I am going to move to New York City this September. Aside from a few visits, I have to admit that most of what I know about the city comes from movies. Unlike many other cities, both in the U.S. and worldwide, New York has the unique distinction of not really being cinematically pigeonholed (at least in American cinema). There is not just one New York on screen. Whereas LA is always slick and commercial, Chicago is always seedy, Boston is always teeming with blue-collar criminals, anywhere in Italy or France is always achingly romantic, and anywhere in urban Asia is always hustling and bustling, New York can be any number of things. Even though certain representations come up often, you can still hop onto Netflix and find a whole range of cinematic New Yorks, from the glamorous to the gritty. Below are some of my favorite versions of New York on screen. My criteria was basically that the location had to factor into the film - that it would change the feeling of the film if it took place somwhere else. The story couldn't be insulated from its environment. For example, even though Rear Window technically takes place in NYC, you probably wouldn't be able to tell because really it just takes place in one apartment. So that wouldn't count. Also, for the sake of focus, I'm keeping it limited to Manhattan - diving into the other boroughs is a whole other barrel of monkeys. (And the other boroughs are typically depicted in a more narrow light than Manhattan - i.e. you don't see too many fluffy romantic comedies set in the Bronx). Finally, note that this not a list of the best movies that are set in New York, but the best representations of New York on film. This list is by no means exhaustive; it is meant to spark discussion.