âNew York, New York, Scorseseâs splashy, cynical, and masterfully-made postwar musical, was egregiously cold-shouldered upon its release, as was the singular star turn of Liza Minnelli, doing an adoring yet galvanizing variation on Mama Judy Garland's legendary A Star is Born role. As Francine Evans, an aspiring 1940s singer who falls under the influence of De Niroâs callous, captivating saxophonist, Minnelli is perpetually in motion, propelled by an insatiable need to please audiences and lovers alike. Minnelli is, of course, a stupendous, show-stopping singer-dancer with a walloping and finely honed talent that decidedly belongs to the bygone studio era in which her mother rose to otherworldly stardom. Minnelliâs artistic mastery is startlingly reminiscent of Garlandâs yet differentiated by the pure, jubilant passion she exudes at all times when performing; has any artist ever radiated more graciousness for an audienceâs gaze than Minnelli, as if the enormity of her abilities didnât already demand our undivided attention? But, more than anything else, itâs the actressâ tough-minded, deeply-felt emotionalityâculminating in an elevator descent of tremulous, heartbroken stillnessâthat proudly places her Francine beside Garlandâs Vicki Lester, Julie Andrews' Maria von Trapp, Barbra Streisandâs Fanny Brice, and Minnelli's own Sally Bowles in the eternal pantheon of preeminent, pitch-perfect musical performances.â â Matthew Eng