For this screening, Jay Schwartz of Secret Cinema levels the playing field in the NYC/PHL rivalry with two rarely seen documentaries that take the shine out of today’s Manhattan. The evening begins with John McGreevey’s 1978 work George Plimpton’s New York, which follows journalist Plimpton (pictured) on the hunt for what charm is left in a city rotting after massive budget cuts and apathetic leadership. Part two is Only One New York, French ethnographer Pierre Dominique Gaisseau’s nook-and-cranny examination of everyday New Yorkers in 1964. Nasty.
Fri., Aug. 24, 7 p.m., $9, International House, 3701 E. Chestnut St., 215-387-5125, ihousephilly.org, thesecretcinema.com.
