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The Filth and the Fury - A Sex Pistols Film

The Filth and the Fury - A Sex Pistols Film

List Price: $19.98
Your Price: $15.98
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Rating: 3 stars
Summary: The Sex Pistols' anarchist ways will never be forgotten...
Review: The Filth and the Fury, a documentary about the Sex Pistols, is a whirlwind of anarchy in the UK, punk culture, and dirty rebellion. Hours of footage and interviews are chaotically compiled by director Julien Temple into one story about the turbulent two year career of the band that defined punk style in the late seventies. Although somewhat hard to follow due to the hundreds of images quickly thrown at its audience, this film is ultimately a poignant portrayal of the true story of the legendary Sex Pistols.
Out to set the record straight after manager Malcolm McLaren apparently bastardized the image of the Pistols in his film Sid and Nancy, Johnny Rotten and the surviving members of the band tell their version of things, the way they really happened (according to Rotten). Even including old interviews with the late Sid Vicious, the documentary thoroughly covers the sentiments of all the band members, however long or short their time spent with the band happened to be. Interestingly though, Rotten and the others chose to hide their faces during their interviews; perhaps this was to be sure that they presented themselves as they were, not as they are today, preserving the image they worked so hard to maintain in the seventies. Their story was told in a very frank way, allowing the audience to see into the very souls of the Sex Pistols members.
This film was at best moving, at worst repetitive. Rotten felt he had to prove, very effectively, what the Pistols were all about, which he is able to accomplish, but as a result we see too many images over and over again, and hear the single "Anarchy in the UK" played repeatedly, to the point where it seems the band's image is being shoved down our throats. Still, we can't help but feel bad for the poor blokes as we watch them get dropped from record companies, and violently degraded by media figures everywhere. When Rotten says, "Ever get the feeling you've been cheated?" at the Sex Pistols' last show, we can't help but feel bad for the band that just tried to exert their right to be punk, anarchist individuals in the face of almost complete intolerance and constant discrimination. Ever get the feeling you've been cheated? They most definitely have.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Whether you like The Sex Pistols or not...
Review: ...The Filth and the Fury is an amazing documentary, and is as good an account of the rise of punk music as it is of the social and political landscape of England in the 70's.

Every aspect of the 26 month long Sex Pistol phenomenon is covered. From the birth of the band, through their most imfamous escapades, to the tragedy that came to be with Sid and Nancy. Band interviews, live footage, news coverage, it's all here! A ton of Sex Pistol info and documentation.

The DVD also contains a bonus documentary about the birth of punk music in general. Made up of interviews with everybody and anybody in and about the punk music circle, it was a nice surprise when I was done watching the main feature.

BOTTOM LINE: If you like the Sex Pistols and think you know everything about them, think again. This film will open your eyes to some great little known facts about the band. Buy the DVD if you haven't already. If you're interested in punk music in general, I also recommend this film, as it has as much to share about the style of music as it does specifically with the Sex Pistols. THUMBS UP!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Pistols talk Sex
Review: An awsome documentary. The special features are all right but nothing to get giddy about. The film puts the Pistols in the context of thier times. There was a time when Super Tramp and Styx were considered rock 'n' roll. England was in ruins and the Pistols were pissed. Angry young men making desperate music that touched everyone within earshot. The Grundy interview is shown, the Queen's Jubilee boat ride, and some cartoons from the Rock 'n' Roll Swindle. An absolute must for any Pistols fan and a good choice for anyone who likes solid documentaries and wants to know more about a time of economic unstability and overt social anger.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: REVEALING AND INSIGHTFUL LIKE NO OTHER ROCK DOCUMENTARY!!!
Review: This documentary of the Sex Pistols give you a good idea of who these guys are , where they came from , and what they were all about. Many clips from British television , animation and pictures and film footage of the Sex Pistols are used here to tell the story of the birth , rise , and crucifixion of the most notorious rock band in music history. Along with great commentaries by the surviving band members. All of them always , seperately , in silhouette during their commentaries.

You come away with a deeper understanding of the Sex Pistols after watching this DVD. There are insights given here that some fans may not have known about. People saw the band fall apart but this film shows HOW they fell apart and why. They were a band who came out of the dulldrams of British life during the 70's and rose to fame during the birth of punk but in the end of their career may have been exploited as controversial freaks and not a serious band. The band sensed it and broke up. Appropriately , the last song played at their final concert was called "No Fun".

