Post by marveloushagler on Dec 1, 2005 16:32:50 GMT -5
20 Subculture Films We Highly Recommend
By RASH-NYC
We’re subculture fanatics. We like music and style. Hard mods, skinheads, reggae, punk and hardcore.
Here goes a list of 20 films we recommend to other subculture fanatics. We think they’re essential viewing. They’re listed in order of the time periods they cover, not in order of importance or quality.
60’ MODS
1) QUADROPHENIA (1979; dir. Franc Roddam)- The Who’s fictional account of 60’s mods and rockers. An awesome tale of scooters, beach aggro and teenage angst. Great fucking soundtrack, too.
2) SMALL FACES (1996; dir. Gillies MacKinnon)- Glasgow hard mods in the late 60’s. The story of three brothers, mob aggro and awesome style. A bit slow and sappy at times, but great for the backgrounds and context.
3) THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT (1979; dir. Jeff Stein)- While this is about a specific band and not a subcultural group, The Who were what mod was all about. They were better than the Beatles, The Rolling Stones and The Kinks. Only the Animals are close rivals for the hard mod crown. If you don’t like old Who you’re probably a fucking asshole.
LATE 60’S SKINHEADS
4) BRONCO BULLFROG (1969; dir. Barney Platts-Mills)- According to Roddy Moreno, this film didn’t have much of an effect on skinhead culture when it came out (he cited the Man Alive episode on skinheads as being more important- good luck findin’ it!). Still and all, for those of us who weren’t around the UK during 1969 this film gives a good glimpse of what it was like to be teenage skinhead in grimy-ass London. The story of a young man trying to find a place to bang his girl. Quite boring at times, but where else are you gonna find a mob of suedeheads hanging out with an escaped convict?
5) CLOCKWORK ORANGE (1971; dir. Stanley Kubrick)- Damn, Stanley Kubrick was a dumb-ass to release this film while skinheads were around. Not sure if he was inspired by skinheads or skinheads learned a thing or two from him, but how do you expect folks NOT to form gangs and go on crime sprees after seeing this flick? They banned the showing of this film in England for a long time, which only increased its popularity. A lot of style, and a message in there somewhere, too. Where the word Droog comes from.
REGGAE
6) THE HARDER THEY COME (1972; dir. Perry Henzell)- One of the greatest soundtracks in history. Ruder than rude. Ivanhoe Martin is what every true skinhead aspires to be.
7) ROCKERS (1978; dir. Ted Bafaloukas)- Thank god this flick has subtitles, seen? We don’t understand shit that rastas are on about, but they sure do look cool getting high and hanging out. And reggae music is the fucking best.
1977 U.S. PUNK
8) BLITZKRIEG BOP (1978; Ivy Films)- U.S. punk like the Ramones, the Dead Boys, the New York Dolls, MC5 and Iggy & the Stooges came before the British punk invasion. That’s sometimes forgotten. Those U.S. punk bands were great rock ‘n’ roll. This film is a 1-hour documentary on CB’s, The Ramones, The Dead Boys and Blondie. Lots of interviews and period footage (including an unforgettable snot-nosed Stiv Bators from the Dead Boys). This entire documentary is raw, gritty and very New York- just like punk was at the time.
9) ROCK & ROLL Episode Nine (1995; dir. Hugh Thomson)- I’m not sure about tracing the history of American punk back to Jonathan Richman and the Modern Lovers, but this PBS/BBC documentary is still pretty good. Starts with the scene around CBGB’s and then covers the U.K. and reggae.
1977 U.K. PUNK
10) THE HISTORY OF ROCK ‘N’ ROLL Vol.9 (1995; dir. Ted Haimes)- This documentary focuses on the start of punk as 1975 Britain. Respect is paid to Iggy and the Stooges and the NY Dolls, and then coverage moves on to CBGB’s, The Sex Pistols, The Clash, the influence of reggae and Elvis Costello (?). Finally, this documentary brushes on the birth of hardcore in Los Angeles, the rise of New Wave and ends at grunge (aargh!). Probably the best one can expect from the folks at VH1.
