Customer Reviews

Dark Days

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Who's this guy, Mark Singer? Why was he crawling around in the tunnels beneath New York City? Where did he go after making this film?

None of these questions are answered by the DVD's intriguing short film on how "Dark Days" was made.

What we do get is a quick picture of a man obsessed by a group of homeless living in an abandoned train tunnel underneath New York. The other reviewers have pointed out how unsentimental, yet full the depiction of these people is. I agree. I'd go further. It's like an angel was dropped out of the sky to make this movie, and then vanished.

Okay, so that's hyperbole.

But that's the kind of whacky thought that occurs to you when you watch the hand-twisting, blushing director describe the movie he made - perhaps the best frickin' movie ever made about homeless people...EVER - the fact that making the flick drove him temporarily into homelessness, the fact that this guy out of NOWHERE wins all the dang Sundance awards a few years back not only for the message, but for the astoundingly beautiful cinematography, yet the kid never made films before... yadda yadda yadda.

This is a landmark film. More hyperbole, perhaps. But the plight of the homeless is one of the biggest problems facing the industrial West. And yet...and yet...zero discussion. Zero concern. Instead, we get a lot of lip about how the homeless are lazy and shiftless and live off the government, etc. "Dark Days" shows that the homeless are people. Humans. Complete and beautiful, flawed and ugly. The whole deal. How can you walk away from this movie and see a panhandler without a feeling of, not pity or compassion, but empathy?

Guys guys guys, if you saw it on the sundance channel or wherever, you need to see the dvd for the special features, which shows the making of, which is astounding, and the update on where everyone is now.

For people who haven't seen it and want to know if they'd like it: Well, it's about homeless people who live underground in a tunnel and make a little shantytown there in the dark. If this sounds promising to you, you won't be disapointed. If you're superficial and easily grossed out you won't like it. Also: It's in black and white. There, that should divert the people who would not give this movie its proper five stars. Back to the rest of you: It's mainly interview-driven, and they have helpful subtitles so you know the difference between Tito and Clarence, say, because instead of doing everyone seperately and one at a time, the way the 7up-42up movies do, they keep coming back to people, and you see lots of them hanging out together, so it's important to know who is who. And it moves pretty fluidly between the hilarious, the tragic, the fascinating and the adorable. The whole buffet of experience and emotion. These people really opened up to this guy, and when you see the making-of bit, you understand why. The director and the subjects have in common that they endured conditions that would crush most people, and did an amazing job with what they had. I want to know what happens to all of them for the rest of their lives.

Director Mark Singer spent about three years working and living in the tunnels of NYC, where a group of homeless people squatted, sometimes for years. These people have set up makeshift shacks, complete with electricity, occasional "running water," decorations (one man paints "NO CRACK") on his doorway, and pets. For a group living in squalor and rats, they talk endlessly about keeping clean, eating properly (kosher restaurants are the cleanest!) and being safe. Theyre overall a smart, resilient bunch, and the movie has some very funny moments as well as more serious ones. Dark Days is fascinating, both for the stereotypes it confirms (drug use and mental illness are major players in the sad descent of the homeless) and refutes. Some of the characters become very memorable. One is Ralph, a middle-aged Puerto Rican, a former crack addict, with a soft-spoken, articulate demeanor. Ronnie, despite the obvious ravages of homelessness and drug addiction, still retains a kind of boyish, hustling charm as he describes all the money he makes from selling knickknacks on the side. Then there's Tommy, a runaway from an abusive family who if he cleaned up could be an Abercrombie and Fitch model. Dee is the only woman in the group, and one of the most memorable moments in the documentary is when Ralph tells Dee to quit smoking crack, and Dee points out that Ralph constantly smokes pot. "But all dope makes me do is like eat eat eat" says Ralph.
The DVD extras are almost better than the documentary itself, with 15 extra scenes that don't add much to the narrative of the story but are extremely entertaining and fun to watch. There's a happy ending that feels a bit tacked on, but also reflects Mark Singer's determination to save these people and get them above ground.

Disturbing, engrossing, extraordinary. See this documentary.

One evening I was flipping through channels on the TV and came across "Dark Days" on Sundance Channel. I have not seen the DVD so I can only comment on the version that ran on Sundance. It was the most riveting documentary I have ever seen. Although it has been six months since I caught it on TV, and I haven't been able to catch a rerun since, I have not been able to forget it. I came to care about the people living in the tunnel, and when the film was over, I felt as if I had just lost touch with some friends.

What struck me about this film is that it was made on such a limited budget by people who lived in the tunnel. There were no prima-donna actors, directors and producers. As a result, the film is an honest portrayal of life under the tunnels.

There is excellent information on how the film was made at [web page], and you can also catch some samples of the haunting music from the film.

