The East Village Was ‘No Picnic’ in the 1980s: A 4K-Restored Cult Movie from the Founder of Two Boots Pizza Returns to Film Forum
Why it matters: The 4K restoration brings a lost cult classic from 1985 back to Film Forum for one week.
- Phil Hartman's 1985 film "No Picnic," a Sundance winner, is receiving a 4K restoration and will screen at Film Forum from April 17-23, according to IndieWire and Film Forum.
- Manohla Dargis of the Village Voice praised "No Picnic" in 1990 as the "one movie about the East Village that gets it right," a sentiment echoed by Hartman himself who aimed to capture the neighborhood before it became unrecognizable.
- The film's plot follows Macabee Cohn, a former lead singer, as he navigates the downtown demimonde, encountering street poets and punkabillys, and stars David Brisbin, Richard Hell, Steve Buscemi, and Luis Guzmán, per Film Forum.
Phil Hartman's 1985 neo-noir comedy "No Picnic," lauded by Manohla Dargis as the definitive East Village film, has been 4K-restored and returns to Film Forum. The film, created by the co-founder of Two Boots Pizza and The Great Jones Cafe, captures a bygone era of downtown New York, featuring a cast including Richard Hell and Steve Buscemi.
