A saxophone player and a lounge singer have their ups and downs in love and careers in Martin Scorsese’s New York, New York. The divisive and flawed 1977 film hits 4k via the MVD Marquee Collection.
In Martin Scorsese’s expansive filmography, there is probably no film more divisive than his 1977 film New York, New York. Falling between Taxi Driver and The Last Waltz (or Raging Bull if sticking to narratives), it’s an oddity, decidedly and purposely different than most of his catalog, a throwback to the Hollywood musicals he watched as a younger man. When I first saw it, on a run through his work about twenty years ago, I outright hated it. Why? I’ll tell you below. Watching again, now on 4K via MVD’s Marquee Collection, in 2026, I put it in with curiosity about how I would feel now, living more of a life and having a better understanding of Scorsese and the overall history of film, and not in a “cross my arms and stomp my feet because Scorsese did something different” (a reason many dislike Hugo, a film a really enjoy). Well now, at 44, I like it more than I did then. But I still have a very hard time with New York, New York, written by Earl Mac Rauch & Mardik Martin.
I want to like New York, New York. I love old Hollywood musicals. I love what Scorsese is going for, shifting his normal reality-based filmmaking into something more stylized and artificial, an intentional break. I appreciate the songs (including the title song, made more famous by Frank Sinatra), the details, and Liza Minnelli’s amazing performance. There’s something in here of A Star Is Born in a different style (funny enough, with Minnelli’s mother leading the 1954 version of that one) as we follow the careers and “love” between band leader Jimmy Doyle and Francine Evans from 1945 to 1960. It’s done in a throwback style, with soundstage sets, matte painting, and models of buildings out of windows, an old-school approach to filmmaking. The costuming, the glitz, the glamour. All astounding. It’s big, it’s loud, utterly grand. But it’s an infuriating film to watch. Why?
Robert DeNiro. Well, his character. De Niro, De Palma‘s former go-to guy as seen in Hi, Mom, who had become Scorsese’s with Mean Streets, and still is, up to his latest feature film, Killers of the Flower Moon, is the reason this film fails. I like De Niro; this isn’t a take on him as a person or an actor. But his character: schemer, saxophone player, and bandleader Jimmy Doyle is absolutely insufferable. I hate him. I hate him. I hate him. I hate him. I’ve said elsewhere (most recently in Find Your Friends, I do believe) that you can have an unlikable character; you don’t need to root for the lead. But Doyle. Good God, the man never stops. He’s pushy, mean, lying, scheming, and does it in such an in-your-face manner that makes me spend the movie yelling JUST STOP. STOP. STOP. No one can have another thought. No one can tell him no. He’ll cajole, shift, and poke until someone breaks down. That someone is usually Liza Minnelli as Doyle’s victim… er.. wife/work-partner Francine Evans. Who DARES be mean to LIZA FUCKIN’ MINNELLI.
Ahem. Here’s the thing about Doyle’s awfulness: it distracts me from what works in the film… he never changes. There’s never an ounce of reflection, of humility, or stopping for a second to think about other people. Ever. No arc. So it’s an onslaught, a constant barrage of annoyance and pushing.
Well, moving on to other things. The rest of it is solid but had issues, even if Doyle worked on himself. It meanders around, with sequences nd ideas going on far too long. Two cuts are on the disc: 2h43 and 2h16. The longer cut has a near 20-minute sequence of a fake movie Liza is in that goes on and on and on. Ya know that show-in-a-show in Singing in the Rain that’s overlong? It’s that. A Forever Dream Ballet. Honestly, Liza’s Francine is a little stagnant too, and since she and Jimmy are the only people we follow, it’s a lot. But she’s so good it overcomes the flatness.
On a technical level, New York, New York is a wonder. Laszlo Kovacs films Boris Leven’s astounding production design with a flourish. Theadora Van Runkel’s costuming is astonishing. It’s a totally gorgeous film to view. I adore the deliberately over-the-top artificiality. It’s a big, bold film, and for that I give it props.
Yeah. I should like this. I LOVE musicals, even bad ones. Especially bad ones. I’ll take a bite of the Apple any day of the week. But New York, New York, I don’t. I’m sorry. You may get more from it. I appreciate the technical manner. The look and design that the world Scoreces creates are wonderful to look at and experience. But I just can’t get over the hump of De Niro here.
P.S. Awesome to see That Guy Dick Miller in a scene and Clarence “Big Man” Clements of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band pop in (now THERE’S a sax player)
The Packaging
MVD puts New York, New York on two discs. The 4k UHD holds the longer cut (243)and commentary. The Blu-ray has the shorter cut (216 min and the other features. Both discs are on either side of a standard 4k case. The sleeve and O-ring have the same standard artwork.
The Presentation
MVD’s 4k is scanned from the original negative, and it looks amazing. New York, New York is a damned good-looking film with a ton of detail in the exquisitely designed sets and costuming. Stunning to look at, and the detail stands out with each sequin. I remember the fuzzy DVD, and this is so much better. The sound is great as well, as one would expect in a sound-based film; even if that sound is often De Niro yelling and getting a tizzy. In English with English subtitles
The Features
Everything in this release is ported from previous editions, but it also left out plenty from the Image edition last year. But it’s a good selection.
Disc 1:
Commentary (1993. That’s not a typo – the 1993 laserdisc!)
Martin Scorsese and Carrie Rickey are cut together. A decent commentary; hearing Scorsese talk elsewhere, I expected he’d be more loquacious. But rather quiet. He does talk about his influences, reasons, and how he approached taking a very different style than he’s used to. More technically minded than performance.
Introduction
Scorsese spends a few minutes discussing the reasoning behind and trials of making the movie. Much more on it here. (6m)
Disc 2
New York, New York Stories.
Split into two parts (26 and 27 minutes), a very detailed talking-head retrospective. Covers the film from start to finish, with Scorsese focusing on his shift and how the styles compare. 
Liza on New York, New York (2005)
Liza Minnelli is one of those folks with so many stories from a fantastic life who I could listen to forever. Here she talks about her youth, how it influences this film, and what she thinks of it (she likes it more than I do). (22m) (Btw, if you do want a whole lot of Liza’s life check out the excellent documentary Liza: A Truly Terrific True Story from last year).
Alternate Takes & Deleted Scenes
As Scorsese allowed heavy improvisation, it could be nearly Apatow Line-a-rama. As such, most of what’s here is slightly different from what we’ve seen, sometimes shifting the scene’s tone. (19m)
Select Scene Commentary with Lazlo Kovaks
Four small bits with the cinematographer. It’s a damned great-looking film, and I loved hearing how the master did it. I wish it was longer. Heck, could have got more and shoved into the quiet bits of the full commentary. (10m)
Storyboards
Some of Scorsese’s hand-drawn boards.Nice. (3m)
Trailers
2 totalling 6minutes
FInal Thoughts
Yes, 1977’s New York, New York is divisive, inside and out. Inwardly, it’s truly gorgeous, with amazing tech and a great Minnelli performance, but it sinks with its length and a grating lead. And externally, many absolutely adore it despite the faults, and others call it Scorsese’s worst by a mile. I agree with that sentiment, but find something in there. But maybe you’ll dig it.