The Great Rock and Roll Swindle

I've been on a McLaren kick ever since his death and I finally watched The Great Rock and Roll Swindle last night. Well, I liked it.

Obviously, the film is a big joke and at times it's a ridiculous one. Yet like most jokes there is a lot of truth behind it. I know a lot of Pistols fans take great umbrage over Malcolm's repeated insistence that the band couldn't play their instruments, but the story more or less follows the real way he handled the band. There was much resentment and many grudges between him and the group, as well as numerous problems within The Sex Pistols themselves.

The Sex Pistols gave their side of the story in The Filth and the Fury. Which side is right? Probably both are in various ways. I think it's pretty obvious that The Sex Pistols and Malcolm McLaren fed off of each other. It's also obvious that he saw something in these kids among all of the other urchins that haunted his Sex Shop.

As for some of the outrageous claims McLaren makes in the picture, most are embellished, I think. The one that most people cite is his claim that 'the punk rock' was his invention. Of course that's bullshit. No one could invent something like punk rock. It evolved over the years, from 60's garage bands to the stuff that was going on in New York prior to the birth of The Sex Pistols. The New York Dolls and Richard Hell, among others. Then there was Iggy Pop and even way back to Jerry Lee Lewis.

Still, it's difficult to deny that McLaren was in on the ground floor when punk as we know it was starting. He capitalized on it at the exact right time. Hell, the designs he and Vivienne Westwood were doing for the Sex Shop they owned were a big part of what fueled the movement.

And yes, without McLaren there almost certainly would be no Sex Pistols. That does not mean that the band deserves no credit. They walked the walk and equally charmed, infuriated, and terrified the public with both their onstage and offstage antics.

Then there was McLaren's, ah, creative promotional methods, which quickly made the band legendary. The infamous boat ride down the Thames River was the highlight of the Pistols' brief existence.

The Great Rock and Roll Swindle is peppered with actual clips of the band and their outrageous public behavior, which keeps the film from being nothing but a puff piece by McLaren. There are numerous live show excerpts and different members sing at times. My favorite is the Teddy Boy gone mad swagger of Sid Vicious. It reminded me a little bit of Lux Interior.

Like Malcolm McLaren or despise him, this movie should be seen. As a historical document if nothing else. Many parts are so ridiculous, but there are several genuinely amusing scenes. You''ll cringe, as I did, from some of the really bad animation, and there are a lot of embarrassing moments of awkward, unfunny attempts at humor. But, as I said, I highly enjoyed the movie. Hell, you never know. I might end up becoming a Sex Pistols fan one day. I hated them when I was young and they were new, but as I near my 50th year on this futureless planet, I'm mellowing enough to begin to accept this sort of thing.