Long Gone

Long Gone is a fascinating look at the "society" of modern day hobos, documented over a number of years. The film is well produced and succeeds in getting its generally reclusive subjects to open up, following them along the rails, at a hobo convention, and at home, wherever that might be. This remarkable accomplishment was possible because evidently the creators were themselves part of the fragmented scene before they started making the movie. Instead of hamming it up or shying away from the camera, the subjects appear strikingly natural.

The movie does not by any means romanticize the life of a hobo, whether they are old timers or rebellious kids, despite what one might expect from filmmakers documenting a way of life obviously very familiar to them. Nor is it a condemnation of these people on the margin of American society. I think it presents a balance between the terrible beauty to be seen while riding a freight train and the harsh conditions to be endured while on the rails or trying to get back on them, and between the freedom of relative isolation from society, and the pitfalls of seeking company to escape that isolation.

For a subject whose popular understanding is, at its deepest, limited to sensational stories about gang members on a national killing spree, this film is certainly enlightening, if sometimes depressing. But more than that, it's a moving look at human behavior in an obscure and remote setting. I would highly recommend this movie even to those who might think the subject uninteresting at first.

Best freight train/hobo culture film since Wild Boys of the Road orBeggars of Life. But the real deal not Hollywood at all. An over looked and underrated master work. Seven years in the making.

I just saw Long Gone at the Gothenburg film festival, and had the chance to chat with one of the directors afterwards. The film, shot during seven summers, lets us in on the little known lifestyle of train-hoppers in the USA. The story focuses on five of these characters and we get to hear their stories about how they became what they are, and what it's like riding cargo trains, confronting the police, and be a homeless war veteran who can't find a place in regular society.

During the first half of the film, i felt a little bit uneasy about what i felt was a romantic glorification of the lifestyle of a bunch of people with severe problems -- most of the guys portrayed in the film are either alcoholics or drug addicts. However, i had changed my mind after seeing the whole picture. Long Gone is a bare-bones documentary with no narration. The editing doesn't really make the film point in any direction, which may make the scenes seem a bit straggling. However, life doesn't always follow the dramatic rules of regular film making, and still there is a very compassionate overtone to the whole film.

If you have seen "Dark Days" (if you haven't, i recommend it), you'll see the similarities. But while Dark Days is stylish and nicely edited, Long Gone has a much more amateurish feel to it, be it positive or negative.

There have been many documentaries made about this subject, the subject of train- riding and train-hopping in modern day America - and they are all equally nauseating, over-dramatic, and puke-inducing to watch. That's why this one struck me so hard. AS somebody who's been living this way for the past four years, and hadn't stayed in one place for longer than two months in three years, this documentary came off reeking of honesty and a lack of cheesy romanticism, and as a result, in the end - beauty. No romanticizing here. I picked up almost nothing on the bullshit radar when I saw this movie. It is a straight- forward, honest look at a way that a few people (thank god) still choose to live their lives, and it offers no delusions about the many pitfalls and downsides to this lifestyle and culture - heroin addiction, poverty, death - as well as some of the positive sides - freedom, (relative) lack of want, solitude, grace (depending on who you ask) and the ability to experience some intriguingly beautiful scenery firsthand, raw, and in the flesh rather than from the window of a car on the god damned junk-and-fast-food-littered highway.

This is by far the most worth-while documentary of it's kind made, and if you've watched Emperor of the North and now want to see a modern-day explanation of why and how this type of subculture still exists, and you can only watch one - this is the one. Not only is it honest and not melodramatic, but it's put together with some real tact and skill, so that even though it's a documentary, it plays out like a story. I'd recommend this to all.

It's absurd that this film is unavailable for purchase, it was most definitely my favorite documentary of the decade, and soon to be a nearly impossible to find cult classic. I caught it during it's brief stint of showings at the Lemmley in Hollywood with some old train riding chums. I had seen a couple other docs on freight riding, but nothing really compares to the harsh yet honest portrayal of the characters in Long Gone. I remember leaving the theater feeling scared, and almost traumatized by the series of events that had been documented for over 7 years (if I remember correctly.) This film is nothing less than mesmerizing: beautiful scenery, splendid music (Tom Waits original soundtrack), and a reality that can only be sought by whoever dares to put themselves in the mix of this underground lifestyle. Tramp or train fan, even if you simply enjoy the documentation of rare events, this is a must see. Who knows why this film never found distribution, even a bald headed business man in a three piece suit would admire the truth and dedication it took to make such a brilliant record of events. I suppose many romantic endeavors can be seen as depressing, or somber, but that is just the reality of human existence. This film brilliantly captures the essence of freedom, and if you ever get the chance to see it, don't pass up the opportunity. Great things are hard to come by, and the film Long Gone is a true diamond.