3rd Ave. El (1955)

I’m not sure Haydn’s Harpsichord Concerto (in D major) gets too many cinematic outings, but it works really quite well here as we spend a day in the life of New York’s Third Avenue elevated railway. We follow three passengers during the day: a young lad, a man who’s had a bit too much of the sauce and a father and his enthusiastic young daughter before the lights go on and a courting couple close the day. They are not so crucial, though, as the emphasis focuses more on the engineering that not just ran and built this line, but that more broadly built the entire city. The automated swing bridge scene is particularly impressive, and with the additional sights and sounds of the city and it’s people augmenting this quickly-paced and dialogue-free travelogue, it makes for quite an interesting piece of civic nostalgia.