Punk: Attitude On DVD

By Emily Carney

Don Letts, the director of the 2005 documentary Punk: Attitude, was the man who was most instrumental in bridging the gap between punk rock and dub reggae; without his influence, albums such as Public Image Ltd.’s Metal Box/Second Edition probably wouldn’t have existed, or have been as seminal. Letts made his first rock film, The Punk Rock Movie, in 1978; this effort, captured on a very of-its-time Super 8 camera, was quite murky and grainy, and even had a limited VHS tape release.

The Punk Rock Movie gained a mention in a very cheesy, disco-insane book called 1978: The Year In Music which was published by the “get five tapes for the cost of one tape!” company called Columbia House (remember those kinds of cassette companies? Crap, I had subscriptions to all of them, somehow). This is where I first heard of Don Letts and “punk rock” as a kid. The 1978 movie consisted of performances of The Clash, The Sex Pistols, and Siouxsie and the Banshees, among other groups.

Letts would go on to manage The Slits (who recently lost their singer, the incomparable Ari Up) for a short time. However, he made further excursions in film directing; Punk: Attitude is the final, living testament of punk rock music as documented by Letts.

Letts’ film charts the beginnings of punk rock, starting with 1960s groups such as the MC5 and the Velvet Underground. This documentary is the gold standard of punk memories and reminiscences in that the main stars of punk rock themselves do all of the talking. You have people like Henry Rollins discussing West Coast hardcore, for example. The documentary doesn’t forget localized scenes—Pete Shelley (Buzzcocks) discusses punk rock in Manchester. In addition, the DVD also includes new vignettes such as “Women in Punk,” which I think is excellent in that punk rock tends to be viewed as a very masculine thing; women of the punk rock era from 1975 – 1978 should be equally recognized for their contributions. Women, through punk rock, were finally allowed to ascend beyond “groupie” status, and they could truly make their own noise.

The documentary spans its way through the 1990s, when punk made a resurgence in the guise of “grunge,” a genre exemplified by bands such as Nirvana and Mudhoney. Thankfully the film doesn’t focus too much on some of the more disturbing tragedies of punk, like the whole Sid Vicious and Nancy Spungen scandal (which was lovingly and sometimes hilariously captured in Alex Cox’s 1986 film Sid and Nancy, starring Gary Oldman as Sid Vicious), and Kurt Cobain’s death.

In summation, Punk: Attitude is the ultimate documentary about the rise and continuing influence of 1970s punk rock; the film itself is utterly engrossing, and the new DVD is packed with dozens of extras which encompass punk fashion, punk women, and even the amazing fanzines of the time. This DVD is an essential purchase.

The Punk: Attitude DVD was released on January 11 through Shout! Factory.