Named after the famous New York Daily News headline “Ford to City: Drop Dead,” Drop Dead City is the first documentary to focus on the New York City fiscal crisis of 1975, an overlooked episode in urban American history that saw that city of eight million people come face to face with bankruptcy.
The film is an immersive ticking-clock drama built entirely from archival 16mm footage interspersed with present eyewitness interviews, and propelled by a great soundtrack drawn from 1970s radio as it follows a year in the life and near death of this iconic city. Laemmle Theatres opens the film May 22 at the NoHo and May 23 at the Monica Film Center and Town Center.
The film captures N.Y.C. at a moment of contrast, gritty and down on its luck, but also vibrant and alive. The basic underlying questions of governance, community and economic priorities are of immediate relevance to Los Angeles and so many other American cities.
These are unprecedented times for Americans, and for our public institutions. The systematic dismantling of the administrative state, as well as the demonizing of public servants, is something we are watching happen every day. The playbook of today’s right-wing government bashing has it’s roots in the rightward swing of the Republican Party in the 1970’s. NYC’s near-bankruptcy was a critical event in this transformation. Drop Dead City addresses these themes and ideologies, and examines the origins of NYC’s problems with an even hand. Was it the banks, the unions, the poor who were arriving, or the rich who were leaving? Was it the recession? Was it cynicism in the White House or incompetence in City Hall?
“Our goal as filmmakers was to honor the story and the people in it – the men and women who stepped up to deal with this challenge as well as the so-called ordinary New Yorkers who dealt with this uncertainty as a fact of life during this tumultuous period,” said directors Peter Yost and Michael Rohatyn. “While the film often feels like a wild time machine ride to New York in its good-old bad days, we also hope it inspires conversations on how urban centers can fairly cope with the enormous challenges we face today.”
“The film raises striking parallels with the present…a visual delight for anyone who enjoys footage of vintage New York City…Set to a funk and soul soundtrack that would make Tarantino’s music supervisor bow in respect.” – WNYC / Gothamist
Drop Dead City is produced and directed by Peter Yost and Michael Rohatyn. Executive produced by Karoline Durr. The archival producer is Frauke Levin. Cinematography by Jerry Risius. Edited by Don Kleszy and Anna Auster. The film’s running time is 108 minutes.
Rohatyn and Yost will participate in Q&A’s after the evening screenings on May 22 at the NoHo and May 23 and 24 at the Monica Film Center.