u/GasProgrammatically1

Forgive my ignorance and this may be so obvious (though not to a Brit like me)but what are these little black balls with flames on them, on the streets of NYC in the 80s?

I thought they might be old warning lights but there are plenty of modern flashing warn lights in the same shot.

The scene is from.....well I won't tell you what film it is, as you might want to guess - suffice to say it's a sequel and not a patch on number 2, which itself was not a patch on number 1. The original is one of the best made films of all time and they should show it in schools as a foundational film for the nation of the USA. Pure Americana. In a good way.