The colorful forerunners of today's movies set in Boston

A new book looks back to 1950

"Gone Baby Gone" (above, starring Casey Affleck) follows a tradition of movies set in the area, as explored in "Big Screen Boston." (Claire Folger/Miramax Films)

For those who think Boston's only been a hot movie location since "Mystic River" and "The Departed" made our streets famous, think again. Our neighborhoods, campuses, and waterfront have served for decades as backdrops for blockbusters, indies, and homegrown productions alike.

Profiling some 250 of these films is "Big Screen Boston" by local journalist and past president of the Boston Society of Film Critics Paul Sherman. Set to be released Thursday, the book discusses about 80 films - from the first Hollywood production to come to town, 1950 detective pic "Mystery Street," starring Ricardo Montalban; to 1968's "The Thomas Crown Affair," which plopped Steve McQueen and Faye Dunaway in 'hoods from Beacon Hill to Allston; to the gritty 1973 Robert Mitchum thriller "The Friends of Eddie Coyle," shot from the Back Bay to Quincy. A section called "Brief Visits, Day Trips & the Rest" includes capsule reviews of about 175 "lesser" films. The book ends with "The Great Boston Movie Trivia Quiz."

When "The Departed" won Best Picture, Sherman said "a light bulb went on over my head." The time was ripe for a comprehensive book on Boston movies, he thought, and as a film writer, Sherman knew he could draw on his years of experience chatting up celebs like Matt Damon and the Farrelly brothers.

Among Sherman's discoveries in writing the book: the 1970s and '80s wave of "Beanstreets" movies, "Boston's answer to Martin Scorsese's 'Mean Streets,' " he said. These locally made films with blue-collar plots are tough to find. To help launch Sherman's book, the Brattle Theatre will show "Billy in the Lowlands" on Thursday, and West Newton Cinema will show "The Dark End of the Street" May 21. Other screenings keyed to the book release include "Girltalk" (Wednesday, Brattle), "Titicut Follies" (MFA, Saturday), and "The Friends of Eddie Coyle" (June 5, Coolidge Corner Theatre). The latter film Sherman claims is "the best movie ever made in Boston." More info: www.bigscreenboston.com.

Three from Schnabel

Artist and director Julian Schnabel's "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly," about the plight of the editor of French "Elle" magazine and his paralysis by "locked in" syndrome at the age of 43, came out last year to generally rave reviews. If you're interested in checking out Schnabel's two earlier films, the Museum of Fine Arts is offering a three-film mini-retrospective Friday through next Thursday. The films include "Basquiat," his biopic of graffiti artist turned art world darling Jean-Michel Basquiat; "Before Night Falls," about the life and writings of the Cuban author Reinaldo Arenas; and "Diving Bell." Information: mfa.org.

Brooklyn native Schnabel will also be in town May 12 to accept the 13th annual Museum School Medal Award, which "honors individuals who have made a significant and lasting impact on the art world.

"The May 12 event, also a gala fund-raiser for School of the Museum of Fine Arts scholarships, includes an advance screening of Schnabel's new film, "Lou Reed's Berlin," a rock documentary of Lou Reed's 2006 performance of his 1973 concept album "Berlin." Information and tickets: 617-369-3591 or e-mail tchamlian@smfa.edu.

Last call

The Independent Film Festival of Boston is about half over, but there are three days left to catch a couple dozen screenings scattered among the Somerville, Coolidge Corner, and Brattle theaters.

Picks for the decision-averse include "Twelve" (today, 7 p.m., Somerville), a smorgasbord of a dozen 10-minute short stories that's a sort of love letter to Boston and a showcase for up-and-coming filmmakers (each were required to crew on their colleagues' productions). There's the epic legend "Mongol" (today, 7 p.m., Coolidge), Russian filmmaker Sergei Bodrov's chronicle of the rise of Genghis Khan. Another standout is the Greek "Pink" (today, 10:15 p.m., Somerville), about a friendship between a young artist and a Ukrainian girl. IFFBoston programmers promise "Pink," at the fest in its US premiere, is among the most atmospheric and unusual films they've found this year.

Another tip: "Woodpecker" (tomorrow, 7 p.m., Somerville), by IFFBoston alum Alex Karpovsky ("The Hole Story"). The mockumentary is about the extremely rare (or extinct) ivory-billed woodpecker and the man trying to prove it exists, an oddball amateur poet trudging through the swamps of eastern Arkansas.

Most films are screened twice, so if you missed one of these indie treasures earlier in the week - like the harrowing and hopeful "Life. Support. Music." (screening again tomorrow, 5 p.m., Somerville) - now's your chance.

And, as always, festivalgoers get to meet many of the filmmakers in attendance, who will be answering questions and milling about after the screenings. How to ID them? They're the one's wearing IFFBoston badges. Don't be shy: Tell them what you thought of their films. That's why they're here. More info: iffboston.org.