We usually think of a “time capsule” as something that holds artifacts from a long time ago. But what were you doing exactly one year ago? If you had recorded your thoughts then, would they seem naïve, wise, or dated?
The documentary “Last Call: The Shutdown of NYC Bars” seems like a time capsule from a short time ago, but a period in which so much – practically everything, has changed.
A couple of neighborhood bars in Queens, New York shuttered, along with thousands of other establishments in the city. The closings were swift and devastating for the service industry – where in the world are bars and restaurants a bigger part of life than in New York? It’s a short list.
Documentarian Jonny Sweet gets the backstories, great memories, and fraught futures of the staff at The Sparrow Tavern and Diamond Dogs. Using remote cameras (for Covid protocols), the people whose blood and sweat went into the aforementioned pubs, speak directly into the lens and let their feelings flow.
It helps that the subjects are all very good speakers and storytellers. Indeed, many of them are performing artists of different kinds who came to the Big Apple to pursue their dreams and, like so many generations before them, end up working as waiters and bartenders to pay the bills.
Why does it play like a time capsule? I think because one year ago is equal to ten years in non-pandemic time. So much has changed. So many things have gotten worse. Hundreds of thousands have died.
And yet, some things are different – many places have re-opened (I am finding conflicting info online as to whether The Sparrow remains closed as of this writing), and, presumably, some of the interesting interviewees have gotten other jobs, some folks are feeling much better now than they did in the spring of 2020.
For that reason, the film seems to stop in mid-arc. The car-mounted camera rolls past scores and scores of shuttered New York businesses. How many doors are open now? One wishes Mr. Sweet had waited another 6 months to release a narrative that feels more complete, or at least one hopes that a sequel is in the works.
Either way, this snapshot evokes empathy from the viewer and, just maybe, helps people like those in this film, feel less alone.
Currently on most major On-Demand platforms and on digital