Quadrophenia (1979)

Director:

Franc Roddam

Writers:

Dave Humphries (screenplay) &
Martin Stellman (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

2 November 1979 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Music

Tagline:

Hell On Wheels!

Plot:

London, 1965: Like many other youths, Jimmy hates the philistine life, especially his parents and his job in a company's mailing division...

Plot Keywords:

Mods | Rocker | Brighton | Scooter | The Who

Cast

Phil Daniels	...	Jimmy
Leslie Ash	...	Steph
Philip Davis	...	Chalky
Mark Wingett	...	Dave
Sting	...	Ace Face
Ray Winstone	...	Kevin (as Raymond Winstone)
Garry Cooper	...	Peter
Gary Shail	...	Spider
Toyah Willcox	...	Monkey
Trevor Laird	...	Ferdy
Kate Williams	...	Mother
Michael Elphick	...	Father
Kim Neve	...	Yvonne
Benjamin Whitrow	...	Mr. Fulford
Daniel Peacock	...	Danny
Jeremy Child	...	Agency Man
John Phillips	...	Magistrate
Timothy Spall	...	Projectionist
Olivier Pierre	...	Tailor
George Innes	...	Cafe Owner
John Bindon	...	Harry
P.H. Moriarty	...	Barman at Villain's Pub
Hugh Lloyd	...	Mr. Cale
Cross Section	...	The Band
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
John Altman	...	John (uncredited)
Jesse Birdsall	...	Aggressive Rocker (uncredited)
Loren Day	...	Girl with Steph (uncredited)
Harry Fielder	...	Policeman (uncredited)
Julian Firth	...	Mod (uncredited)
Simon Gipps-Kent	...	Boy at Party (uncredited)
Gary Holton	...	Aggressive Rocker (uncredited)
Tom Ingram	...	Rocker in Police Van (uncredited)
Derek Lyons	...	Jimmy's Gang Member (uncredited)
Peter McNamara	...	Mod (uncredited)
Glen Murphy	...	Fighting Rocker (uncredited)

Directed by
Franc Roddam

Writing credits
Dave Humphries		(screenplay) &
Martin Stellman		(screenplay) &
Franc Roddam		(screenplay)
Pete Townshend		uncredited

Produced by
Roy Baird	....	producer
Bill Curbishley	....	producer
Roger Daltrey	....	executive producer
John Entwistle	....	executive producer
Keith Moon	....	executive producer
John Peverall	....	associate producer
David Gideon Thomson	....	executive producer
Pete Townshend	....	executive producer

Cinematography by
Brian Tufano		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Sean Barton
Mike Taylor

Casting by
Patsy Pollock

Production Design by
Simon Holland

Makeup Department
Simon Thompson	....	hair styles creator
Gilly Wakeford	....	makeup artist (as Gilli Wakeford)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Ray Corbett	....	assistant director
Kieron Phipps	....	second assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
Jack Carter	....	construction manager
Andrew Sanders	....	assistant art director
Terry Wells	....	property master
Ken Wheatley	....	set dresser
Adrian Start	....	painter (uncredited)

Sound Department
Albert Bailey	....	boom operator
John Ireland	....	sound editor
Bill Rowe	....	dubbing mixer
Christian Wangler	....	sound recordist (as Christian Wrangler)
Jon Astley	....	sound engineer (uncredited)
Malcolm Hirst	....	second boom operator (uncredited)
Malcolm Hirst	....	sound maintenance (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Steve Hamilton	....	special effects technician (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Martin Evans	....	electrical supervisor: Lee Electrics Ltd.
Jeff Paynter	....	focus puller
Frank Connor	....	still photographer (uncredited)
Geoff Mulligan	....	camera operator: second unit (uncredited)
Ronnie Rampton	....	best boy (uncredited)
Derek Suter	....	clapper loader (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Joyce Stoneman	....	wardrobe supervisor

Music Department
Roger Daltrey	....	musical director
John Entwistle	....	music producer
John Entwistle	....	musical director
Cy Langston	....	music re-mix engineer
Mike Shaw	....	music coordinator
Pete Townshend	....	musical director

Other crew
David Anderson	....	location manager
Peter Brayham	....	action arranger
Alen Fletcher	....	story consultant
Caroline Hagen	....	production assistant
Redmond Morris	....	location manager
Kevin O'Driscoll	....	production accountant
Melinda Rees	....	continuity
Christopher Stamp	....	story consultant (as Chris Stamp)
Pete Townshend	....	story consultant
Ken Tuohy	....	producer's assistant
Geoff Freeman	....	unit publicist (uncredited)
Gillian Gregory	....	choreographer (uncredited)
Richard Morrison	....	title designer (uncredited)

