I wasn't born when the Sex Pistols came out, but is this film accurate to what really happened? I really liked it, and want to by a Sex Pistols CD.
I know you wrote this months ago but I wanted to let you know that I recently read an excellent biography on the Pistols and the movie is more accurate than not. They must have based the movie on the book because a lot of the events in the book happened in the film - just an FYI.
"I love talking about nothing. It's the only thing I know anything about" BOP
I read a book by Nancy's mom about her side of what happened and how Nancy ended up where she did. Its sad but eye opening. She is portrayed as very annoying and childish in the movie and thats what I got from the book also. The book also tells about the moms problems with Nancy when she was younger. I read the book by the Mom before I knew about the movie. Its just such a disturbing story.
shareI read that book as well, "And I Don't Want to Live This Life." Very good book, very sad as well. I felt horrible for her family and what they went through because of her. She was a very disturbed person with a lot of issues - but then again so was Sid which is why I think they connected the way they did.
"I love talking about nothing. It's the only thing I know anything about" BOP
Well I'm old enough to have really been around back then even tho' I was only 12 in 1977 there was a huge punk scene in my home town and I can tell you this film is a crap representation of the vibe back then. One of my older friends briefly dated Paul Cook so I have genuine information about the Pistols from people who met them back then and this film does not accurately portray them at all.
Question: Did you ever hurt yourself to make somebody sorry?
I'm sure a lot of the movie was exaggerated in trying to set up the whole punk scene from back then, I can agree with you but i'm saying a lot of what happened to the band in the movie did happen...of course it was most likely exaggerated big time but the events did occur. Read the book, you can see for yourself, its definitely entertaining.
"I love talking about nothing. It's the only thing I know anything about" BOP
Oh, ok thanks. I've read some things that have happened to them, it seemed accurate at the time but I don't know. We don't really have many books about them in Australia that I know of, there's one about Sid, 'No One Is Innocent.' Would you reccomend reading that? :)
I haven't read that book, but here is the link to the book that i'm referring to. It's a true story based on their tour - it's very funny and at times, very sad. I ordered it from Amazon.
I'm sorry, I don't know how to make it clicky.
http://www.amazon.com/12-Days-Road-Noel-Monk/dp/0688112749/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1204556440&sr=8-10
"The time has come to be gone. And tho our health we drank a thousand times, its time to ramble on"
Thank's I'll have to consider reading that :) For some reason, I'm not 'permitted' to read books about them by my library, and can't rent them out lol.
From what John Lydon AKA Johnny Rotten said in his book, this movie is absolute filth. The entire persona of Sid Vicious was more what people thought he was and the media than the real person. I guess the "Spirit of the times" as said by another person is accurate, I would not call this a biography at all. They kinda made a mockery out of this person's life and according to Lydon, celebrated heroin use.
shareThe actors playing Malcolm and Nancy were way too old.
Three great movies to see if you want to learn more about the Sex Pistols:
-DOA
-The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle
-The Filth and the Fury
Somebody needs a happy meal.
I read that book too, it's called "And I Don't Want to Live this Life" by Deborah Spungen.
It is a very well-written and honest book with the complete life story of Nancy and the impact her disturbed behaviour (which started very young) had on her family.
Her family tried countless times to get her the help she needed but doctors and such just kept passing the buck.
It's very sad, and it made me see Nancy in a completely different way, not at all how the media portrayed her.
I would highly recommend this book to anyone, whether they are fans of the movie or not, it stands on its own as a very compelling book.
Don't get me wrong, I love "Sid and Nancy"; it's one of my all-time favorites...(I 'm always reciting it).
...but it's about as accurate as "People" or "Us Weekly".
From what I've gathered, none of the Sex Pistols were even asked about what really happened. According to John Lydon's autobio, Alex Cox used Joe Strummer as a source...I love Joe, but, come now. It wouldn't have killed anyone to actually talk to a Sex Pistol.
For example, Malcolm's secretaries real name was "Sophie"...I have no idea who that Phoebe girl is...
My favorite "mistake" (if you can call it that) is in one of the first scenes where Nancy walks into the club and X-Ray Spex are playing "Oh Bondage, Up Yours". The real lead singer, Polly Stryne (correct me if I got her name wrong) of the band is black. In the movie, she is portrayed as being white.
