IRISH-AMERICAN FESTIVAL: HOMETHEMOVIE.COM

We'll have/Manhattan/The Bronx and Staten Island too/It's Lovely/at the Zoo. (Lorenz Hart, 1925). The fifth annual Crossroads, Irish-American Festival (March 8-17,2007) kicked off with an award winning documentary focusing on the experience of contemporary immigrants in New York: Of Thee I Sing! at the Roxie for a one-night only affair. Home (Homethemovie.com) was presented by director Dawn Scibilia, an ebullient Director/Producer/Editor, who flew in from her native Brooklyn for its premier in San Francisco.(ducinema.aol.com)

Native New Yorkers,immigrants,actors,writers serenade,parade,sing the praises of the Big Apple: symbol of hope,dreams,aspirations. In a word, HOME! Dawn worked on the film for 8 years and maxed out credit cards to the tune of $40,000. Unfortunately, as of this date, she has found no distributors (not even Netflix). Why? Dawn: It is not controversial enough; it doesn't push any buttons. New stop? Dublin, Ireland on March 24, 2007. Check it out on the web or in the future, DVD! It's a GREAT documentary and a timely film that reaches heart,soul,guts. Dublin native Alan Cook loves the Tower of Babel,wrote and narrated the film. Contact him, if you like it
(irishwolf_769@earthlink.net). Here are my favorite bits:

Colin Quinn: NYC has the energy of Calcutta.
Malachi McCourt: Niagara Falls has nothing on New York.
Frank McCourt: It's a spiritual place; a leap of faith;mythological;a place to discover your soul. Don't have to leave your dream at your doorstep if prepared to suffer.
Fran Lebowitz: A densely populated suburban environment that Rudy and the GOP destroyed by "ruining" Central Park. What could be more suburban than worrying about the lawn? New York is now about REAL ESTATE! It always has been, Fran!
Woody Allen: I couldn't live anywhere else. Paris, London, maybe, but in 3 years I'd be back! (Isn't he the quintessential New Yorker? Hasn't Hollywood defined Manhattan for him and us?)
Elaine Kaufman: "New York is now FUCKED UP".
Pete Hamil: New York was not founded by the Puritans, or any other looney religious sect. It's always been the capitol of capital. People have always come here to be what they could never be at home. Tap dancing (African/Irish connection) could never have been invented anywhere else.
Susan Sarandon. I love its serendity. If you've run into a person in LA, you've had a car accident. 1000s of layerings that function. (She admits she can afford to "get away" from the STIMULUS!)
Mike Myers: (funniest bit in film): There's no "Toronto food, dish, no song, no mo". Toronto's a wonderful place but no one says, "come to my house, have a Toronto pizza."

New York: a journey, a quest, the most mythological place on the planet? I agree, so if you visit, be sure to check out the STREETS of this great city, and rent the movie as a reminder of your odyssey.