Thanks
Freddie Haayen	....	special thanks
James Swann	....	special thanks

Production Companies

• The Who Films
• Polytel

Distributors

• Brent Walker Film Distributing (1979) (UK) (theatrical)
• World Northal (1979) (USA) (theatrical)
• Valio-Filmi (1979) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Parafrance Films (1980) (France) (theatrical)
• Channel 5 Video Distribution (1986) (UK) (VHS)
• Yleisradio (YLE) (1988) (Finland) (TV)
• Nordic Video (1993) (Finland) (VHS)
• Feature Film Company (1996) (UK) (theatrical) (re-release)
• Rhino Home Video (1996) (USA) (VHS)
• PolyGram Video (1998) (UK) (VHS)
• Rhino Home Video (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Universal Home Video (2006) (Brazil) (DVD)
• Universal Pictures Finland Oy (2006) (Finland) (DVD)
• Criterion Collection, The (2012) (USA) (DVD)

Other Companies

• DDA Public Relations (DDA)  public relations
• EMI Studios  re-recorded at (as EMI Studios, Elstree, England)
• European Captioning Institute  DVD subtitles (uncredited)
• Joe Dunton & Company  camera equipment provided by (uncredited)
• Lee Lighting  grip and lighting equipment (uncredited)
• Levi  jeans by
• Polydor Records  music from the soundtrack available on
• Who Group, The  "Quadrophenia" by (as The Who Group Limited)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

117 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor) (uncredited)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby (Dolby Stereo)

Certification:

Ireland:18 (DVD rating) | France:-18 (original rating) | Australia:R | Iceland:12 | Finland:K-16 (cut) (1979) | Singapore:M18 | Australia:MA (DVD rating) | New Zealand:R16 | Portugal:M/18 | UK:15 (re-rating) (1996) | South Korea:18 (2012) | Finland:K-14 (1997) | UK:18 (video rating) (1986) (1998) (2006) | UK:X (original rating) | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Alley off the west of East Street, Brighton, East Sussex, England, UK

Company:

The Who Films

Trivia:

On the front of the scooter that Jimmy steals from Ace are the yellow initials "GS". These initials do not actually stand for Gordon Sumner, the real name of Sting, who plays the part of Ace Face. 'GS' stands for Grand Sport, a popular model of Vespa scooter in the 1960s.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: in one scene Jimmy is in his bedroom and a train is seen moving quickly passed his window. The train is an 'Inter-City 125' which was not introduced on British Rail until the 1970s - the film is set in the 1960s.

Quotes:

Steph:Going to be one of the faces?
Jimmy:What do you mean going to be? I AM one of the faces!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Special Collector's Edition: Especial Halloween - Braindead (#3.11)" (2011)

Soundtrack:

Wishin' & Hopin'

Classic tale of teen rebellion

This is a fabulous movie that goes far beyond the usual one-dimensional teenager- struggles-with-society's-conformity tale. In it, the main character, Jimmy, has got a good job but which seems pointless to him. He's a member of a posse of "Mods," a mid-sixties image- group that included quasi-Beatles-style clothes and haircuts, the use of Vespa scooters, and of course sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll.

Jimmy hates the conformity as symbolized by his TV-watching, emotionally-detached parents and dreads the prospect of becoming an ice-cold working stiff. Bus as time passes he begins to squirm in the conformity imposed by being a Mod, a conformity so ruthless it costs him a friendship.

Everything that seems to be a key to happiness, whether it's romance with Steph, a beautiful member of his posse, or taking part in a kind of "Mod Woodstock," or adoring the "King of the Mods" (played perfectly by Sting), or even just trying to escape it all aboard his trusty Vespa, becomes a dead end of conformity.

Throughout the movie, his frustration is building, and he can't figure out why. In the end, he finally realizes the source of his anguish, and, without giving anything away, addresses the heart of the matter.

Excellent performances in this movie (though the accents will be downright impenetrable for some viewers), great directing, strong writing, and of course it marvelously portrays the Mod lifestyle. All the groups shown in the movie can be taken as symbols for just about any community you could think of.

Best of all, the soundtrack is superb. Unfortunately, you can't really get the sense of it just watching the movie, so pick up the CD if you like The Who; it's one of their very best.

Overall, a must-see.