BILL CUNNINGHAM NEW YORK (2010) ¢ ¢ ¢ 1/2
D: Richard Press
If you've ever looked at the Sunday New York Times, you've probably looked at Bill Cunningham's photographs. He's the guy in the Styles section who shoots all those society events and documents what people are wearing on the sidewalks and streets of the city. The first time you see him in this documentary, he's pulling his bicycle out of a closet and heading out to take pictures. He weaves his way through Manhattan traffic as if it were the most natural thing in the world. He's thin and his hair is white. He's wearing a blue coat. He's not wearing a helmet. He's 81 years old. This is a guy who loves what he does, to the point where he seems to do nothing else. His studio apartment is crammed wall-to-wall with file cabinets full of negatives. (He's still shooting film.) His eye is for fashion. He shoots real fast and he shoots just about everything. He eats on the fly and apparently works every day. His spirit is infectious. It's unlikely any of us will ever take pictures for the New York Times. But it's hard to watch Cunningham go about his creative routine, and talk about it, without being inspired. Bill Cunningham. That's what I want to be like when I'm 81.