11) THE FILTH AND THE FURY (2000; dir. Julien Temple)- Some people say the Sex Pistols ruined punk. Maybe. What can’t be disputed is that their story is an interesting one, and that there were some genuine geniuses in their inner circle. Some really hilarious episodes (the Queen’s Silver Jubilee, The legendary Bill Grundy Show, the Huddersfield gigs). This film catches them all. A very well-edited film. Better than all the other re-tellings of the Sex Pistols saga (Sid & Nancy, The Greatest Rock ‘N’ Roll Swindle, Who Killed Bambi?).
12) RUDE BOY (1980; dir. Ted Haimes)- If the Sex Pistols were a bit of a joke, the Clash were the real deal. Probably the best thing to come out of punk. Joe Strummer gave so many people a voice. This film is way too long, but if you can stand the slow pace there’s some really awesome period footage (The Clash at Rock Against Racism with Jimmy Pursey of Sham, the Lewisham riots against the NF, etc.). Some classic skinhead moments as well.
13) WESTWAY TO THE WORLD (2000; dir. Don Letts)- As they use to say, “the only band that matters” is the Clash. The documentary they deserve. And let’s not forget that New York was fucking mental over the Clash. Riots in 42nd Street! 10 sold-out nights at Bond’s! Playing at fucking Shea Stadium! An appearance on Saturday Night Live. Yeah, the Clash rocked it.
1981 UK Oi!/ STREETPUNK
14) UK/ DK (1981; dir. Christopher Collins and Ken Lawrence)- The byline reads “a film about punks and skinheads”. Pretty fucking awesome. The world according to Wattie, Becky Bondage, The Business and Blitz. The Chaos U.K. scene is pretty fucked up.
15) BBC News Program On The Southall Riot (1981)- This is kind of hard to find, but it’s actually the best report on Oi! we’ve seen. Not sure of the source, but it’s a 15-minutes piece by reporter Tony Wilkinson. It follows the 4 SKINS to a secret gig shortly after the Southall riot. Pretty accurate for a mainstream media report, labeling Oi! bands as “naïve”. Lots of interviews (including a characteristically honest John Peel), and the 4 Skins are pretty funny in the face of a world of shit.
TWO-TONE
16) DANCE CRAZE (1982; dir. Joe Massot)- Really not much of a documentary, this is a concert film (remember those?). Awesome footage of The Specials, The Selecter, Madness, Bad Manners and the Bodysnatchers playing live. Two-tone was all about dancing, so I guess the film is pretty accurate. Remember when modern music didn’t suck?
EARLY 80’S AMERICAN HARDCORE
17) DECLINE OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION Part 1 (1981; dir. Penelope Spheeris)- The first American hardcore scene was in Southern California. Penelope Spheeris caught the changeover from the days of punk. This documentary has awesome early footage of Black Flag (with Chavo singing), X, The Circle Jerks, The Germs and the thoroughly-hilarious Fear. Very good interviews. An incredible piece of work.
18) SUBURBIA (1984; dir. Penelope Spheeris)- Yeah, the acting is cheesy but this film has some classic lines. This film exported the hardcore style to the rest of the USA. Who the fuck would know who D.I., The Vandals or T.S.O.L. were otherwise? We still like it.
19) ANOTHER STATE OF MIND (1984; dir. Adam Small and Peter Stuart)- Youth Brigade and Social Distortion tour the U.S. and Canada and record it. Lots of interviews with street kid punks from the mid-80’s. What a fucking crazy time.
MODERN SKINHEADS
20) WORLD OF SKINHEAD (1995; dir. George Marshall)- This film is highly flawed. It completely follows the “non-political” line, and fails to even mention red skinheads (though the Roddy Moreno bits on S.H.A.R.P. are pretty sussed). Still, it’s the best film we’ve got because it shows the public that most skinheads aren’t racist (while still not being angels) Powerful stuff, even though we'd like to smack half the skinheads being interviewed.
Final note: There are so many films on nazi skinheads it’s ridiculous- completely out of all proportion to their actual numbers. Some of these films are stylistically very good (AMERICAN HISTORY X, ROMPER STOMPER, MADE IN BRITAIN) but without doubt these films have encouraged more kids to become nazis than prevented it. For that reason we can’t recommend them unless the viewer has a brain. IWe don't like sympathizing with boneheads and viewing them as sexy anti-heroes. One of these days maybe they’ll be a good subculture film about anti-racist skinheads. Don’t hold your breath.
