Cities How They Grow (1952)

★★★★ · Cities are nice places to live! · Spuzz · 2003-07-24

Nice overview of what makes a city grow (using easy to follow maps) and the consquences of having a city grow too fast (featuring a great mob fight scene). The film seems actually quite balanced, which is nice for a change as usually films like this are preoccupied with urban sprawl. Mind you this is probably the mid 50's we're talking about though, and some of the major problems had yet to rear it's ugly head. But still this seemed to have a nice rosy hopeful end.

★★★ · American Cities: Big, Bigger, Biggest! · Christine Hennig · 2003-10-30

This Encyclopedia Brittanica film gives a dry overview of the growth of cities in America, city planning, and urban problems. Since its EB, its all pretty standard and conventional. It ends optimistically, expressing the hope that proper planning can prevent urban problems in the future. Lots of scene of 50s urban life are shown, giving this some historical value, but mostly its dull viewing. Ratings: Camp/Humor Value: *. Weirdness: *. Historical Interest: ****. Overall Rating: ***.