This groundbreaking silent documentary captures the beauty and majesty of the New York City in its streets, skyscrapers, bridges, rail yards and harbors.Is this film groundbreaking? I would have to agree with that. But unfortunately, it doesn't break nearly as much ground as it could. The film reminds me of "Berlin", the documentary made by Karl Freund and Carl Mayer, among others. The big difference being that "Manhatta" is not particularly long.And that is why I can only give it so much love, because I wish more of 1920s New York was captured on film, an era that is still remembered fondly today (2017). Any document would be somewhat priceless to the right people.

The film-makers' names are proudly displayed no fewer than 3 times during the credits of this one (the card prepared by Kino before each short on the DVDs included); the end result, however, is nothing to write home about – its principal value nowadays is as a time-capsule, and a dull one at that! It is yet another 'film poem' devoted to the nerve centre of New York City, teeming with people (as witnessed by shiploads of arriving passengers!) and activity. Still, as already intimated, very little of interest is actually captured on celluloid – and the photography is pretty ordinary to boot! The literal translation of "avant-garde" is something that is "forward-looking": tellingly, the one thing I was looking forward to as I lay watching this was its conclusion!

This experimental movie of Paul Strand about Manhattan is extremely important to the future generations of directors. Paul Strand is like a bird in Manhattan, showing the daily life and the most characteristic points of it. Manhattan is shown in a Bird's eye shot(I think that it's the name in English, kind like the public was God himself. I never went to Manhattan, but in 10 minutes I visited, understood and felt Manhattan. It is amazing how in such a short time, he can illustrate, in a interesting and original way, this mediatic place. Paul Strand is like a magician that takes photos of Manhattan and give life to them. A great short that definitely is a mark on cinema's experimental history.

This short film by Sheeler and Strand is the father of American avant-garde cinema. It contains beautiful shots of Manhattan shown intertwined with excerpts of a Walt Whitman poem. All of the shots are thought out, and very photographic in nature. But that is expected with Paul Strand behind the camera. This film is probably the first American avant-garde film, and if it isn't, it is definitely the first influential avant-garde film. A guideline for future American avant-garde filmmakers to follow.A true visual treat, even for today's standard.