You see the punk rock scene in 1970's England , you see the Bill Grundy interview that gave birth to the bands notorious reputation. And you get Jones' and Rotten's take on the Grundy interview as the clip played. You see the band singing "No Fun" at their last concert in San Francisco and expressing their feelings and insight toward their demise and their regrets through voice overs during the concert clip. You see the demise of Sid Vicious , the sad picture painted of him and Nancy Spurgen , and you see the chilling interview of Sid that showed the unstable state of mind he was in during his pending trial of Nancy's murder. Johnny Rotten , emotionally , expresses his regrets for not helping Sid more and not preventing his death in some way. It is surprising to hear the emotion from Rotten because he is a guy who you never see express saddnes and show tears. Its a rare real moment captured on tape.

As the film goes along you become more and more captivated by this unique documentary. It captivates you as it goes along because its very insightful to the feelings of the band members and their manager Malcolm and they're all very giving with their insights and feelings. This is a great , revealing documentary in its abstract approach to telling the story of the Sex Pistols. The DVD comes with the widescreen version , feature length commentary by director Julien Temple , a documentary on the punk movement , trailer , and DVD-ROM links to the original theatrical website. This is a must have for Sex Pistol and punk rock fanatics.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: A montage barrage
Review: What is most fascinating about the Sex Pistols is not their meteoric rise to infamy, but the utter implausibility of it. How two nogoodfernuthins happened to hook up with someone who can actually play and with a provocateur to manage them is already hard enough to swallow. Add to that their discovery of the charismatic and hyperarticulate Johnny Rotten in a random search for a front-man, and it becomes the proverbial discovery of the proverbial needle in the proverbial haystack. This documentary, solely from the band's point of view as McLaren was not invited, will captivate any true music fan. We get to hear about all the juicy stuff firsthand: Their profanity-strewn appearance on a British TV talk show that first gave them their notoriety, A&M wilting under public pressure and dropping them off their roster after signing them less than 24 hours earlier, the infighting between the band-members, the accelerating mutation of punk culture into something even the band did not understand, McLaren's underhanded dealings, Sid Vicious' girlfriend and their destructive habits, etc. It must've been a wild and chaotic two-year ride for the Pistols and based on the interviews, they appear to be just getting over the shock now. I think Temple tried to capture some of that woolliness in his approach because this is not your typical talking-heads documentary. Instead, Temple assaults us with a collage-montage barrage. I found the technique to be exhausting, and I imagine people uninterested by the subject matter will not have the patience to endure it. And it's too bad that McLaren wasn't involved in the project because although he would invariably have overestimated his contributions to the Pistols' rapid ascent, it would be interesting to know more about how he pulled the strings behind the scenes. I also didn't like Temple's approach of shooting the interviews with the band-members backlit. In fact, I don't know anyone who liked this approach, so I have no idea why the Pistols decided to hide their faces. Perhaps it's because they wanted to preserve in our minds their images as wild, young punk-avatars, since there was no mention of the Filthy Lucre reunion tour either.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: "drunken prophecies, libels and dreams"
Review: Wow. The Sex Pistols? Never heard a more perfect name for a band. Immediately conjures up all sorts of images. Then seeing photographs of the band and the environment they spawned: like walking into a cultural junk shop and finding some wild, interesting things. Then you hear the music, and you KNOW that things will be all right. The documentary was like watching a wildly painted, gravelly sounding, busted-up auto running laps around the neighborhood grandstand. I sat on the couch, popcorn and soda handy - and watched this documentary twice in one night.

Memories of this sort are like a giant bonfire that everyone throws logs on to keep it going. For the first time, the Pistols toss there own logs onto the fire. Just the thought of the backdrops, colors and possibilities attached to that time and place are wondrous enough. It seemed so open, raunchy and ugly that you can run a million scenarios in your head and still have room for more. The Sex Pistols were at the apex of all this: an accident, a force of nature.

