Film Review: Punk's Not Dead

There are three confusing things about Susan Dynner's new fun-to-watch documentary Punk's Not Dead: the beginning, the middle, and the end. Here's why:

Candid, funny, and insightful interview clips with the likes of Joe Strummer, Johnny Rotten, and Johnny Ramone, are great, but why, when punk is thriving, keeping on, and having fun, start off a documentary called "Punk's Not Dead" with three '70s rockers, two of whom have passed away?

The middle of the film gives an accurate, entertaining, informed, and spot-on portrayal of the punk scenes that developed, thrived, hocked loogies on people, flipped people off, and destroyed amplifiers through the 80s, and then gained mainstream acceptance in the 90s.

Alas, the ending: A rushed montage/collage of young punk-ish bands from all over the world who, I'm guessing, submitted rough video clips of their bands playing, but don't really get much screen time or real interviews.

Soooo, why is a film called "Punk's Not Dead" centered on its expansion into mainstream blandness available for purchase at Hot Topic? I mean, it's always interesting to hear folks like Fugazi's Ian Mackaye talk about starting his own label, or the Circle Jerks' Keith Morris make fun of suburban mall culture, but haven't we seen that a few times before?

Lord knows punk culture, as fascinating as it is, has hardly gone undocumented.

This film, as solid as it is, doesn't get us inside today's dive bars, Elks Lodges, and warehouses throughout the U.S. and abroad to feel, hear, and (whoa!) smell those fiery, new local music scenes.

Now there's a documentary I'd love to see.

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Posted by: Road Cat on 07/08/08 at 2:56 PM Respond

Urgh! A music War. It's no longer in print but you can buy a used copy on VHS. There's supposedly six hours of footage out there from the masters of this film, three times what was on the film as released. It's a shame it isn't being made available, as Urgh! is the best when it comes to eclectic live concert music footage from the late 70's. Seek it out, show some interest and maybe one day we'll see the whole six-hour enchilada. Many clips of the released video can be viewed on YouTube.

Posted by: GodlessGuy on 07/10/08 at 7:46 AM Respond

Definitely unpunk IMHO to wax nostalgic about punk bands of yesteryear. Thanks for links: "punk is thriving" and "having fun" for snapshot of what LA punk is like a little today.
Rock is dead, long live rock!

Film Review: Punk's Not Dead

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