NYT: Cinema Flashback

The New York Times reviews The Brave One (Jody Foster's new movie). This is a tale of a senseless urban crime that leads a city dweller (and city lover) to fear the very streets she once roamed with relish. It's interesting to me that though the reviewer references the past, he (Anthony O. Scott) never references Bernie Goetz. For many people Bernie Goetz probably epitomized the urban vigilate who acted on the fear and anxieties of early '80s New Yorkers. He was the ultimate urban avenger (which I'm not saying was a good thing since he shot four young men -not minors- on the subway [ I'm linking to the wikipedia site, but I don't think it is totally accurate]) and is clearly part of the inspiration for Foster's character. Of interest:
The New York State legal standard for the self defense justification use of deadly force shifted after rulings in the case. New York jurors are now told to consider a defendant's background and to consider whether a reasonable person would feel imperiled if that reasonable person was the defendant.
This quote comes from the Goetz wikipedia site. To the best of my knowledge jurors cannot generally consider a defendant's past unless the the reasonable person was aware of that past at the time. [but please don't take that as any authority, or leagal advice since I'm not qualified to give either]. I also do not know if the above iterration of NY's law is at all correct (in fact, I suspect that it is not). But, Bernie Goetz is worthy of mention because of his rather iconic status. Although Mr. Goetz faired quite well during his early court forays, this was not the case when he faced the court later for the same matter. This has sometimes been (accurately I think) attributed to the tremendous drop in crime in the interceding years. People no longer believed the subway (or the city) as a war zone, and so they could no longer identify with Mr. Goetz's actions. Perhaps desperation breeds desperation? Buy it? Now you can see the movie. Others not to miss:
Taxi Driver (I stil find this hard to watch)
Alphabet City (pulply, but still)
Smithereens pre-Desperately Seeking Susan (and better)
7th Street TMNT, 'nough said
Obviously there are tons more (many from Woody Allen, but...), if you have any can't misses that deal explicitly with the urban issues, as opposed to other stuff, let me know & I'll see what I can do (though I'm clearly asking for trouble here).
So how does this stuff fit in with DC's "urban condition" to you (specifically around here)?