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Directed by: Jim Fields Starring: The Ramones, Joe Strummer, Legs McNeil, Danny Fields In the late 1970s, four scruffy young men from Queens formed a band and changed music as we knew it forever. The Ramones were a band of legendary proportions that played louder, faster, with less thought and with more emotion than any band at the time. Wherever they went, they planted the seeds of punk rock in the minds of fans who witnessed their show like Johnny Appleseed with tattoos. End of the Century tells their story from their beginnings in Queens all the way to their induction in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Dee Dee's subsequent death. End of the Century is a documentary in the most stereotypical form. All of the footage, including new and recent interviews, is grainy, the cameraman doesn't really seem to have a clue what he's doing but is rather just trying to hold the camera straight and zoom in to an obscene degree whenever he feels like it. But, the stock footage of past concerts, home videos and old footage from other sources is what ties the movie together. The documentary shines some light on the innerworkings of the Ramones, explaining Johnny's distaste for his haircut and his political clash against Joey. It talks about Dee Dee's drug habits (showing that he's always been a little off) and attempts to explain his ill fated rap career as Dee Dee King. They explore the insanity of The End of the Century and how Phil Spector nearly killed them all (Johnny in particular). The filmmaker talks about the trinity of unknown Ramones--Tommy, Richie and C.J.--and why they're important to the band. One story that really stuck out in my mind was when The Ramones were in England, The Clash and the Sex Pistols were at the back door of a club and Joe Strummer threw a rock at the window. Joey opened it and shouted "WHAT?" at them. They explained that they were bands and needed to get in, so Joey and the rest of the guys formed a human chain and pulled each band member through the window and into the venue. These bits of information filled out the movie so that what you saw wasn't a flat piece about a bunch of unwashed guys in a band, but a three dimensional being that forces you to invest a little emotion into it. The people who put this thing together pulled together reviews from each band member and practically everyone involved with the band. They set out to educate the masses about this great band that got so little credit during its time and succeeds. But, there are some oddities, like how the movie suddenly jumps from 1989 to 1995 or the lack of technique from the cameraman, not to mention every one in the movie wearing sunglasses for no reason. I would have liked the movie to have gone into who these replacement Ramones were exactly and what the deal with Tommy's glass eye was. I felt like it could have gone a little more in depth, but the movies was already two hours long and there's only so much you can say about the Ramones. Overall, it was a decent documentary. It provided insight and education, and isn't that what really counts? If you're a fan of punk music or The Ramones, go see this movie right now. If you're not, check it out anyway. Maybe you'll learn something. RATING: 4.0 PROS: Provides detailed insight on the rise and fall of The Ramones CONS: Too many loving close ups, big holes in time, what's with the sunglasses ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0368711/
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Oct 17, 2004 10:32
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