By RASH-NYC
We’re subculture fanatics. We like music and style. Hard mods, skinheads, reggae, punk and hardcore.
Here goes a list of 20 films we recommend to other subculture fanatics. We think they’re essential viewing. They’re listed in order of the time periods they cover, not in order of importance or quality.
60’ MODS
1) QUADROPHENIA (1979; dir. Franc Roddam)- The Who’s fictional account of 60’s mods and rockers. An awesome tale of scooters, beach aggro and teenage angst. Great fucking soundtrack, too.
2) SMALL FACES (1996; dir. Gillies MacKinnon)- Glasgow hard mods in the late 60’s. The story of three brothers, mob aggro and awesome style. A bit slow and sappy at times, but great for the backgrounds and context.
3) THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT (1979; dir. Jeff Stein)- While this is about a specific band and not a subcultural group, The Who were what mod was all about. They were better than the Beatles, The Rolling Stones and The Kinks. Only the Animals are close rivals for the hard mod crown. If you don’t like old Who you’re probably a fucking asshole.
LATE 60’S SKINHEADS
4) BRONCO BULLFROG (1969; dir. Barney Platts-Mills)- According to Roddy Moreno, this film didn’t have much of an effect on skinhead culture when it came out (he cited the Man Alive episode on skinheads as being more important- good luck findin’ it!). Still and all, for those of us who weren’t around the UK during 1969 this film gives a good glimpse of what it was like to be teenage skinhead in grimy-ass London. The story of a young man trying to find a place to bang his girl. Quite boring at times, but where else are you gonna find a mob of suedeheads hanging out with an escaped convict?
5) CLOCKWORK ORANGE (1971; dir. Stanley Kubrick)- Damn, Stanley Kubrick was a dumb-ass to release this film while skinheads were around. Not sure if he was inspired by skinheads or skinheads learned a thing or two from him, but how do you expect folks NOT to form gangs and go on crime sprees after seeing this flick? They banned the showing of this film in England for a long time, which only increased its popularity. A lot of style, and a message in there somewhere, too. Where the word Droog comes from.
REGGAE
6) THE HARDER THEY COME (1972; dir. Perry Henzell)- One of the greatest soundtracks in history. Ruder than rude. Ivanhoe Martin is what every true skinhead aspires to be.
7) ROCKERS (1978; dir. Ted Bafaloukas)- Thank god this flick has subtitles, seen? We don’t understand shit that rastas are on about, but they sure do look cool getting high and hanging out. And reggae music is the fucking best.
1977 U.S. PUNK
8) BLITZKRIEG BOP (1978; Ivy Films)- U.S. punk like the Ramones, the Dead Boys, the New York Dolls, MC5 and Iggy & the Stooges came before the British punk invasion. That’s sometimes forgotten. Those U.S. punk bands were great rock ‘n’ roll. This film is a 1-hour documentary on CB’s, The Ramones, The Dead Boys and Blondie. Lots of interviews and period footage (including an unforgettable snot-nosed Stiv Bators from the Dead Boys). This entire documentary is raw, gritty and very New York- just like punk was at the time.
9) ROCK & ROLL Episode Nine (1995; dir. Hugh Thomson)- I’m not sure about tracing the history of American punk back to Jonathan Richman and the Modern Lovers, but this PBS/BBC documentary is still pretty good. Starts with the scene around CBGB’s and then covers the U.K. and reggae.
1977 U.K. PUNK
10) THE HISTORY OF ROCK ‘N’ ROLL Vol.9 (1995; dir. Ted Haimes)- This documentary focuses on the start of punk as 1975 Britain. Respect is paid to Iggy and the Stooges and the NY Dolls, and then coverage moves on to CBGB’s, The Sex Pistols, The Clash, the influence of reggae and Elvis Costello (?). Finally, this documentary brushes on the birth of hardcore in Los Angeles, the rise of New Wave and ends at grunge (aargh!). Probably the best one can expect from the folks at VH1.
