Ray Carney's search for a missing American classic: "What made the Shadows story particularly interesting was that a number of critics and viewers who saw both versions were convinced that Cassavetes had made a grievous mistake. Jonas Mekas's Movie Journal column, published in the Village Voice on January 27 1960, can stand for all: 'I have no further doubt that whereas the second version of Shadows is just another Hollywood film - however inspired, at moments - the first version is the most frontier-breaking American feature film in at least a decade. Rightly understood and properly presented, it could influence and change the tone, subject matter, and style of the entire independent American cinema.' "