In September 1979, Britain’s youth finally got a screen-full of proper teen angst and rebellion, not as you might expect via Punk, but via a new take on a previous incarnation, the Mods. The Who’s film Quadrophenia starring Phil Daniels, along with punkish upstarts Toyah and a bottle blonde Sting, was the very British antidote to the previous year’s schmaltzy Americana fest “Grease”, and 1977s Saturday Night Fever. Filmed in the UK, the footage itself made a virtue of the dark graininess, that’s inherent in the northern hemisphere, and was a welcome relief to the bright colours and constant smiley sunshine of Hollywood.
The mod clothes and the bank holiday battles, were from a different era, but there was an energy about the film that chimed with the mood of the late 1970s. The mods’ emergence 15 years previously, seemed like ancient history, but Quadrophenia portrayed a slice of life that punks and post punks could relate to. The cast weren’t just mod heroes, they could have been punks or a teds or rude boys/girls. What ultimately mattered was their passion for their music and the lifestyle that went with it. Along with their decidedly working class home life, the characters in the film transcended Mod, and became every-teen.
Everybody’s had their own Quadrophenia moments, from being sandwiched between two old people on a train, to hearing yourself think or say, “and you can stuff your job right up your a*se”!
The film was a journey that was fuelled by the same industrial strength teenage hormones, which we ourselves were still navigating. It seemed like everyone could relate to Jimmy’s journey as he fought both the outside world and his inner turmoil with equal ferocity.
The fiercely energetic soundtrack by the Who, who on certain songs sounded so punk, they might as well have been the Clash. The twin themes of teenage rebellion and teenage angst, were the same. The soundtrack even features a song called “The Punk and the Godfather”…. written by Pete Townshend…. in 1973.
39 years on, it’s still a great film… even if it is just punks in parkas.