Review of Dark Days (2012) by Jean-Francois V — 05 Aug 2009

"Dark Days" is a documentary about a dozen homeless people living in the subway system. It's filmed in black and white in a style very reminiscent of the Maysles brothers: Marc Singer is off-camera, but the people know him, talk to him, sometimes ask him to do stuff like trying some doughnuts just retrieved from a trash can. They've got used to him, so he can film them with minimal observer effect, getting out of bed, recycling, dumping their pot of excrement, cooking, talking to each other, rummaging through urban waste or smoking drugs.

I'm sorry I couldn't get into this film, even though I have a fascination for underground universes and for urban decay (I went through the eight hours of "Beyond the Rails" and loved it), and one of my favorite films is "Children Underground." Maybe it was the constant rough language (but of course you can't ask homeless people to please rephrase their statement less offensively.) Maybe it was the fact that we spend too little time with each of these people, and just get to know their horrible life stories summarised in a few sentences. Or maybe I'm just a heartless guy with a home. I don't know, but it left me cold.

In fact, I might find the making of the movie more interesting than the movie itself, as Marc Singer spent two years filming, and ended up living with these people. I wish there was more in the film about that process. Maybe a new cut, with new footage and a voiceover, might get a better reaction out of me. But as it stands, I'm only giving it two stars, and that's mostly because that's what I gave to "The Wraith" and I don't want to look like a complete philistine.