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It's as much a spiritual sequel to her flawless 1983 punk drama Suburbia* as it is to her first two documentaries. With a tiny crew, Spheeris entered the world of LA gutterpunks, choosing to focus almost entirely on the semi-homeless denizens of the street rather than the bands they love. If the second Decline feels slightly lighter than the first, the barely-seen third film (1998) counters with a boot to the heart. While Ozzy stutters and struggles to properly pour a glass of orange juice, Lemmy from Motorhead and Alice Cooper provide much more eloquent conversation.
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This is most famously visible in the form of Chris Holmes from W.A.S.P., who spends his interview toxically drunk in a swimming pool while his aging mother wrings her hands and silently begs God for forgiveness. While the disaffected nature of punk is absent from the second film, a similarly kamikaze self-loathing is front row center. The fans and focus had shifted to rock excess, with the main similarity to the first film being the droning observations from musicians and devotees. LA had entered The Metal Years, and Spheeris' return to the scene found it drenched in hairspray and stale whiskey. 2(1988) was unleashed, and in that time, the Hollywood Blvd landscape had transformed. It'd be nearly a decade before Decline pt. Afterwards, police chief Daryl Gates famously forbid Spheeris to ever screen the film in his city again.
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When the first Decline premiered in LA, the local police force was terrified at the sight of the congregated punks and lined the theater block with cop motorcycles. The result is an unshakably engrossing portrait of an incredible musical/social movement that feigns complete disinterest in itself. But Spheeris rightly found it equally compelling to document the shows' attendees, and the film is packed with fascinating, sparse snapshots of youths spouting off alienation mantras beneath a bare lightbulb.
#Watch the decline of western civilization 2 online series
The initial - and most notorious - installment in the series (1981) delved into the fledgling LA punk scene, focusing largely on the era's indelible acts like Black Flag, X, Germs and Fear. Even if you're not interested in punk, metal or teenage self-destruction, the films each masterfully captured a different moment in rebellion and our historical identity. And they're finally available to the public for the first time since the VHS era, with the equally powerful third entry seeing a home video release for the first time ever. Here's an immersive tour of in-your-face filmmaking and music.Viewed as a whole, Penelope Spheeris' brilliant Decline of Western Civilization trilogy is an inarguable contender for Most Crucial Cultural Document of the 20th Century. And while all three films have been restored in high definition, they are in keeping with the feel of the rebellious times in which they were shot. Now for the first time, all three films are available in one deluxe box set. Featuring some of the most influential and innovative musicians and groups of all time – Germs, Black Flag, X, Fear, Circle Jerks, Alice Cooper and Ozzy Osbourne, these riveting, unflinching and hard-core films adeptly captured the spirit of a major cultural phenomenon. Today, museums and educational institutions around the world present them as a historically significant works of art.
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Penelope Spheeris' THE DECLINE OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION was perceived as shocking and outrageous at the time of its original release in 1981 and its two follow-up films were no less extraordinary and revealing. "A bracing, stimulating and technically superb close-up look at the L.A. "Iconic Decline of Western Civilization Films Finally Get Official Release" - Rolling Stone