I also love the really bad casting of Steve and Paul. I mean, was it that hard to find actors who KIND of looked like them? (Steve's commented on this a few times on his radio show. I remember one time he was telling Jerry Lee Lewis (I think it was) sometime like "...they made a movie about my band. The bloke who played me didn't even look like me."
Like I said before, I love the movie to pieces, but I take it with a heap of salt. I think of "Sid and Nancy" as a mere coincidence in names and lifestyle, not a biography.
Yeah, dont take the movie too seriously, just enjoy it :-)
another thing that always "bothers" me is the scene where Sid & Nancy walk away from the Jubilee boat party un-noticed by the coppers. In reality, Sid was arrested.
There are loads of missed or altered moments in the movie........Who cares, really !
It doesnt make it any less enjoyable for me.
Hello I-I'm Harvey & I've come to give you jipshare
Judging from the consensus, I'd say the movie really missed who Sid was as a person, rather than a persona. He was just a messed up kid who got in over his head before he got a chance to grow up. He was 17 when he started to become famous, and there was a lot of pressure on him to live up to his name. I think a lot of blame goes to Malcolm McLaren for taking advantage of all those kids.
As far as some of the other people's behavior, a lot of that was complete fabrication. Yeah, they were squatters and vandals, but it shows a lot of them doing some insane, GG Allin type stuff. The whole thing is just way over the top.
Still a good movie in a lot of ways, I just wish it wasn't so sensationalized.
I also love the really bad casting of Steve and Paul. I mean, was it that hard to find actors who KIND of looked like them? (Steve's commented on this a few times on his radio show. I remember one time he was telling Jerry Lee Lewis (I think it was) sometime like "...they made a movie about my band. The bloke who played me didn't even look like me."To me, that's the greatest example of just how poor most of the casting in this film was. With as minor as the Steve Jones and Paul Cook "characters" were in this film, you'd think they could at least get someone who physically resembled them. The guy who played Steve looked absolutely nothing like him, but I think Cookie got the worst of it. The fellow who played him was short and pudgy. How the hell did HE get the job?
If you ask the real Johnny Rotten, not so much.
"Now, that is one nutty hospital!"
Yeah, you can actually tell now that it was based more on how Sid was being portrayed in the media than what he was actually really like. I love watching the live shows of the real Sid Vicious "playing" guitar lol, he's cute.
I'm livin' for givin' the devil his due, and I'm burning, I'm burning, I'm burning for you
like it was said before if you want to see what the sex pistols were really like and what the entire times were like not just with the punk scene watch the filth and the fury. it gives a background of what the times were like spurring the punk movement, real accounts from the sex pistols, and not any horrible acting(not oldman of course he did the best he could have done) but i sincerely wonder if the casting director ever saw or heard johnny paul steve and nancy
share[deleted]
Gary Oldman was a poor choice in casting for simply this reason: He was barely taller than Nancy. Sid was a pretty tall guy, but Oldman is pretty short compared to the actress playing Nancy. And the person they cast for John Lydon looked way too old. These guys were very young at the time, and the actors playing them in the movie are obviously much older.
As well as all that, the whole film is one big inaccuracy, according to Johnny Rotten himself, Sid's best mate. And the murder scene, there is no concrete proof of how it all happened. For all I know, Sid probably had no idea what he was doing. I don't think he would ever intend to kill Nancy. Just look at how down he was after her death. This movie is rubbish. Good for entertainment purposes, but in no way should this be the film to watch to base your judgments about Sid and the gang on.
***For your information, everyone knows monsters prefer blondes.***
The only positive thing that John Lydon has ever had to say about this film is that Gary Oldman is "a fine actor." I agree with him.
Height notwithstanding, Oldman is the only reason I watch this movie. Everything else in it is rubbish.
I read a book by Nancy's mom about her side of what happened and how Nancy ended up where she did. Its sad but eye opening. She is portrayed as very annoying and childish in the movie and thats what I got from the book also. The book also tells about the moms problems with Nancy when she was younger. I read the book by the Mom before I knew about the movie. Its just such a disturbing story.
