Before there were art shows in living rooms and small concerts in warehouse hangars there were, and still are, family-oriented communities navigating the obstacles of New York while making the best out of their diverse environment. Block party barbecues, fire extinguisher sprinklers, bodega meals that cost less than an MTA swipe and choirs echoing from the open doors and windows of overheated one room churches. There are many cultural practices that go on day by day as we indulge in our artistic aspirations within campus and host kickbacks and pregames on weekends, Many of them in which we take for granted, perceive as obscure, or ignore altogether. The following films will envelop you in these overlooked worlds. They were the five films that helped me grasp the cultural significance of Brooklyn, growing up about 50 miles away from this cultural hotbed.

5. "The Squid And The Whale" (2005)

Beyond the forest of public housing and industrial plants and across Prospect Park is a world riddled with retired professors, authors, and deteriorating families. Noah Baumbach takes you into one of those elegant brownstones and into his own very personal glimpse of his childhood in 1980's Brooklyn. "The Squid and the Whale" is an intimate family drama about the divorce of two competitive and self-indulgent writers and the devastating effect it has on their children. The film is a real New York Mumblecore classic, with cunning dialogue and plot structure that bends to the hyper-realistic temperament of each family members reaction to the divorce. Baumbach captures a messy web of debauchery, grief, and sequestered anger, not to its dramatic extremes but in a way that fits the personality of each character and how to cope with their lives. The film not only reveals Baumbach's past what reaches universal qualities as captures the dynamics of struggling family. The film was shot through the streets and public schools of the Prospect Park and Ditmas Park areas. It provides a tangible texture to life in these neighborhoods as well as an even more tangible intimacy as a member of the family. If you like a beautiful blend of Wes Anderson wit and New York melodrama, this is a must watch.

4. "The Chosen" (1981)

This beautiful book adaptation of Chaim Potok's novel, "The Chosen" is a story about the unlikely bond between a Hasidic Jew from a conservative background and a Zionist Jew from a liberal, literary background. The film humanizes the mystery behind the curls and fur hats as it delves inside the hospitable homes and spirit of the Hasidic communtiy of a 1940s Williamsburg. This film battles with the perceptions of belief and progress. It dances on the intensity between faith and fanaticism, liberal and secularism, and self-identity. Aside from its harsh depths of religious commentary the film glows with a classic coming of age charm as the audience enjoys each characters first time experience and growing friendship. Another New York 16mm classic with a Brooklyn Jew personality.

3. "Requiem For A Dream" (2000)

I beg of you please do not mistake this movie for a drug movie, even the director himself condemns such assumptions in many interviews. Darren Aronofsky's "Requiem For A Dream" is a stylistic psychological thriller that pulls you through the chaotic lives of four drug addicts in Brooklyn, NY. This film expresses more than the drug addiction but many of its causes. Hope, desperation, failed aspiration, and fear cripple each character as they fail to escape a survive their decrepit world and succumb to narcotics. From the thick accents to the gloomy scenery Aronofsky captures a dystopian reality in Brooklyn. The film utilizes supernatural effects to capture the extremes of each characters insanity but anchors it with realistic character dynamics and pop culture themes. This film is an urban classic but is not for the faint of heart.

2. "Crooklyn" (1996)

My personal favorite Spike Lee Joint. "Crooklyn" is a very personal story about a little girl growing up a handful of brother's in a crowded hot brownstone in Bed-Stuy. This film is incredibly nostalgic and resonate, especially for anyone who can make a connection. The film does not create boundaries for itself as a 1970's time capsule but it utilizes its environment to strengthen its realistic and stylistic qualities. From the first frame of the film the viewer already feels settled into the neighborhood and to the Carmichael family. Spike Lee and his siblings were successful in crafty this semi-autobiographical narrative as the viewer is allowed to explore Bed-Stuy through the fresh impressionable lens of a little girl. From the degenerates who sniff glue to the neighboring kids who are traumatized by their own family issues, the film takes you through the difficult journey of Troy's childhood and the obstacles she overcomes. It is most likely something your landlord or Brooklyn-born neighbor can relate to.

1. "Do The Right Thing" (1989)

Perhaps the most obvious choice for the number one spot. Do the Right Thing is perhaps the most stylistic and energetic Brooklyn film of all time. From the Public Enemy dance sequence in the introduction to the burning of Sal's Pizzeria. The film captures Bed-Stuy in its most honest and unapologetic lens. The viewer becomes a fly on the wall as the camera navigates through an urban Odyssey in the neighborhood's hottest day of the summer. The film is potent and relevant to this day as it tackles issues on self-identity, racism, and gentrification. It fully expresses many of the repressed emotions of Brooklyn natives in a very colorful way.

I hope those who took the time to read this article take the same amount of interest and determination to watch these films. I guarantee you will never see Brooklyn the same way again.