The Gods of Times Square

Video documentary about the colourful collection of preachers to be found in New York's Times Square. Sandler spent some of his youth in and around Times Square in the sixties so he was well aware of the changing mood of this spot where commercial interests ensure increasingly tight streamlining. Before the old atmosphere disappeared entirely, he wanted to record some of the old colour. He concentrated on the religious fanatics who are attracted precisely by the outspoken profane and sinful character of Times Square. Sandler, who himself comes from an orthodox Jewish background and is interested in oriental mysticism, was intrigued by the diversity and sometimes extremeness of these religious expressions. To his mind, all those religions that are so convinced they are right are very archaic. In addition the grotesqueness of the row of men seeing who can exclaim loudest their own superiority demands to be put into some kind ofperspective.Sandler has interpreted the square as a cathedral where he gives the viewer a guided tour and occasionally stops to admire a religious phenomenon. The enormous set of neon signs is given a religious function in the whole thing because to Sandlers they represent the icons of religious devotion for Consumerism. Sanders started his unusual and in-depth project as early as 1992.