New York has done so much to sharpen up its collective act nowadays that it is difficult to remember the years in which the city nearly went bankrupt.
Yet at the same time, and probably because of the near anarchic society at the time, there developed an underground arts scene which had a significant impact on both movies and music.
Many of those involved are interviewed in Celine Danhier's film which chronicles the lives of those making low-budget movies in the Big Apple from the early 70s to the mid-80s.
It includes contributions from major Hollywood star Steve Buscemi, who started his acting life in those films and Deborah Harry who regularly appeared in them (her first appearance was as a character called Blondie in 1976).
Many of the folk who made the films were living in rundown tenements on next-to-no money and even stealing to help finance their productions.
The work is raw, to say the least and specialises in challenging the norms of film-making.
Thus, of the footage presented here, I can safely say that some look interesting and others look bizarre.
But what is clear is that it was so radical that it helped inject a zest into the art scene which has been seldom seen since.
Blank City is far from a boring retrospective, however. It also highlights the often combustible nature of the relationships of the artists who lived cheek by jowl in New York at the time and their way of life.
For example, almost all of the film-makers were in bands and played a part in the origins of punk.
They also had tough tales to tell about the onset of Aids, which had a shattering effect on their community.
Anyone who is interested in film, particularly the making of it, will get a buzz from Blank City.
Laughs: none
Jumps: none
Vomit: none
Nudity: Sporadic scenes
Overall rating: 6/10