11) THE FILTH AND THE FURY (2000; dir. Julien Temple)- Some people say the Sex Pistols ruined punk. Maybe. What can’t be disputed is that their story is an interesting one, and that there were some genuine geniuses in their inner circle. Some really hilarious episodes (the Queen’s Silver Jubilee, The legendary Bill Grundy Show, the Huddersfield gigs). This film catches them all. A very well-edited film. Better than all the other re-tellings of the Sex Pistols saga (Sid & Nancy, The Greatest Rock ‘N’ Roll Swindle, Who Killed Bambi?).
12) RUDE BOY (1980; dir. Ted Haimes)- If the Sex Pistols were a bit of a joke, the Clash were the real deal. Probably the best thing to come out of punk. Joe Strummer gave so many people a voice. This film is way too long, but if you can stand the slow pace there’s some really awesome period footage (The Clash at Rock Against Racism with Jimmy Pursey of Sham, the Lewisham riots against the NF, etc.). Some classic skinhead moments as well.
13) WESTWAY TO THE WORLD (2000; dir. Don Letts)- As they use to say, “the only band that matters” is the Clash. The documentary they deserve. And let’s not forget that New York was fucking mental over the Clash. Riots in 42nd Street! 10 sold-out nights at Bond’s! Playing at fucking Shea Stadium! An appearance on Saturday Night Live. Yeah, the Clash rocked it.
1981 UK Oi!/ STREETPUNK
14) UK/ DK (1981; dir. Christopher Collins and Ken Lawrence)- The byline reads “a film about punks and skinheads”. Pretty fucking awesome. The world according to Wattie, Becky Bondage, The Business and Blitz. The Chaos U.K. scene is pretty fucked up.
15) BBC News Program On The Southall Riot (1981)- This is kind of hard to find, but it’s actually the best report on Oi! we’ve seen. Not sure of the source, but it’s a 15-minutes piece by reporter Tony Wilkinson. It follows the 4 SKINS to a secret gig shortly after the Southall riot. Pretty accurate for a mainstream media report, labeling Oi! bands as “naïve”. Lots of interviews (including a characteristically honest John Peel), and the 4 Skins are pretty funny in the face of a world of shit.
TWO-TONE
16) DANCE CRAZE (1982; dir. Joe Massot)- Really not much of a documentary, this is a concert film (remember those?). Awesome footage of The Specials, The Selecter, Madness, Bad Manners and the Bodysnatchers playing live. Two-tone was all about dancing, so I guess the film is pretty accurate. Remember when modern music didn’t suck?
EARLY 80’S AMERICAN HARDCORE
17) DECLINE OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION Part 1 (1981; dir. Penelope Spheeris)- The first American hardcore scene was in Southern California. Penelope Spheeris caught the changeover from the days of punk. This documentary has awesome early footage of Black Flag (with Chavo singing), X, The Circle Jerks, The Germs and the thoroughly-hilarious Fear. Very good interviews. An incredible piece of work.
18) SUBURBIA (1984; dir. Penelope Spheeris)- Yeah, the acting is cheesy but this film has some classic lines. This film exported the hardcore style to the rest of the USA. Who the fuck would know who D.I., The Vandals or T.S.O.L. were otherwise? We still like it.
19) ANOTHER STATE OF MIND (1984; dir. Adam Small and Peter Stuart)- Youth Brigade and Social Distortion tour the U.S. and Canada and record it. Lots of interviews with street kid punks from the mid-80’s. What a fucking crazy time.
MODERN SKINHEADS
20) WORLD OF SKINHEAD (1995; dir. George Marshall)- This film is highly flawed. It completely follows the “non-political” line, and fails to even mention red skinheads (though the Roddy Moreno bits on S.H.A.R.P. are pretty sussed). Still, it’s the best film we’ve got because it shows the public that most skinheads aren’t racist (while still not being angels) Powerful stuff, even though we'd like to smack half the skinheads being interviewed.
Final note: There are so many films on nazi skinheads it’s ridiculous- completely out of all proportion to their actual numbers. Some of these films are stylistically very good (AMERICAN HISTORY X, ROMPER STOMPER, MADE IN BRITAIN) but without doubt these films have encouraged more kids to become nazis than prevented it. For that reason we can’t recommend them unless the viewer has a brain. IWe don't like sympathizing with boneheads and viewing them as sexy anti-heroes. One of these days maybe they’ll be a good subculture film about anti-racist skinheads. Don’t hold your breath.
