SnoopyStyle This is three separate stories directed by three quintessential NY directors. The first "Life Lessons" is directed by Martin Scorsese. Lionel Dobie (Nick Nolte) is a successful artist unable to paint. His assistant Paulette (Rosanna Arquette) is moving on after their romance but he's still clinging on. Her presence fuels his jealousy and his paintings. Francis Ford Coppola directs the second part "Life Without Zoë" with school girl Zoë (Heather McComb) living in a luxury hotel. The final story "Oedipus Wrecks" is directed by Woody Allen. Sheldon (Woody Allen) brings his fiancé Lisa (Mia Farrow) to meet his overbearing mother (Mae Questel). His embarrassing mother disappears after a magic box trick.The Scorsese part is basically one dysfunctional co-dependent relationship. These characters don't change. It's a couple of grumpy people bouncing off of each other. I don't love this section but I do get the angry relationship. The Coppola section is just one rambling string of scenes. The little girl doesn't have enough charisma. There isn't enough fun or magic which is sorely needed in a story reminiscent of 'Eloise at the Plaza'. The Woody Allen section is the most fun. It's whimsical and mildly comical. It brings a smile to my face.

Baron Ronan Doyle Having first heard of New York Stories many moons ago, I was pleased to see it scheduled on TV last night. Eager to see it, an interesting collaborative project between three key directors of the New Hollywood movement, I even rushed home from a prior engagement.Three shorts banded together with the unifying setting of New York, New York Stories consists of: Life Lessons, Scorsese's tale of the relationship between an artist and his apprentice; Life Without Zoë, Coppola's take on the life of a child of wealthy parents, left to live alone in a luxurious hotel; Oedipus Wrecks, Allen's exploration of mother-son relationships.A distinct danger with films of this sort is in the directorial differences which can vastly disrupt the overall film's flow. Monumental shifts in tone can be quite disconcerting and often do a lot to detract from the effect of the piece as a whole. Lucky, then, that these directors all come from the same period, each counted among the upper echelons of those filmmakers who graduated from the 60s/70s "movie brat" generation. Not, that is to say, that there is a homogeneity to the shorts—each offers something distinct in terms of both narrative and tone—but rather that they are at least of similar minds and sensibilities. Scorsese's contribution is perhaps the most interesting of the three, a look at the artist culture that is so key to the New York of fiction. Nolte's artist is a classic tortured soul, channelling his torment into his canvas and creating a work that evolves and develops just as he fails to do so, trapped in a cycle of depression and dependency. Intelligently structured and driven by character depth, Life Lessons is a very solid start. Coppola's follows, showing us the life of the wealthy and privileged and seeming to comment upon the laissez-faire parenthood of the rich which develops their children so early into adulthood. What sounds an interesting idea with room for probing into a social issue turns into a ridiculous story of princesses and parties, set in a fairytale world complete with a happy family ending. It drags, it sags, and it asks us to fall in love with hideously uninteresting characters. Life Without Zoë is an appropriate title for what the audience will come to desire by the time it all ends. No thank you Francis, get off the stage. When he does, at last, it is Allen's turn. Having never before experienced the supposed wonders of Allen's comedic efforts, Oedipus Wrecks was the most highly anticipated of the three for me, and brought some very welcome laughs into the mix. Fantastic situational humour coupled with Allen's sublime comedic timing quickly steered it toward becoming the best of the bunch. It takes a rather disappointing bad turn along the way, but still maintains enough of a laugh factor to keep it from sinking. Not masterful, but quite, quite funny, and with a nice dash of comment on the issue at hand.The kind of idea that's interesting to see played out, New York Stories is neither as bad as its worst nor as good as its best. The Scorsese and the Allen each make for entertaining viewing, the former more substantial in its thematic depth, the latter more immediately thrilling in its hilarity. The Coppola pulls the standard down a stretch, really testing audience patience between the two infinitely better pieces. Much more three shorts banded together than a feature film, it's worth watching, but only just.

Petri Pelkonen New York Stories (1989) consists of three shorts with the central theme being New York City.It's directors are Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola and Woody Allen.From that trio you could expect something better, but the result is very mediocre.The first story is Scorsese's Life Lessons, loosely based on Fyodor Dostoevsky's The Gambler.It tells about the relationship between a painter called Lionel Dobie and Paulette, his apprentice and former lover.The second story is Life Without Zoë by Coppola.It's about a rich schoolgirl.Allen's story is Oedipus Wrecks.It tells about a Jewish New York lawyer, who has problems with his mother.She doesn't like her son's fiancé Lisa, and the mother starts hovering above the city and telling embarrassing stories of her son.The actor list looks great.Nick Nolte is Lionel.Rosanna Arquette plays Paulette.Steve Buscemi is Gregory Stark.Illeana Douglas is Paulette's Friend.Deborah Harry is Girl at Blind Alley.Heather McComb is Zoë.Giancarlo Giannini is her father and Talia Shire the mother.Holly Marie Combs is Costume Party Guest.Adrien Brody appears in his first film role as Mel.Woody Allen is Sheldon.Mia Farrow is Lisa.Mae Questel plays the mother.Julie Kavner portrays Treva.Larry David is Theater Manager.Kirsten Dunst is Lisa's Daughter.Mike Starr is Hardhat.From the three I liked Scorsese's the best.Nick Nolte's performance was intense.I also liked Allen's work.The magic show scene was funny, after which the mother disappeared.Coppola's was the weakest of the three.This is worth seeing, even though I expected something better.

Michael Neumann It's exciting to find three high profile filmmakers working in a short story format, but (perhaps not surprisingly) this unique anthology adds up to something less than the sum of its parts. Because of the talent involved it's difficult to avoid playing the comparison/contrast game, which would make Martin Scorsese's 'Life Lessons' the most impressive segment, in large part because of Nick Nolte's dynamic portrayal of a burned-out bohemian artist in trend-setting SoHo. Scorsese's direction is no more stylish than the efforts of his companions, but there's more substance in this one episode than in both others combined. Francis Ford Coppola's 'Life Without Zoë' is a fizzy, uptown urban fairy tale told from the point of view of a precocious, sophisticated 12-year old heiress, and Woody Allen's amusing, typically neurotic 'Oedipus Wrecks' is reminiscent of one of his New Yorker essays, perhaps better suited to the printed page. Taken altogether, the trilogy is a diverting throwaway effort by three directors whose talents far outshine the material each is working with.