DARK DAYS, a groundbreaking documentary from British director Marc Singer, shows a way of life that is unimaginable to most people. The film, which features a moving soundtrack... more
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Dark Days [2001]
For two years Marc Singer lived with the people who make their home in the tunnels beneath
... more
Penn Station in New York, creating Dark Days, an unflinching portrait of a part of society that is literally and figuratively beneath our notice. "You'd be surpr...
Dark Days [2001]
For two years Marc Singer lived with the people who make their home in the tunnels beneath
... more
Penn Station in New York, creating Dark Days, an unflinching portrait of a part of society that is literally and figuratively beneath our notice. "You'd be surpr...
Dark Days [2001]
For two years Marc Singer lived with the people who make their home in the tunnels beneath
... more
Penn Station in New York, creating Dark Days, an unflinching portrait of a part of society that is literally and figuratively beneath our notice. "You'd be surprised what the human mind and body can adjust to," says Tito, one of the tunnel dwellers. Along with his neighbours he is homeless, but the tunnels offer them a degree of safety that doesn't exist on the streets above. In this strange place they manage to achieve a remarkable degree of domesticity, building shelters, keeping pets and cooking meals. Singer has an eye for telling images, such as Dee dragging a sofa along the train tracks like Sisyphus rolling his stone in Hell. With its grainy black-and-white photography and haunting soundtrack, this is a surprisingly beautiful film, but it is never sentimental, nor does it try to impose false nobility on its subjects. Dark Days shows a world that we never knew existed, and in this simplicity lies its power. --Simon Leake
Dark Days Indeed Review ofDark Days (Wide Screen)by
Concrete_Donkey
Advantages: An amazing insight into incredible lives Disadvantages: Depressing reminder of how bleak life can be
...a theme that runs throughout Dark Days, a docu-film by British born Marc Singer. The message is being daubed by Ralph, a Puerto Rican ex-addict who had been clean for some time. This time he isn't going back, he pauses to tell the camera, through the telltale drawl brought on by years of abuse. As he paints and re-paints the words on his front door, it seems debateable whether this is for the benefit of others or a reaffirmation of his own will to ... ...saddest of paradoxes. Dark Days could have concluded as another rather depressing social conscience documentary, but during filming circumstance handed Singer the opportunity to provide a fitting third act. After years of allowing the community to inhabit their network of tunnels, Amtrak finally moved in with armed guards and served everyone with a thirty day eviction notice. On the surface it seems Singer handles this section objectively, but look ...
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16.11.2006
Tunnel Living Review ofDark Days (Wide Screen)by
miriamb
...a period of five years, Dark Days was made. One resident, Henry, had been an electrician, and built leads that ran off the main power cables to power the lights. Numerous occupants built and worked dollies to run along the train tracks to ensure smooth filming. This project seemed to give the people living within The Tunnel the most incredible focus, and all the prop work and shooting was done entirely by amateurs. But, I promise you, you’d ... ...place after all
Dark Days won three Sundance awards: the Audience Award, Freedom of Expression Award, and Cinematography. The Los Angeles Film Critics Association gave it Best Documentary Award, and it also won the Indie Spirit Best Documentary Award. So it’s not just me that was blown away! All said, I would absolutely recommend this to anyone over 18 (the certificate). It’s a truly magnificent filmic achievement and a genuinely ...
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Plot: A documentary which takes a look at a group of homeless people living in a train tunnel beneath Manhattan.
Release details
DVD Region: Region 2 (Europe)
Studio(s): Optimum Home Entertainment
Release date: 21/01/2002
No of Discs: 1
Catalogue No: OPTD 008
Editor: Melissa Neidich
Barcode: 5060034570110
Composer: DJ Shadow
Producer: Ben Freedman
Languages
Main Language: English
Technical information
Special Features: The Making Of Dark Days A 45 Minute Documentary, Interviews With Director Marc Singer DJ Shadow And Ben Freedman, Commentary By Marc Singer, Never Before Seen Footage 15 Additional Scenes With Notes By Marc Singer, The History Of The New York City Subways Tunnels, Life After The Tunnel Follow Up By Marc Singer, Crew Biographies, Scene Access, Theatrical Trailer
Aspect Ratio: 16:9 Wide Screen
Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround
Dubbing Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround English
DVD Description
DARK DAYS, a groundbreaking documentary from British director Marc Singer, shows a way of life that is unimaginable to most people. The film, which features a moving soundtrack from DJ Shadow, focuses on a group of homeless people that live deep underground in an abandoned New York City railroad tunnel. During the daytime they scavenge for food on the streets of New York. At night, they retreat to the tunnel where they have built homes out of scrap metal, plastic, and plywood. The residents have electricity, furniture, and working kitchens, not to mention community, comradery, and the support of each other. Some of them have lived in the tunnel for 25 years. Shot in vivid black and white, capturing both the grit (chicken wire, concrete walls, ramshackle shelters) and the honesty (the residents have hit rock bottom and admit it) of the tunnel, Singer's film consists of candid conversations with tunnel dwellers, who are intelligent, funny, optimistic, and above all, human. One man confesses that he once had a wife and a child, and that he lost both to his drug addiction (crack cocaine), while one teenage boy living in the tunnel explains that he was abused by his family in Florida and simply ran away, finding life in the tunnel more redeeming. In the film's emotional, understated conclusion, Singer, who actually resided in the tunnel while making DARK DAYS, turns to New York City's Coalition for the Homeless for help.
Professional reviews
Review: "...[An] unforgettable movie....DARK DAYS manages the tricky feat of humanizing its subjects without overly sentimentalizing them..." (New York Times, pp.E1-5, 30/08/2000)
"...Singer displays a sharp sense of cinematic grammar....[A] remarkable documentary..." (Sight and Sound, p.45, 01/03/2001)
"...This is a wonderfully shot and snappily edited film....A triumph of documentary film-making..." (Total Film, p.102, 01/04/2001)
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Listed on Ciao since : 16/07/2002
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