Press
“The ironies of gentrification will be a chief attraction for this lovely new 4K restoration of the 16mm original. But that theme is just a bonus in a picture whose in-the-trenches look at poverty is humane and, sadly, perpetually timely.” MORE
“Inspires an appreciation for the neighborhood’s complex past.” MORE
“It is a story of the people, by the people, and most importantly, made for the people of this city.” MORE
“The great people at Uniondocs have been working on not just a restoration of the film but also updates, supplementary features, interactive material, related short films and more for a bigger project called Living Los Sures.” MORE
“How A VHS Of ‘Los Sures’ sparked a movement to preserve williamsburg’s Latino history.” MORE
“A culture that refuses to be swept under the rug, or to succumb to the assumptions of what it means to live in a ghetto.” MORE
“The hour-long documentary, against all odds, has become the talk of the town. That’s thanks to UnionDocs, the Williamsburg-based organization that unearthed Echeverria’s movie, restored it in time for its 30th anniversary, and has since used Los Sures as the cornerstone of an ambitious Web project devoted to chronicling the neighborhood’s rapidly disappearing pre-gentrification history.” MORE
“That community is a big part of New York’s not-so-distant history, a reminder of the people who kept neighborhoods like South Williamsburg alive even when many others were happy to let them burn.” MORE
“Marta’s trip to Key Food with her four daughters, ranging in age from grade-schooler to teen, exemplifies Echeverria’s gift for capturing detail-dense moments in the most casual way.” MORE
“Along with the illuminating, visceral Los Sures (The Southside, 1984, Diego Echeverria, originally produced with support from the NEA, updated and revived by the brilliant folks at UnionDocs in Williamsburg this past year)…” MORE
“It’s a blessing to have UnionDocs and a project like Living Los Sures. When you’re in the trenches fighting, you don’t always have time to write down the history or to take the pictures. So, unfortunately, a lot of the history goes untold.” –Ramon Peguero, Southside United HDFC (Los Sures). MORE
“an authenticity that has been captured by no fiction film I’ve ever seen.”
“Rather than being another cynical movie about what New York used to be, the restored film reveals rare images and personal stories that uncover what made this community so distinctive. ” MORE
“one of the great projects of our time”
– Adnaan Wasey, POV MORE
An invaluable, wonderfully restored filmic record of a poverty-stricken lost New York time and world, set in a now highly improbable and affluent area. MORE
“A sublime portrayal of the South Williamsburg neighborhood and its people” MORE
“The documentary celebrates a culture that still has a huge presence… while fighting to remain intact ” –MORE
“Los Sures pierced through that outward facade and showcased the complex lives of the people who called this Dominican-Puerto Rican neighborhood home.” –MORE