By Bradley Towle
SCHOHARIE COUNTY — The Mountain Eagle readership area has been the backdrop to numerous notable films over the years. Our "Filmed Locally" series has highlighted multiple films, but navigating the streaming era to find a specific movie can be frustrating due to the multitude of available platforms. But The Mountain Eagle is here to help! Here, you will find a selection of worthwhile films with a connection to Schoharie County, along with their current availability to stream or rent. This is not an endorsement of any particular platform, although you may consider it an endorsement of each selected film. We hope you find this guide helpful and enjoy the movie. Keep your eye out for familiar locations in each one! Note: Hoopla and Kanopy are free streaming services that require only a library card for access.
The Model and The Marriage Broker (1951) – Thelma Ritter plays Mae Swasey, a marriage broker who schemes to bring lonely singles together in New York City in this black and white comedy. When Mae attempts to meddle in the life of a beautiful model (Jean Crain), the cynical matchmaker is pushed outside of her comfort zone and leaves town for a retreat in Sharon Springs. While most of the movie was filmed on studio lots in L.A., there is at least one shot in the movie that was filmed in New York City, specifically at the Flatiron Building in Manhattan. It is also possible that the production visited Schoharie County for the scenes in Sharon Springs, which is mentioned several times by name. Still, there remains a question as to whether the spa visited by Mae was actually shot on location. If so, it would have been at a time when Sharon Springs was a notable and active destination. Also of note, this was Zero Mostel's final film before being blacklisted for most of the remaining decade as a result of the despicable House Un-American Activities Committee era. Winner of an Academy Award for Best Costume Design. Available to rent on Amazon and AppleTV.
Midnight Cowboy (1969) – This film adaptation of James Leo Herlihy's novel helped usher in a new era of American filmmaking with its gritty portrayal of naïve Texan Joe Buck (Jon Voight), who arrives in New York City with delusions of becoming a successful gigolo. The Big Apple proves less forgiving than he had planned. Soon, he becomes entangled with wily con man Rico "Ratso" Rizzo (Dustin Hoffman) and the two begin a business partnership while staying in Rizzo's condemned apartment. But more importantly, they become friends in this classic buddy movie with Hoffman and Voight each earning Best Actor Academy Award nominations (which they unfortunately lost to Hollywood's favorite bigot, John Wayne). Also appearing in the film was Schoharie County resident and famed character actor John McGiver. Rumors have suggested that McGiver initially tossed the script in the trash, but according to Glenn Frankel, author of Shooting Midnight Cowboy: Art, Sex, Loneliness, Liberation, and the Making of a Dark Classic, McGiver was actually the first actor (besides the leads) to sign a contract. Whatever McGiver's thoughts about the film, he certainly showed up to play in his role as Mr. O'Daniel, the wild-eyed religious zealot Rizzo tricks Joe into meeting with. It's a brief but memorable appearance. Midnight Cowboy won an Academy Award for Best Picture, the first and only X-rated film to do so. Re-rated as an R after the win. Streaming for free on Kanopy, Hoopla, and with ads on Tubi and Roku. Available to rent on Amazon, Apple TV, and Plex.
I Drink Your Blood (1971)– Filmed entirely in Sharon Springs over eight days in 1970, this schlocky exploitation horror film was the first film to receive an X-rating for violence. A group of Satanist hippies wanders into the small town of Sharon Springs, where most of the residents have moved away during the construction of a major dam. One family has stayed behind to keep their store open, making a living by feeding the construction workers. The family's young son intentionally injects rabies into food to feed and poison the Satanists, and all hell breaks loose as "hydrophobia" spreads through the town. An odd, but fun amalgamation of the era, with the Satanists likely inspired by the Manson cult, and a wild scene at the end involving the construction workers, seems to evoke the "hard hat riot" from earlier that year. The rats used in the film went on to star in Willard. Note: an actual animal (a chicken) is killed on screen early on in the movie. Streaming for free on Kanopy, Plex, Fawsome, and with ads on Tubi. Available to rent on Amazon.
The World to Come (2021) - Although no scene was shot in Schoharie, and no local resident starred in this drama, Schoharie County is where the story takes place. Vanessa Kirby (Fantastic Four) and Katherine Waterston (Inherent Vice) star as two women who helplessly fall in love on the American frontier in 1865. Casey Affleck (Manchester by the Sea) stars as Waterson's husband, and Christopher Abbot (It Comes at Night) as Kirby's suspicious mate. While filmed in Romania, it is odd to hear the villages of Middleburgh and Schoharie mentioned throughout. Based on the short story of the same name by Jim Shepard. Streaming for free on Hoopla, Plex, and with ads on Fandango at Home. For rent on Amazon and AppleTV.
Shudderbugs (2022)- Filmed entirely in Schoharie County in the summer of 2020 during COVID-19, writer/director/actress Johanna Putnam plays Samantha Cole, a woman who returns to her childhood home following her mother's death. Putnam, a Cobleskill-Richmondville alum, returned to her parents' home in Warnerville from Brooklyn as the lockdown began. Along with her partner and co-star in the film, Brennan Brooks, she decided to use the strange idle time to make Shudderbugs. The film deals with themes of grief, isolation, and paranoia, placing it squarely as a beautifully shot and acted representation of the odd era. While most of the film takes place at the family's Warnerville home, local viewers will recognize the old Grand Union and the bucolic Schoharie Valley backdrop looms large throughout. Streaming for free on Hoopla and, with ads, on Tubi. Available to rent or buy on Amazon and AppleTV.
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