Lustre

The late character actor Victor Argo (“Taxi Driver,” “Kings of New York” in a final, riveting performance.

New York changed forever after 9/11, but even before that fateful day, unstoppable forces were at work that seem to have robbed the city of its soul. No one knows that better than aging loan shark Hugo, a throwback to another era of what he characterizes as the “grit and the danger.” Everywhere he turns, old, rough-hewn brick buildings have been replaced by faceless facades and ugly franchise joints. Most everyone now seems cold and empty and oblivious, if not complicit in what's taking place. The New York he once knew and loved is gone and it’s never coming back.