Sid and Nancy (1986)

Morbid biographical story of Sid Vicious, bassist with British punk group the Sex Pistols, and his girlfriend Nancy Spungen. When the Sex Pistols break up after their fateful US tour, ... See full summary »

Director:

Alex Cox

Writers:

Alex Cox (screenplay), Abbe Wool (screenplay)

Stars:

Gary Oldman, Chloe Webb, David Hayman

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 5 wins.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Gary Oldman	...	Sid Vicious
Chloe Webb	...	Nancy Spungen
David Hayman	...	Malcolm
Debby Bishop	...	Phoebe
Andrew Schofield	...	John
Xander Berkeley	...	Bowery Snax
Perry Benson	...	Paul
Tony London	...	Steve
Sandy Baron	...	Hotelier - U.S.A.
Sy Richardson	...	Methadone Caseworker
Edward Tudor-Pole	...	Hotelier - U.K.
Biff Yeager	...	Detective
Courtney Love	...	Gretchen
Rusty Blitz	...	Reporter
John Spaceley	...	Chelsea Resident

Storyline

Morbid biographical story of Sid Vicious, bassist with British punk group the Sex Pistols, and his girlfriend Nancy Spungen. When the Sex Pistols break up after their fateful US tour, Vicious attempts a solo career while in the grip of heroin addiction. One morning, Nancy is found stabbed to death and Sid is arrested for her murder.

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Plot Keywords:

sex pistols | sex | british | death | punk rock | 

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Taglines:

Love kills

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | Music

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Certificate:

R

Details

Official Sites:

Alex Cox

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 November 1986 (USA)

Also Known As:

Sid and Nancy: Love Kills

Filming Locations:

Bramley Arms Pub, Bramley Road, Notting Hill, London, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$4,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$2,826,523 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Initial Pictures, U.K. Productions Entity, Zenith Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Chloe Webb and Gary Oldman improvised their dialogue in the scene leading up to Spungen's death. They created their dialogue from archival interviews and other materials available to them.

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Goofs

When Sid is being beaten up by three men on the railway tracks, Malcolm and one of the roadies come to his aid. After the roadie hits one of the guys, Malcolm walks up and points his hands/fingers in the shape of a gun. There is the sound of a gun being cocked and the men react as if it is a real gun. Malcolm even fires a shot from his "hand gun" into the man laying on the ground.

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Quotes

Nancy: I don't think that Johnny likes me.
Sid: He doesn't like anybody. He's a fool.
Nancy: You like me, don't you?

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Crazy Credits

"And introducing the young Cat Vicious in the role of Smoky, Sid and Nancy's child."

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Connections

References Doctor Who (1963)

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Soundtracks

"Junk"
Written by Jem Finer
Arr. Jem Finer (as Finer) / Philip Chevron (as Chevron) / James Fearnley (as Fearnley)
Performed by The Pogues
© Stiff Music Ltd 1986

User Reviews

love in the gutter

This vivid recreation of the last, not quite desperate days of Sex Pistol Sid Vicious and his junkie/lover Nancy Spungen celebrates all the pathetic excesses of punk rock anarchy, but without the overwrought clichés Oliver Stone would later use to embalm kindred rock martyr Jim Morrison. It would be hard to find a more honest and unsettling portrait of show biz degradation, and yet the two lovers shared an almost tender (if self-destructive) affection for each other, conveyed by director Alex Cox with a gritty, forthright lyricism (their silhouetted embrace amidst a hail of garbage provides the film's most telling image). If nothing else, the pair were certainly more loyal to the nihilistic punk aesthetic than their contemporaries, and the film chronicles their slow, co-dependent suicide from the gutters of swinging London to the alleys of New York City, with an ill-conceived detour to Nancy's white-bread Middle America homestead. Gary Oldman brilliantly captures the ignorant anger (and sometimes disarming innocence) of the man described by Sex Pistols manager Malcolm McLaren as a "fabulous disaster", and Chloe Webb is equally fine as the ugly duckling drug addict Nancy.