I read that book as well, "And I Don't Want to Live This Life." Very good book, very sad as well. I felt horrible for her family and what they went through because of her. She was a very disturbed person with a lot of issues - but then again so was Sid which is why I think they connected the way they did.
Vannyz03 wrote: <<And yet her family felt that the most appropriate way to deal with her issues, was to shoo her out of the house rather than holding her down and getting her some serious help. I'm not exactly sure how accurate that part of the film was, but it was a scene that really hit me hard. Incredibly sad.>>
Read "And I Don't Want To Live This Life," by Nancy's mother, Deborah Spungen. You will see how hard her family worked to help her and how much they suffered.
I don't blame her family at all. They weren't therapists. They had two younger children to protect. They couldn't provide the help Nancy needed and tried to find places that would. They put her in schools for disturbed children (and paid a lot of money to do so). They did their best under the circumstances.
I don't think they could have done any better -- especially considering the pre-Oprah, pre-internet times. They received very little help from the medical community. I am amazed they did as well as they did.
Gary played Sid perfectly, and Chloe became Nancy. However, the rest of the characters were not acurate at all. Johnny was way cooler than portrayed in the film. The actor looked 10 years too old and 30lbs too heavy. I know the focus was mainly on Sid, but the story of the band was virtually ignored. Most of the antics the band was infamous for (i.e. cursing on national TV) actually occured prior to Sid's joining the band. Also, the friendship between Sid and Johnny should've been better explored.
shareagreed with the posters here:
Read Lydon's book- "No Blacks, No Irish"
watch- "The Filth and The Fury"
read the mum's book- "And I Don't Want To Live This Life"
also really good as to what really happened with the murder- "Who Killed Nancy?" (documentary)
and for whoever slagged off Nancy's family, you are WAY off base. Their lives revolved around dealing with an obviously schizophrenic child from birth and beyond her death.
good movie, but historically accurate? Not very.
You better understand I'm in love with myself Myself My beautiful self
/and for whoever slagged off Nancy's family, you are WAY off base. Their lives revolved around dealing with an obviously schizophrenic child from birth and beyond her death./
I say elsewhere that Nancy's family was in the Philadelphia newspapers when the film came out. After dealing with a difficult daughter and her death, they dealt with acquaintances asking if they were proud of the film or the attention.
They deserved better but their book sounds like it shows, even when you are well off, how difficult getting good treatment for mental illness can be.
"Two more swords and I'll be Queen of the Monkey People." Roseanne
I enjoyed this movie when I first saw it in the '80s but after reading many books on the early years of punk I now find it kind of like a cartoon version of punk created by a director who just wanted to exploit the situation.
Read Lydon's book. Not only is it absolutely HILARIOUS but it's a quick read and comes across as far more informative on the scene than this movie. It also has its share of other people like journalist Caroline Coon's recollections as well.
I don't know about accuracy. But Gary Oldman and Chloe Webb sure looked the part.
shareOne thing to keep in mind for all those bringing up Johnny Rotten's criticism of the film. Rotten resented the fame that Sid Vicious attained after his death. He hated the way the media sensationalized that story and made Sid a household name. You saw kinds in Jr High all across America wearing Sid Vicious t-shirts. His name and image were synonymous with the punk movement.
I remember when the Pistol's reunited in the 90s and whenever anyone would mention that Sid wasn't here to participate Johnny was quick to downplay any of Sid's contributions to the band. Sid really didn't write any of the songs, he was only in the band for such a short time, Glen was the original bassist for the Pistols, etc.
Now its the mid 80s and they're making a movie called "Sid & Nancy". Not "The Sex Pistols" not even "Sid and Johnny", its Sid and Nancy. I have a feeling that even if everything in this movie was 100% accurate and true to history, Johnny would swear up and down that it was utter crap.
Plus Johnny isn't really into liking things. In most interviews I've seen, read or heard from him he hates everything. The world, the person interviewing him, anything they ask him about, all of it just totally sucks.
So not that this invalidates any of the things Rotten has said about the film, but I would certainly take anything he says with a grain of salt and consider some of the reasons he has to trash this movie.