A gruelling but highly responsible film about the influence of heroin on a New York street romance.
The Panic in Needle Park (1971)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:9
Fresh:7
Rotten:2
Average Rating:7/10
Runtime: 1 hr 50 mins
Genre: Dramas
Synopsis: In 1970s New York, Bobby (Al Pacino in his first major film role) and Helen (Kitty Winn) are young and in love--and addicted to heroin. Shot in a loose documentary style, and acted with... In 1970s New York, Bobby (Al Pacino in his first major film role) and Helen (Kitty Winn) are young and in love--and addicted to heroin. Shot in a loose documentary style, and acted with improvisational rawness, the film shows the young couple's increasingly desperate habit go from bad to worse. Written by Joan Didion, the film portrays characters trapped in a bleak urban lifestyle as they strive to maintain their love for each other. [More]
Starring: Al Pacino, Kitty Winn, Alan Vint
Starring: Al Pacino, Kitty Winn, Alan Vint
Director: Jerry Schatzberg
Director: Jerry Schatzberg
Screenwriter: Joan Didion
Reviews for The Panic in Needle Park
A brilliantly performed, remarkably un-exploitative (and occasionally funny) portrayal of the ravages of drug addiction, shot with searing documentary-style realism from Schatzberg.
The movie’s well-fed, camera-loving cast and general air of self-satisfied slumming reveal Panic for what it is: the kind of drug movie a pair of Malibu intellectuals and a fashion photographer would cook up.
The Panic in the Needle Park rolls up the drug culture's sleeve and picks at the scabs underneath.
An occasion to meditate upon the frightfulness of heroin addiction and why many youth opt for the euphoria of white powder rather than the promises of the American dream.
More a character study than any kind of narrative story, it's moderately worthwhile but far from a classic.
Além de contar com as estupendas atuações de Winn e Pacino (em sua brilhante estréia no Cinema), este ainda é um dos melhores filmes já produzidos sobre dependência química.
It is not filled with quick cutting or gimmicky editing, but Jerry Schatzberg's direction is so confident that we cover the ground effortlessly.
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