The Great Rock 'N' Roll Swindle

Julien Temple's elaborate, 1980 documentary on the Sex Pistols The Great Rock 'N' Roll Swindle today comes across as more annoying than provocative, since the film is not so much about the band as it is a self-serving statement from the Pistols' manager, Malcolm McLaren, who famously believed he duped the world into celebrating a prefabricated group of thuggish non-musicians (a claim that is patently absurd--while McLaren was good at yanking the public's chain, the Pistols' recorded legacy speaks eloquently, if somewhat roughly, for the band's incendiary brilliance). A flamboyant hodgepodge incorporating a bit of film noir and animation to fill in the story gaps, what little footage there is here of the Pistols in performance is choice, but one wishes there had been much more (for the story from the Pistols' point of view, see Temple's 2000 update The Filth & the Fury [VL-9/00], which has its own flaws). Presented in Dolby Digital 5.1 and stereo, DVD extras include an interview with Temple. Optional. Aud: C, P. (T. Keogh)