The Panic in Needle Park

The Panic In Needle Park
Original poster (with Ontario Censor Board classification)
Directed by	Jerry Schatzberg
Screenplay by	Joan Didion John Gregory Dunne
Based on	The Panic in Needle Park 1966 novel by James Mills
Produced by	Dominick Dunne
Starring	Al Pacino Kitty Winn Alan Vint Richard Bright Raúl Juliá Kiel Martin Paul Sorvino
Cinematography	Adam Holender
Edited by	Evan A. Lottman
Production companies	Gadd Productions Corp. Didion-Dunne
Distributed by	20th Century-Fox
Release date	July 13, 1971 (1971-07-13)
Running time	110 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$1,645,000[1]

The Panic in Needle Park is a 1971 American drama film directed by Jerry Schatzberg and starring Al Pacino (in his first lead role) and Kitty Winn.^[2] The screenplay was written by Joan Didion and John Gregory Dunne, adapted from the 1966 novel by James Mills.

The film portrays life among a group of heroin addicts who hang out in "Needle Park" (a nickname at that time for Sherman Square on Manhattan's Upper West Side near 72nd Street and Broadway).^[3] The film is a love story between Bobby (Pacino), a young addict and small-time hustler, and Helen (Kitty Winn), a restless woman who finds Bobby charismatic. She becomes an addict, and life goes downhill for them both as their addictions worsen, eventually leading to a series of betrayals.