Chelsea on the Rocks 2008

Keith Uhlich, Time Out: It makes sense that, within his own act of remembrance, Ferrara would include a hotel tenant's home-movie footage of the September 11 attacks. The underlying message, in both cases, is the same: Never forget. Read more

Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times: There's a great movie to be made about the Chelsea Hotel; unfortunately, this isn't it. Read more

Sam Adams, AV Club: Ferrara himself is no stranger to substance abuse or self-destructive impulses, and he's perfectly in sync with the Chelsea's spirit. Read more

Ty Burr, Boston Globe: You may not learn much about the hotel itself from Chelsea on the Rocks, but you come away knowing exactly what it was like to live there. Read more

Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News: Ferrera's shaggy tone, which fits the iconic building, gets irritating. Still, if you come for the stories, you'll stay for the company. Read more

Lou Lumenick, New York Post: Chelsea on the Rocks rambles a bit, but it's a real slice of New York history that includes everything from Ethan Hawke recounting a hilarious story about Marilyn Monroe and Arthur Miller at the hotel to footage of the 9/11 attacks... Read more

Walter V. Addiego, San Francisco Chronicle: This is Ferrara's first documentary since 1977, and it has the crackbrained air of menace and the ferocious humor that mark his fictional works. Read more

Joe Williams, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: It's a cheap, vicarious high to hear these unidentified denizens reminisce about the orgies and overdoses that seem to have been included with the rent. Read more

Leslie Felperin, Variety: A skittery, rambling but often absorbing portrait of the Chelsea Hotel. Read more

Nick Pinkerton, Village Voice: Chelsea rambles -- and in a way that makes you want to move down the bar. Read more