“We will now use the power of the Continuum Transfunctioner to banish you to Hoboken, New Jersey.” - Alien Nordic Dude #1, Dude, Where’s My Car?

The Hollywood imagination and use of Hoboken in film has a long tradition. Handfuls of Hollywood productions have utilized Hoboken’s proximity to Manhattan as location settings, using locations indistinguishable to audiences from those across the Hudson.  Other productions have utilized Hoboken’s milieu as a catalyst throughout plot lines. A character study of the Hoboken waterfront from cinematic history reveals memorable lines, Oscar-winning actors, vivid locations, enveloping drama, and even two degrees of Kevin Bacon.

Any discussion of cinematic achievements for Hoboken must naturally begin with On the Waterfront, because it’s the oldest film attributed to Hoboken as a location, but also the most enduring.  Additionally, the film has struck the zeitgeist of the town for multiple generations for its portrayal of the social and economic climate of the men working on the waterfront. For decades, the main thrust of Hoboken’s economy lay in the long shore operations. Longtime residents talk about the rough and tumble years of the hard-living dockworkers that accounted for much of the town’s character.

The film is required viewing for any resident of the town, possibly the only film as such.  Locals will recognize many of the shooting locations around town, despite some lack of continuity between screen shots and the passing of over half a century. The film’s triumph at the Oscars adds to its gravity, garnering eight Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor, and Best Director. But beyond the critical acclaim and the recognizable scenery, the subject matter gives the film a character unique to Hoboken. After lining up each day looking for work, only those men aligned with the powerful union, run by mob boss “Johnny Friendly” get the nod to work. The movie sets the tone early on as one of the slighted workers despairs, “The waterfront’s tougher, father, like it ain’t part of America.”

The film progresses through a set of moral dilemmas for Marlon Brando’s character “Terry Malloy” as he is torn between love, truth, family and conscience. Interesting production notes include casting of Terry Malloy himself. As Brando had initially been reluctant to sign on to the film, Frank Sinatra was lined up for the starring role, until Brando was persuaded to appear.  Intrigue with the production struck a chord nationwide, as many critics read between the lines to determine that the film was part of the national discourse on Communism in the 1950s.  The film was supposedly director Elia Kazan’s response to critics of his testimony before the House Committee on Un-American Activities two years prior to it’s release. On the Waterfront was viewed by many as Kazan’s attack on Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, Miller’s indictment of the House Committee and its witch hunt for Communists in Hollywood.

The political intrigue within, and surrounding the film, make it a must see for any film buff.  In 1989 the film was designated “culturally, historically or aesthetically significant” by the Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the United States Film Registry. Perhaps Father Barry imprinted the most enduring line from On the Waterfront, “You want to know what’s wrong with our waterfront? It’s the love of a lousy buck.”

The most widely used and most recognizable Hoboken element in major cinema has been it’s iconic train terminal. Multiple Oscar-winning actors have delivered memorable lines throughout cinematic history, while waiting for the whistle to sound through the Erie-Lackawanna-Hoboken Station. The first major motion picture of which was 1968’s Funny Girl, directed by William Wyler; it stars Barbara Streisand as comedienne Fanny Brice, and Omar Sharif as her first husband Nick Arnstein. The love affair passes through several turns as the Hoboken Terminal plays host to the enveloping action, mainly the courtship of Brice by Arnstein. Streisand delivers Sharif the line while standing on the platform “You look good too, first time I’ve seen you in broad daylight,” and bid farewell for a short trip west.

In the suspense thriller, 3 Days of the Condor, Robert Redford plays bookish CIA researcher Joseph Turner, who survives a killing spree in his New York City office. He must then survive, unsure of who to trust for the next three days, avoiding incognito assasins and snares set up by the Agency.  His co-star is Faye Dunnaway, at first unwilling hostage in Turner’s hands, snatched up for her car and apartment. Naturally, she undergoes a bit of Stockholm Syndrome (he is Robert Redford after all) and decides to aid him in his quest for the truth.

The final push toward resolution comes at the Hoboken Terminal, as Turner heads to Washington D.C., to uncover the dangerous end-game he is wrapped up in.

The Camera pans through the sign for Erie-Lackawanna-Hoboken Terminal to a smoking Kathy Hale (Dunnaway). We then see the crescendo of the relationship between Joseph Turner AKA “Condor” and Kathy Hale. The train conductor calls all aboard as Redford begs Faye to accompany him on the rest of his mission to Washington D.C., to reveal factions behind the shadowy conspiracy. This time the farewell was forever.

Other films to take advantage of the vintage architecture of the Hoboken Terminal were several period pieces; 1984’s Once Upon a Time in America directed by Sergio Leone and starring Robert De Niro and James Woods and 1993’s Age of Innocence directed by Martin Scorsese, and starring Daniel Day-Lewis, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Winona Ryder. Both utilize the scenery for pieces set in the first half of the 20^th century and the middle of the 19^th century respectively. The station has also played host to the sets of 1980’s Stardust Memories by Woody Allen, 1984’s The Muppets Take Manhattan and the quirky 2003 film The Station Agent directed by Thomas McCarthy.  The film starts in Hoboken with the protagonist Finbar McBride, who is a dwarf working in a model train shop. An affection for trains pervades throughout the film, fitting that the Hoboken Terminal sets the action in motion.

