
On the edge of the 30th anniversary of punk rock, Punk's Not Dead takes you into the sweaty underground clubs, backyard parties, recording studios, and yes, shopping malls and stadium shows where punk rock music and culture continue to thrive. Thirty years after bands like the Ramones and the Sex Pistols infamously shocked the system with their hard, fast, status-quo-killing rock, the longest-running punk band in history is drawing bigger crowds than ever, "pop-punk" bands ha... (Full plot summary below)
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On the edge of the 30th anniversary of punk rock, Punk's Not Dead takes you into the sweaty underground clubs, backyard parties, recording studios, and yes, shopping malls and stadium shows where punk rock music and culture continue to thrive. Thirty years after bands like the Ramones and the Sex Pistols infamously shocked the system with their hard, fast, status-quo-killing rock, the longest-running punk band in history is drawing bigger crowds than ever, "pop-punk" bands have found success on MTV, and kids too young to drive are forming bands that carry the torch for punk's raw, immediate sound. Meanwhile, "punk" has become a marketing concept to sell everything from cars to vodka, and dyed hair and piercings mark a rite of passage for thousands of kids. Can the true, nonconformist punk spirit still exist in today's corporatized culture? Featuring interviews, performances, and behind-the-scenes journeys with the bands, labels, fans, and press who keep punk alive, Punk's Not Dead dares to juxtapose pop-punk's music and lifestyle against the roots in the 70s and 80s, resulting in unexpected revelations. A DIY search for the soul of a subculture and a celebration of all things loud, fast, and spiked, Punk's Not Dead shows punk is stronger and more relevant today than it's ever been.
Leave your thoughts about Punk's Not Dead.
| Film ThreatGraham RaeThis film has an absolutely stellar cast of interviewees, so if you like punk music you'll be in hog heaven watching it, I guarantee you. |
| Village VoiceCamille Dodero[It's] a documentary that's more about the enduring lifestyle of basement shows, crust-punk houses, and aging rebels than the music. And that can be fascinating stuff. |
| Hollywood ReporterFrank ScheckSusan Dynner's documentary about the past 30 years of punk music doesn't exactly break any new ground. But it does offer an entertaining overview that is leavened with humorous philosophical digressions. |
| Newark Star-LedgerStephen WhittyThe movie covers a lot of time and territory, and some of its questions are great ones. (The biggest, for true punks: Is getting a big record deal a sign of ultimate success, or final defeat?) |
| Boston GlobeTy BurrStructured very loosely along chronological lines, Punk's Not Dead takes core samples from musical forefathers, mid-period bands, and snotty young kids, building a jangly, contradictory mosaic as it goes. |
| Los Angeles TimesKevin ThomasAbout as in-your-face and raggedy as its subject, Dynner's film is really less of a history than a psychological profile, rooting around for the meat of what makes punk so resilient, cross-generational and communal. |
| Seattle Post-IntelligencerBill WhiteDynner delights in presenting a wealth of contrasting testimonies, and has no intention of delivering a judgment on any of it. |
| eFilmCritic.comBrian OrndorfPunk's Not Dead is a documentary of immense personality and information...a film that enlightens the debate and demonstrates without a doubt that when punk disappears, it never truly dies. |
| Combustible CelluloidJeffrey M. AndersonFilmmaker Susan Dynner finally turns in the punk music documentary we all deserve, and one that punks can finally relate to. |
| Times-PicayuneMike ScottPunk's Not Dead is more than a nostalgia trip. Rather than just capturing what punk sounds like, Dynner shows us what it feels like, what punk really means -- present tense. |