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      The City Dark

      2011 1h 23m Documentary List
      71% Tomatometer 14 Reviews 82% Audience Score 500+ Ratings The filmmaker travels the world asking if people need the stars. Read More Read Less

      Critics Reviews

      View All (14) Critics Reviews
      Gary Goldstein Los Angeles Times Poetic, at times profound... Rated: 4/5 Apr 5, 2012 Full Review Joe Neumaier New York Daily News An illuminating documentary about what constant exposure to artificial light does to our bodies, our minds and the natural world. Rated: 3/5 Jan 19, 2012 Full Review Neil Genzlinger New York Times A documentary about light pollution that is entertaining and thought-provoking? It hardly seems possible, but that's what Ian Cheney has made in "The City Dark." Rated: 4/5 Jan 17, 2012 Full Review Ed Travis Hollywood Jesus The City Dark is a calm, beautiful meditation on humankind's perception of, and interaction with, the night sky. Apr 2, 2020 Full Review Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat Spirituality & Practice An eloquent and compelling documentary on the dire effects of light pollution in cities and the spiritual consequences of not being able to see the bright starry sky at night. Rated: 4/5 Jul 3, 2012 Full Review Sarah Boslaugh Playback:stl ...a frustratingly superficial look at a range of topics without making sufficient differentiation between what is established as a fact, what is a working hypothesis, and what is merely speculation ... Rated: 4/10 Jan 31, 2012 Full Review Read all reviews

      Audience Reviews

      View All (6) audience reviews
      Audience Member Great film. My only complaint is the film's failure to shine light on our flawed love of and sense of safety attached to excessive outdoor illumination. There has been a great deal of research that poor quality and unnecessary lighting not only wastes ~10% of our electricity production (or like 25% of our coal consumption) while such lighting is in fact counter-productive to it's purposes. Studies not only reveal that people actually feel less safe in over-lit rather than optimally-lit nighttime environments, but also that always on security lighting seems more likely add to crime rather than deter it* as glare and dark shadows actually make it harder to see hiding criminals while it gives them plenty of light to work by. The film's primary illustrations of nighttime lighting's damage to our health as well as the grave threats it poses to birds and sea turtles should simply be the icing on the unmade argument for lighting based on optimizing human vision rather than the wasteful absurdity we currently live with. The opportunity was lost when Cheney does a ride along and a dark lot is pointed out as possibly hiding criminals, there is a failure to mention that the lot's relative darkness is only a function of human vision's limitations combined with overly bright glare producing street lighting making it impossible to see what might otherwise be perfectly visible. The film affirms the emotional response to how the lighting of an urban neighborhood made residents feel safer without pointing out that the flawed lighting makes that sense of safety merely an illusion. *The evidence against always on security lighting is fairly strong, but the sample sizes are never comprehensive enough. A look at when Florida and California schools stopped lighting their campuses overnight after the 2008 financial collapse induced budget crisis, vandalism dropped by 1/3, in a time with a spike in unemployment. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 01/29/23 Full Review Audience Member : An enlightening ode to the power of the night sky and its inevitable passing if nothing changes. This is a movie all civil engineers and city planners should see. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/28/23 Full Review Audience Member Now I want to take a trip to the darkest part of the US to star gaze and take photos. This was great for a little story about light. Should've touched more on lights relation to color. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/15/23 Full Review Audience Member Well done overall. Excellent documentation of effects on human health, star visibility, and wildlife. Would have preferred to see information on the carbon footprint involved in using all that extra energy. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/14/23 Full Review Audience Member Charmingly low key in its activism with delightful original soundtrack and naive style animations against the timelapse video of the night sky. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/22/23 Full Review Audience Member Saw an early viewing at the Bryce Canyon Astronomy Festival, and it was great and thought provoking. This movie shows you the impacts of light pollution on animals, the stars, and people. The evidence for light pollution and cancer was very compelling. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/14/23 Full Review Read all reviews Post a rating

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      Movie Info

      Synopsis The filmmaker travels the world asking if people need the stars.
      Director
      Ian Cheney
      Genre
      Documentary
      Original Language
      English
      Release Date (Streaming)
      May 23, 2017
      Runtime
      1h 23m