Black Tar Heroin (film)
Encyclopedia
Black Tar Heroin: The Dark End of the Street is a 1999 documentary
directed by Steven Okazaki
. Filmed from 1995 to 1998 in the Tenderloin, San Francisco, California
, the documentary describes the lives of heroin addicts.
structure, and shows the drug-related degradation of five youths (Jake, Tracey, Jessica, Alice, Oreo) during the course of three years. The film depicts drug-related crimes and diseases: prostitution
, male prostitution
, AIDS
, and lethal overdoses.
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
directed by Steven Okazaki
Steven Okazaki
Steven Okazaki is an American filmmaker. He is Sansei Japanese American and is based in the San Francisco Bay Area...
. Filmed from 1995 to 1998 in the Tenderloin, San Francisco, California
Tenderloin, San Francisco, California
The Tenderloin is a neighborhood in downtown San Francisco, California, in the flatlands on the southern slope of Nob Hill, nestled between the Union Square shopping district to the northeast and the Civic Center office district to the southwest...
, the documentary describes the lives of heroin addicts.
Overview
The film follows a simpleSimple
Simple may refer to:- Technology :*SIMPLE, an instant messaging protocol*SiMPLE, a programming development system*SIMPLE algorithm, a widely used numerical procedure...
structure, and shows the drug-related degradation of five youths (Jake, Tracey, Jessica, Alice, Oreo) during the course of three years. The film depicts drug-related crimes and diseases: prostitution
Prostitution
Prostitution is the act or practice of providing sexual services to another person in return for payment. The person who receives payment for sexual services is called a prostitute and the person who receives such services is known by a multitude of terms, including a "john". Prostitution is one of...
, male prostitution
Male prostitution
Male prostitution is the practice of engaging in sexual acts for money. Compared to female sex workers, male sex workers have been far less studied by researchers, and while studies suggest that there are differences between the ways these two groups look at their work, more research is needed.Male...
, AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
, and lethal overdoses.
Release
- The film was produced by HBO and was frequently shown in 1999 on the channel, as part of their "America UndercoverAmerica UndercoverAmerica Undercover is a television series of documentaries that airs on the cable television network HBO. Within the series are several sub-series, such as "Autopsy", "Real Sex" and "Taxicab Confessions". The series began in 1983 and, after a brief time being broadcast weekly in 2001, is now...
" series, becoming one of its top-rated documentaries. - The documentary received a theatrical release on the 17th of March, 2000 at San Francisco's Roxie Theatre, and is still available on DVDDVDA DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
.
Soundtrack
Songs featured in the film:- Good Clean Fun – Cat PowerCat PowerCharlyn Marie Marshall , also known as Chan Marshall or by her stage name Cat Power, is an American singer/songwriter and occasional actress and model. Cat Power was originally the name of Marshall's first band, but has come to refer to her musical projects with various backing bands...
- Sweet Ride – Tanya DonellyTanya DonellyTanya Donelly is an American Grammy-nominated singer songwriter and guitarist based in New England who co-founded Throwing Muses with her stepsister Kristin Hersh. She then went on to work in The Breeders and Belly in the 1990s...
- Don't Try Suicide – Team DreschTeam DreschTeam Dresch is an American punk band from Portland, Oregon, originally formed in Olympia, Washington, which was initially active from 1993 until 1998. The band made a significant impression on the do-it-yourself movement queercore, which gave voice through zines and music to the passions and...
- She's Coming Over – Mr. T Experience
- Long Goodbye – Ovarian Trolley
- Some Foggy Mountain Top – Mr. T Experience
- Why Are You Unkind – Varnaline
- Never Lonely Alone – Space NeedleSpace NeedleThe Space Needle is a tower in Seattle, Washington and is a major landmark of the Pacific Northwest region of the United States and a symbol of Seattle. Located at the Seattle Center, it was built for the 1962 World's Fair, during which time nearly 20,000 people a day used the elevators, with over...
- Dark End of the Street – Eve Bekker & Karl J. Goldring