No passion for fashion is required to enjoy this absorbing portrait of legendary New York Times “On the Street” photographer Bill Cunningham, but a sense of history and tragedy might help. Director Richard Press doggedly shadows the chipper octogenarian, foregrounding the modest lifestyle and quietly radical work ethic that have made him as much a hero as an anomaly. Press has crafted a near-Buddhist reflection on what it takes to fully engage Gotham, as well as an astute snapshot of its evermore avaricious soul: Cunningham’s cheerful asceticism is so out of step with what we currently expect (and don’t expect) from our city that tagging along with him is a bracing reminder of what’s been lost to the bottom line. (NR) MARK HOLCOMB

Sat., Jan. 21, 7 p.m., 2012