan. Neither the clichéd hooker-with-a-heart-of-gold nor the hardened, tragic figure, there's a complexity to her character rarely found in Hollywood portrayals of working girls. The weak link, however, is Reeve. Pauline Kael nailed it when she referred to him as "a big nothing," going on to say that he's "too inexpressive to play inexpressiveness." Though convincing as newspaper man Clark Kent, he's here entirely unbelievable as a journalist lacking the street smarts he believes he has. It's a performance that ranks with some of Tom Cruise's efforts at the dramatic. (Cruise's first wife, Mimi Rodgers, plays Jonathan's girlfriend/conscious.) Like the current season of The Wire (which appears to have a similar thread about journalistic integrity), Street Smart draws parallels between the world of mass media and that of the street, particularly in the levels of corruption (and corruptibility), as well as the power relationships between pimp-whore and editor-journalist. The blending of the two worlds at a cocktail party, which finds members of the media elite delighted to be playing host to common procurer, is even more acerbic than Tom Wolfe's similar efforts in Bonfire of the Vanities. Schatzberg maintains a cool distance from both sides, though he seems to enjoy exposing the dishonesty and hypocrisy of both the media and the legal system. His depiction of prostitutes is eyebrow-raising at times, and perhaps guilty of romanticizing the profession, particularly when he has Punchy describing her first John to Jonathan while Aretha's Natural Woman fills the soundtrack, eventually drowning out the dialog. Though not as powerful as Panic in Needle Park, or as artful as Puzzle of a Downfall Child, Street Smart is a wonderful bit of 80s sleaze (with a funk soundtrack featuring Miles Davis) that is a fond adieu to the Times Square of yore.

Comments

[wells]

"The always wonderful Andre Gregory"... Unless you have to have dinner with him, of course.

[dubarry]

yes, another classic. kathy baker had a whole spate of itchy, edgy roles in those days didn't she? although, i must say, one of my favorite scenes in all of the movies is ann-margaret yakking after she is shot up with dope in 52 pick-up. the yips. that is what that is called: the yips.

[larry aydlette]

I keep hoping they'll reissue Schatzberg's equally underrated "Honeysuckle Rose."

[Filmbrain]

Larry --

It is without question a crime that Honeysuckle Rose isn't on DVD. Ditto for The Seduction of Joe Tynan.

[Eksantrik Presler]

Freeman gives his most powerful performance here. I've seen almost all of Morgan's films but I think this is his most outstanding performance. Fast Black is one juicy character and Morgan brings life into it. Christopher Reeve, god bless his sole, is a pretty bad actor. I only seen him in his Superman roles, which I wasn't much a fan of. But here his character gets a lot of screen time and Reeve just can't live up to it. He makes the movie boring. Kathy Baker excels in her role. Mimi Rogers does her part well. The film has an amazing storyline here, but screenplay is 50/50. If Morgan had more scenes the movie would have been way better.