Not a commercial film, much more interesting than that. Raw, eccentric. It doesn't look like a lot of money was spent on it, but that a lot of genuinely creative collaboration was. Some moments are visually striking or disturbing - characters occupying a decaying urban world, with sex, rage and an emphasis on female-generated violence.
As a record of a particular time and place (underground Britain, mid seventies), it's fascinating. As a picture of the British punk scene at the time, I understand it's problematic (some of the leads had no connection to the punk scene at all), but I'm not British, so my understanding of that part of it is thin at best.
I came away with an impression of Derek Jarman's sensibility. It seemed deeply pessimistic and surprisingly traditional-minded, despite all the way-out, on-the-edge characters. I was impressed by The Last of England some years ago, and he seemed to be circling the same ground from the start, if this older film is anything to go by.
As a record of a particular time and place (underground Britain, mid seventies), it's fascinating. As a picture of the British punk scene at the time, I understand it's problematic (some of the leads had no connection to the punk scene at all), but I'm not British, so my understanding of that part of it is thin at best.
I came away with an impression of Derek Jarman's sensibility. It seemed deeply pessimistic and surprisingly traditional-minded, despite all the way-out, on-the-edge characters. I was impressed by The Last of England some years ago, and he seemed to be circling the same ground from the start, if this older film is anything to go by.