Robert De Niro also appeared in 1996’s Sleepers, with one of the more vivid scenes taking place Hoboken.  Directed by Barry Levinson, the action follows a group of four friends from Hell’s Kitchen, who were sent to a boys correctional facility.  There they endure sexual abuse at the hands of a supervisor named Sean Nokes, played by Kevin Bacon. As adults, two of the boys have since become hardended criminals, and encounter Nokes at a bar called “McHale’s,” recognizable to Hoboken locals at The Elysian Café on 10^th Street.  John Reilly (played by Ron Eldard) and Tommy Marcano (Billy Crudup) enter the bar, 15 years after being sent upstate. Alone at a table in the back area of the bar is Sean Nokes, when John and Tommy realize who is in their presence, they approach the table, as Tommy exclaims “This is amazing!”  John and Tommy slowly bring Nokes to the realization of who they are, ending with the exchange, and ultimate payback when they shoot Nokes.  Then John and Tommy calmly walk out, paying the bill before exiting the front door.

The 1990s also had its more jovial side. Jennifer Anniston was at the height of her Friends popularity when she filmed a scene at the Elk's Club for the 1997’s romantic comedy Picture Perfect. Kate Mosley (Anniston) is the only single woman at her friend’s wedding. She escapes outside for some air when approached by the groom’s friend (Jay Mohr), who is videotaping the wedding. They end up having a picture taken, which turns into a little lie about her marital status, in hopes of gaining a promotion at an advertising agency. Kevin Bacon also stars in the film as a love interest of Kate’s at the agency.

The 1998’s film Restaurant, directed by Eric Bross, touches on love, lust, loss, racism, homophobia, and alcoholism, all while guiding the viewer through the experience of a group of 20-somethings trying to enter the performing arts world.  Hoboken provides the vehicle as the modern urban melting pot, for aspiring playwright Chris Calloway, played by Adrien Brody. Calloway is a tinderbox of issues, and the film follows his attempt to tackle his demons, and transform his experience into art.

The restaurant in the film is called J.T. McClure’s, now the famous Madison Bar and Grill. Hobokenites will recognize numerous locations in the opening montage of Hoboken landmarks.  And given the number of service industry jobs in Hoboken, then as now, many will identify with the characters. It even stars Jersey City native, Malcolm-Jamal Warner, of Cosby Show fame, and features a cameo by Lauryn Hill.  As Calloway is courting his co-worker Jeanine on a nighttime waterfront walk with the luminescent Manhattan lights on full display, Jeanine (played by Elise Neal) relates, “It’s a beautiful view, isn’t it?”  Chris responds, “Yeah, it’s like a beautiful woman I’m afraid to approach.”

The terrible comedy Funny Money starring Chevy Chase and Christopher McDonald, directed by Leslie Greif uses the Mile Square. Chase’s character lives in Hoboken and works for the Feldman Plastic Fruit Company.  He stars in a poorly executed slapstick version of the old briefcase switcheroo caper, ending up with $5 million instead of his business files on his commute home. Hoboken’s local police force is represented by Detective Genero (played by Armand Assante), who is sent to investigate but willing to look away for a cut of the money.

Maxwell’s has been the musical epicenter of town for several decades, including location for some music videos. The most famous was “Glory Days” by Bruce Springsteen, directed by local John Sayles.  The intimate concert venue shows the E Street Band lip-synching to the music, interwoven with shots of Springsteen on the baseball diamond.

Michel Gondry directed an amazing video of “Mad World” recorded by Michael Andrews and Gary Jules in 2002 as part of the Donnie Darko soundtrack.  The song has since gained wings as a much more haunting version of the old Tears for Fears recording, notching over 41.5 million views on YouTube as of Decenber, 2011. The video is shot in one take from the top of the A.J. Demarest School on 4^th and Garden Streets. As Jules and Andrews perform on the top of the building, the camera pans from the skyline, down at choreographed dancers on the sidewalk, and back to the skyline.

Eric Clapton recorded a video for the Phenomenon soundtrack in 1996 in the Hoboken Terminal. “Change the World” features Clapton performing in the abandoned Terminal Station, interspersed with screen images of John Travolta from the movie projected onto moving trains. Other music videos include a Maxwell’s concert setting for the video “Away” by the 1980s Alt Rock band The Feelies, a big player in the Hoboken music scene at the time.

But perhaps the most relevant film about contemporary life in Hoboken, is Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle. (2004, directed by Danny Leiner). The film follows two Hoboken residents, Harold Lee (played by John Cho), and Kumar Patel (Kal Penn) in their quest to find the most proximate White Castle to satisfy a case of the munchies. The film garnered critical acclaim for its use of minorities in leading roles.

All photos courtesy of Geri Fallo and Projected Images.