1970s Boston

Though primarily known for 1980s teen films, Hughes captured the gritty, working-class Boston atmosphere that defined the 1970s Midwest and Northeast urban experience.

His 1970s films like 'The Departed' (set in Boston) and his broader exploration of urban crime and moral decay directly engage with the 1970s Boston underworld aesthetic.

Directed 'The Friends of Eddie Coyle' (1973), a quintessential 1970s Boston crime film that authentically captures the city's criminal underworld and working-class neighborhoods.