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50 greatest music films ever
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| Have-a-go heroes: Joe Strummer leads The Clash on stage |
12 Rude Boy
(Jack Hazan, David Mingay, 1980)
‘Rude
Boy’ tells the story of listless young punk Ray (played by listless
young punk Ray Gange), who scores a job as a roadie for The Clash and
loses it as a result of his ideological inertia. Set pieces with Ray
talking to the various members of the band about life, the universe and
socialism are interspersed with real-life footage of demos, riots,
court cases and grim street scenes and, of course, lashings of live
performances.
Having spent most of its life as a cinematic curio
passed around punk nerds on fourth-generation VHS, ‘Rude Boy’ finally
got a widespread release in 1996, when the world could see what a
bizarre object it really is. It is not a cinematic classic. The story,
such as it is, is fragmented, disjointed and loosely told, the
tension building sub-plot – ostensibly about a man catching a bus – is
barely integrated into the main feature, and the whole thing betrays
its disorderly creative process throughout. Oh yes, and the acting is
rubbish. That said, it’s still ace.
Ray drifts from potentially
illuminating conversation to potentially illuminating conversation
without seeming to learn anything. Whether he’s debating the broader
points of social responsibility with Strummer or being lectured by
Topper Headon as he practises martial arts in his ‘Enter the Dragon’
jumpsuit, Gange’s boozy moron of a character doesn’t seem to understand
what day it is. His borderline-racist, pro-money politics become
jarringly at odds with the the band he claims to worship, and he’s
ultimately left behind as The Clash transform into the chart-conquering
band who will record ‘London Calling’.
It’s important to
remember that you’re watching at least four movies at once: a tour
film, a documentary, a social commentary, and a kitchen-sink drama about
London’s underclass. But while the semi-improvised production makes for
scrappy viewing, it was, at the time, groundbreaking in its way, and
reflects the have-a-go spirit of its era much better than ‘The Great
Rock ’n’ Roll Swindle’. Hazan and Mingay may not have produced the
hard-hitting documentary they set out to create, but in its place they
turned out a kind of ‘Trials of Life’ of the 1970s. It’s a great
reminder of how far Britain – and London in particular – has come in
the last 30 years.
From the prefab porn emporium in which Gange
works to the popular support of the National Front, it makes the
capital look like some dystopian reimagining of East Berlin. The
concert footage – the reason most people watch the film in the first
place – is incendiary, particularly the band’s turn at the 1978 Rock
Against Racism festival in Victoria Park (although even here Gange is
able to make a tit of himself). It also shows that punk was something
incredibly important to a very small number of people; people who
didn’t have anything else to do with their time. As an exploration of
what it means to be young, shitfaced and bored it’s nigh on perfect. It
should be screened in schools; just not film schools. Eddy Lawrence
Greatest hit An incendiary live version of ‘Janie Jones’ descends into a mini-riot.
Top 50 index | 50-41 | 40-31 | 30-21 | 20-11 | 10-6 | 5-1
Author: Dave Calhoun. Written by Derek Adams, Geoff Andrew, Dave Calhoun, Wally Hammond, Michael Hodges, Martin Horsfield, Martin Hoyle, David Jenkins, Trevor Johnston, Eddy Lawrence, Sharon O'Connell, Chris Parkin, Graeme Thomson, Peter Watts
User comments on this story
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- Harry said...
- The Chuck Berry film Hail Hail Rock'n'Roll is a great documentary about the contrary genius. And your admiration for Keith Richards can only increase - he displays inifinite patience when Chuck corrects his playing. Posted on Mar 29 2008 20:49
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- A Sad Man said...
- What about the Monkees film "Head" its a surrealist, psychadelic classic. And Velvet Goldmine too. Posted on Jan 31 2008 15:22
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- Holly said...
- Nice...personally, i like "Raise your voice!", "Confessions of a teenage drama queen"...something more modern :D:D Posted on Jan 31 2008 14:22
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- KevinT said...
- I would have to include the documentary 'A Great Day In Harlem' - one of the best films about jazz musicians. Posted on Oct 17 2007 17:20
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- Brendan Thorpe said...
- How about "Born to Boogie"? Marc Bolan at the height of TRextasy - the arty bit may not be great, but the concert stuff is excellent! Posted on Oct 16 2007 15:37
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- J said...
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Taste is subjective, so we'll cut you some slack... But how could you snub "Ray" or the Cash film "Walk the Line?" "Rockers" was pretty amazing. "The Wall..." and the new release of "The Grateful Dead Movie" is hot. The bonus features (esp. the performances uncut) kick ass. AC/DC's "Let There Be Rock" & come on... "Yellow Submarine."
Personally I think "Spinal Tap" & "Hedwig & The Angry Inch" should be included. The bands may have been born out of the movies (the original play in Hedwig's case), but they are rocking bands nonetheless. Posted on Oct 14 2007 12:52 - Report as inappropriate
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- Alex Murillo said...
- Just to correct a common mistake..."This Is Spinal Tap" is not "Christopher Guest's mockumentary", as you said...it was directed by Rob Reiner. Guest was indeed a co-writer, and of course the film bares a resemblance to Guest's later films, but I think it's unfair to both Reiner and the other members of Spinal Tap (McKean, Shearer) to label the film as Guest's alone. Posted on Oct 11 2007 02:49
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- alex said...
- Actually I'm positive Spinal Tap did a few novelty shows back in the L80's/E90's (8 in all I believe) one at the lamented CBGB/OMFUG in NYC. Even one novelty show brings a band into the plane of existence as anyone knows who has ever been in bands. I've been in a lot, some did only one show, and they ALL existed even if no one but the three of us knew it. So Spinal Tap existed. QED. Posted on Oct 10 2007 16:23
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- Graz said...
- I also forgot to metion the Rock n' Roll, Australian Japanese Surfing Road Movie " Bondi Tsunami". 2004. Check it out. Posted on Oct 10 2007 04:32
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- Graz said...
- What about B.Middler in t"The Rose". Garland and Striesand in thier versions of " A Star is Born" . The briilant "Hair" and now also "Hairspray". But absoutley " Once" is brillant. Who compiled this list? Posted on Oct 10 2007 03:28
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- kay said...
- where the hell is PURPLE RAIN?!?!?! this surely has to be in the list?! Posted on Oct 08 2007 14:58
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- Don said...
- You've missed some of the truly great performances by real bands while playing up other performers imitating the stars. And some are as much fantasy as reality based on someone's interpretation of what happened. That is not a true documentary, just fiction passed off as one. Posted on Oct 08 2007 13:42
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- kanna77 said...
- this is great ! Posted on Oct 08 2007 03:47
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- Vince said...
- this list is horse shit, wot's the deal, because the brits hate the irish you can't out "the commitments" or "once" up in the top 50? and did you forget about a movie one of your own made called "the wall"? and the number one film listed is a bloody movie about the world's worst singer karen carpenter? wot the hell???? Posted on Oct 06 2007 05:04
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- Massimo said...
- The worst movie ever, with the best soundtrack ever: Streets of Fire! Posted on Oct 05 2007 20:53
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