At first glance, with its image of Sid Vicious and the Sex Pistols on the cover, it’s easy to go into Chris Barber and Jack Sargeant’s NO FOCUS: PUNK ON FILM with the mindset that this is going to be the same old punk-rock film guide. Of course they’re gonna bring up THE GREAT ROCK ’N’ ROLL SWINDLE. They’ll mention RUDE BOY. Probably THE DECLINE OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION will get a nod.
And yes, all these films are mentioned. But surprisingly – and more importantly, refreshingly – these films encompass very little of NO FOCUS, with most of the focus of the films discussed in this book not about punk rock music per se, but rather, the “fuck you,” DIY punk attitude of filmmakers and their works, wildly broadening the palette of cinema.
Long chapters are devoted to Derek Jarman and his homoerotic punk flights of fancy, with little-known films like JUBILEE and THE ANGELIC CONVERSATION – two films I was completely unaware of – receiving mass dissections. Other barely known punk documentarians like Amos Poe, Don Letts and Billy Childish get their due in extensive but to-the-point interviews.
Also, Penelope Spheeris’ other punk films besides DECLINE – the trend-setting SUBURBIA and the utterly horrible DUDES – also are torn apart, right next to the oeuvre of REPO MAN’s Alex Cox.
Most interesting, though, are the other lists of other non-punk punk films, films I would have never thought to think of as that – films like CABARET, THE BATTLE OF ALGIERS and THE HARDER THEY COME. They also throw in a few of my faves like OVER THE EDGE, IF…, QUADROPHENIA and the early work of John Waters for good measure.
NO FOCUS is what it sets out to be: a more-than-complete guide to punk on film, going above and beyond what other books of its ilk would do. It’s truly an embarrassment of (rags to) riches. I guess that makes NO FOCUS the only book on punk movies that you’ll ever need. And one is really all you need to begin with, right? –Louis Fowler
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