Punk: Attitude (2005)

A documentary on the music, performers, attitude and distinctive look that made up punk rock.

Director:

Don Letts

Writer:

Don Letts

Stars:

K.K. Barrett, Roberta Bayley, Jello Biafra

1 nomination.

Cast

Credited cast:
K.K. Barrett	...	Himself
Roberta Bayley	...	Herself
Jello Biafra	...	Himself
Glenn Branca	...	Musician, Composer
John Cale	...	Himself
Bob Gruen	...	Himself
Mary Harron	...	Herself
John Holmstrom	...	Himself
Chrissie Hynde	...	Herself
Jim Jarmusch	...	Himself
Darryl Jenifer	...	Himself
David Johansen	...	Himself
Mick Jones	...	Himself
Wayne Kramer	...	Himself
Glen Matlock	...	Himself

Storyline

Punk: Attitude is a documentary on the history of punk rock in the U.S.A. and U.K. The film traces the different styles of punk from their roots in '60s garage and psychedelic bands (Count Five, The Stooges) through glam-punk (New York Dolls) to the '70s New York and London scenes and into the hardcore present. Interviews with many of the musicians are edited with live clips and historical footage.

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Plot Keywords:

punk | punk rock | musician | band | interview | 

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Genres:

Documentary | Music

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

4 July 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

Punk: Attitűd

Company Credits

Production Co:

3DD Productions, Cactus Three, FremantleMedia

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Quotes

Jello Biafra: By the end of say, oh maybe mid-'79, the only people playing punk music left were the people who really wanted to be there. And so there was this big split, which meant punk went more underground, and got more intense, more purist in a way, which is both good and bad, and more hardcore.

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Connections

Referenced in Rewind This! (2013)

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Soundtracks

She's Lost Control
Performed by Joy Division
Written by Ian Curtis (as Curtis) / Peter Hook (as Hook) / Stephen Morris (as Morris) / Bernard Sumner (as Sumner)
Published by BMG Music

User Reviews

Starts off great but trivializes current bands

Obviously making a documentary on the history and progression of punk rock is very difficult- many people debate where it started, how it started, who started it, etc, etc. Punk: Attitude manages to crystallize, utilizing and excellent array of interviews with figures who were actually part of the scene, all the different strains of punk into one solid, cohesive unit and gives a very accurate and insightful look into just what punk is and what it means.

The documentary starts off with the menagerie of punk influences, from the Stooges and the Velvet Underground to MC5 and the New York Dolls, covering not just the bands and artists who musically influenced what would become punk but the people that set the punk aesthetic. They pay due respect to a whole host of seminal punk bands, starting in the New York scene and shifting to the British scene, all the while analyzing how the music was changing and what it was saying. It then gracefully moves into American hardcore punk with bands like Black Flag, Agnostic Front, and the Dead Kennedys, also paying respect to such hugely influential bands as Minor Threat and Bad Brains. It all starts to fall apart, though, when they mention Nirvana pulling together bits and pieces of the last decade of punk rock and creating a product that the public could stomach. From there they give passing mentions to Green Day, Blink 182, Sum 41, and Rancid, acting as if that's all there is to the current punk scene. The documentary completely fails to recognize bands like Bad Religion, the Descendents, the Circle Jerks (although they interview its singer about different topics), NOFX, Operation Ivy, the Offspring, and all of recent punk bands gaining popularity. Modern punk is not just Green Day and Blink 182, and is arguably far more diverse and fully formed than ever before. It was disappointing to see the documentary turn a cold shoulder to the current crop of punk bands when it handled punk's history up until then so well.

Overall, though, the point of the documentary is to look at the impact society had on punk and conversely the impact punk had on society, and in this respect, it excels. It looks at countless facets of life this abrasive form of music has affected and really opens your eyes to the truth that punk rock is so much more than just a bunch of kids screaming. Highly recommended despite its shoddy coverage of punk's current phase.