The film inspired me to learn more about the people living in the tunnels under New York. Two books I would recommend on the subject are "The Mole People" by Jennifer Toth, and "The Tunnel" by Margaret Morton.

If you are a fan of documentary film then this is a must see. This is a beautiful film that both inspires you and saddens you at the same time. Please watch this!

Marc Singer's self-produced documentary on the tortured lives of homeless people living in the dark and dreary tunnels of an abandoned New York subway is, quite simply, a work of art. It provides an unflinching look at a problem far too many of us choose to ignore, but does so in a way that is neither preachy nor sensationalistic. It also shows that, when it comes to intelligent filmmaking, Hollywood's glossy, sanitized, big-budget style of doings things is not only unnecessary, but in most cases distracting and counterproductive.

This is one of the best films I've seen on homelessness. The individuals in the film speak for themselves and it is their words that reveal the truth of the matter.

The film is interesting in its segmentation into various 'topics' (e.g. rats) and the various levels of how these individuals deal with the living situation is quite moving. There are enough diverse opinions given that one gets a good understanding of the 'glories' of such a life yet it also reveals that it is not always as it appears.

My only critique would be that this is but a small segment of the population and there are many who are less well spoken and who are far worse off in terms of problems (mental health, substance abuse or other) whose lives are considerably worse, whose stories are not seen.

But as a whole this is by far the least judgmental and sensationalized film on the subject I have yet seen.

Definitley get the DVD. It contains updates of the people in the film and an excellent interview with the director himself. The way the film came together is almost as fascinating as the stories of the individuals in the film. More importantly, I believe, you'll see where his heart was in making the film and it really adds insight to the film revealing that it is much more than 'just' a documentary.

There are also clips of footage that didn't make it into the original film. The music is by DJ Shadow whose music is worth checking out also.

This is a movie where the story of how the film was made is even more fascinating than the movie itself. A couple of months after befriending a bunch of homeless people who had constructed "homes" in a train tunnel, Marc Singer got the idea of making a film about them, using the tunnel's residents as the crew, with the aim of using any money the film made to get these people proper housing. He had no idea how to make a movie though, and the 45-minute "Making of Dark Days" documentary included on the DVD tells the story of how they managed to pull it off successfully. Singer himself actually ended up living in the tunnels. It sounds depressing as all hell, but the subjects of the film DID end up getting proper housing and rebuilding their lives (updates on what happened to them are also included on the DVD). I would probably give a VHS tape that only included the film itself 3 stars, but the DVD with all the extra material is worth 5 stars.

"Dark Days" is a wonderful documentary and is mandatory viewing for anyone interested in those who make their homes beneath the streets of NYC. "Dark Days" offers up a visual tour of this subterranean landscape. As someone who lives in NYC, and has been interested in this phenomenon for sometime, "Dark Days" is a fascinating work. Although I must admit that I have a definite attraction to the perverse and mysterious nature of the underground, Singer reminds us that there is much humanity to be found within the sooty vermin-infested underbelly that lies just beyond the subway tracks.
Singer is enamored with the people who live underground and portrays them as complete human beings. He conducts a sort of Anthropological approach in dealing with them. He is their friend, he's lived among them and has established their trust, he speaks their language, and he understands their needs and concerns. The most important element of those who live underground that Singer brings to the forefront are that they are part of a large subculture that thrives on relationships and human compassion. Yes, a lot of these people are living underground because of choices that they made, many are hiding from addiction, family, the law, and life ON the streets. Living underground in the vast tunnel network of the NYC subway system, many of these individuals have found their home. Many of them have even built their homes underground. There is electricity to be found down there, as well as water. It is not uncommon for those living underground to have TVs, cooking stoves, makeshift toilets, and multi-room dwellings. "Dark Days" shows all of this, as well as showcasing the relationships cultivated between those living underground. Through Singer, we become attached to these individuals. After watching this, I found myself wanting to know where these people are now.
The DVD offers a selection as part of its special features that contains small write-ups of everyone featured in the film and where they were shortly after the film was completed. If also offers a great glimpse into how the film was made and the immense efforts on both the part of Singer and of those living underground to complete this effort. The soundtrack by DJ Shadow is great and well worth noting.
Living in NYC, one of the most informative segments of this documentary were those that addressed how the city attempts to deal with this "problem of homelessness." One has to wonder why, if someone is content living underground and simply cannot make it "upstairs," it is such a problem to let them stay. Offering help is wonderful, forcefully extracting people from their homes is a horrible act of cruelty. Much along the same lines as forcing someone into a shelter where they will be robbed, raped, and beaten. The only way to "help" those who live underground is to respect them. "Dark Days" is an excellent example of giving this respect and of extending care and friendship to a group of people most of us refuse to acknowledge. It is because of people like Marc Singer that in the days since Times Square has been sanitized, and while the Bowery is shrinking more and more every day, those who live in NYC without a "proper" home will not be overlooked completely.