The title alone, THE FILTH AND THE FURY, suggests so much about what you are about to experience. You are told a story in a chaotic manner, images hurled at you - grainy, black and white concert footage; crazy, young English kids acting like they just don't care; seedy bars, streets and garbage dumps; representatives of various government, media and church organizations. Lots of news reels and garish lights. The surviving band members tell their own versions of what happened; their faces cast in shadow to keep you carefully tuned in to the images of the time period. Essentially a history lesson taught by the people who created, and were created by, the moment. I thought it was well done - but left me wanting more. But that was OK, too. Their career was so abrupt, 26 months from start to end - which I think has much to do with interest in them to this day.

"High drama" as John Lydon describes it - is exactly it. Everything suggested by the Sex Pistols, all the random images and brilliant simplicity of the music just feeds the imagination. You can't create that kind of magic with high gloss and untouchable superstars. For my money, Steve Jones was the best interview in the whole thing. The guy is hilarious! He seems like someone you'd hang out with for hours and hours at a bar, drinking beers and exchanging war stories. The commentary by Julien Temple is extremely dull and doesn't add much. The other punk documentary, if it serves any purpose at all, illustrates where they could have gone wrong in the making of THE FILTH AND THE FURY. So, you may want to rent first, but you'll probably want to pick up a copy for yourself. It doesn't wear thin with repeat viewings.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: visually filthy lucre...essential viewing
Review: this film shows exactly why the sex pistols were and still are one of the scariest, yet smartest, bands to ever exist. rare film footage shows them performing for audiences that at times do not know what to do to this new music called punk, other times they begin the punk protocol of slam dancing, spitting, etc. john lydon, mr. rotten to you, is the voice most heard here, and he tells things the way they really were (does he know any other way? hell no), and his candor is refreshing: genuine passion for an art form that he helped create, and genuine disgust for the movement of punk (stating that when the rich kids started punk fashion it began to die, since punk was never a 'fashion' but a statement and a style). he also surprised me by showing real emotion for john ritchie, the bass player known to all of us as sid vicious. the perpetually strung-out, image conscious, there-for-the-ride, clueless bass player still strikes a chord in lydon's heart, and i could swear i hear a tear from lydon. the tensions within the band are also documented very well: were they malcolm mclaren's trained seals or a genuine rock band? towards the end you can tell that lydon, in film clips and recent interview, feels they were there for the delight of mclaren's ego, nothing more. 'exist to strike controversy, nothing more'. lydon is too smart for that junk, and it's fitting that the final clip of the movie is him telling a san francisco audience 'ever have the feeling you've been cheated?' after singing 'no fun' for 15 minutes, then walking off in disgust . apparently lydon did. but watching this will leave you exhilarated, making you realize that all the 'punk' bands out there now are really as dangerous as britney spears. it's all cookie-cutter now; looking at this film will make you realize that the myth and legend behind this band is the real deal.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A Great Film
Review: The Pistols may not of had the most talent (or any at all...) but this didn't stop them (helped them?) from being the best f*cking punk band of all time. This documentory is a great look at the Sex Pistols history, even if it did leave out some interessting bits (A bit on the Ronnie Bigs episode would of been nice). Great interviews with the band, including an old one with Sid, great footage, great soudtrack, a great buy for anyone who loves punk (I would also recommend reading Johnny Rottens autobiography; Rotten)

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: BOLLOCKS!!!!!!
Review: The Pistols made Punk into the biggest media bonanza since hippie.When Punk came out, to spread out its dirty little wings, the generation caught by the narcotic f**k up of the sixties had a new hope something to fight for, to live, but within months the dream was sold, baught out it was turned into another commodity beacause of bands like The Pistols,The Damned, and the Clash. They can stuff their punk credentials, with all their money up their a**. ANARCHY IN THE UK WHAT A BUNCH OF BOLLOCKS, what did they ever do to live out that dream.They didnt care about punk, they dont wanna worry about anything. They numb their minds on T.V., space out on coke and dope they dont want their sh*tty lives to surface. I know its sh*t and u know its sh*t but they wont admit to the themselves that the fun they have all that style they got is the same old sh*t. Their music is a joke. Find some other "Punk" bands theirs many and a lot better too. THE PISTOLS, BOLLOCKS!!!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: great
Review: tells the REAL story of the pistols and gives each band-member's perspective. absolutely amazing


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