Queercore: How to Punk a Revolution Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.5
Overall		4.0

Queercore: How to Punk a Revolution Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf January 13, 2019

Revolution comes in many shapes and sizes, but the music world tends to favor movements that show the most promise for profit, forcing those seeking representation to create their own rebellion, often using obscurity for security. “Queercore: How to Punk a Revolution” details such an effort to make something out of nothing, with director Yony Leyser adventuring into the world of Homocore/Queercore, using visual evidence and interviews with founding members of the new dawn to track the rise of gay participation and invention when it came to the choppy cultural waters of the punk scene of the 1980s and ‘90s. “Queercore: How to Punk a Revolution” is greatly informative, providing an eye-opening look at a subculture that was born out of frustration and developed into a monster of conformity requiring members of the uprising to return to the source, ultimately trying to destroy it.

“Queercore: How to Punk a Revolution” tries to be as respectful and journalistic about the origins of the movement, crediting the first steps taken to Bruce LaBruce and G.B. Jones, two young Canadian filmmakers trying to find their place in the local punk scene. Treated like outsiders in a musical radicalization that was created for outsiders, the pair elected to make their own filthy magic, starting the Homocore scene, building buzz through experimental art and charged writing found in zines, which offered a communication tool in the pre-internet age. Leyser celebrates Canadian involvement, but soon settles in America, with San Francisco emerging as a fresh fountain of outrage and talent, with Homocore soon morphing into Queercore, welcoming a new perspective on community issues during a time of change, via AIDS and activism, in the city.

Leyser provides a visual journey through short films and stage performances, mixing in photos and interviews to shape an understanding of the subculture, and he doesn’t shy away from criticisms. Assimilation is a theme of the picture, finding the rebels on the front line seduced into complacency, softening the edges of LGBTQ interests, forcing a new generation of punkers to lend their primal scream to the movement.

Queercore: How to Punk a Revolution Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (1.78:1 aspect ratio) presentation is stitched together from all kinds of film and video sources, with a few quite low-res and blocky. Still, the core viewing experience is quite appealing, offering vibrant colors with punk hues, making orange hair and blue outfits stand out, while skintones are natural during interview segments. Artful blasts of markers and crayons also contribute to primary dominance, securing the feature's restless appearance. Detail reaches about as far as it can go, with film and HD sources providing a reasonably defined look at personal appearances and public gatherings. Delineation is adequate, with some mild crush.

Queercore: How to Punk a Revolution Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 5.1 DTS-HD MA sound mix maintains the percussive drive of the music, with soundtrack selections triggering low-end activity, giving the documentary a decent sense of force. Instrumentation is also fine, handling buzzsaw guitars and driving bass lines. Interview segments preserve vocal nuance, with many of these aggressive personalities revealing tender voices. Surrounds aren't hectic, but the track offers a satisfactory frontal push, giving the movement depicted in the documentary proper authority.

Queercore: How to Punk a Revolution Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Interviews include Jayne County (21:52), Dennis Cooper (10:12), Kim Gordon (11:03), Don Bolles (9:55), and John Waters (11:02).

• And a Trailer (1:50, HD) is included.

Queercore: How to Punk a Revolution Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"Queercore: How to Punk a Revolution" follows the trail of unrest through the decades, also providing an overview of its popularization in the 1990s, with bands like Pansy Division breaking through. There's also time with the riot grrrl movement, showcasing the evolution of the message as it struggled with mainstream attention while keeping to guttural displays of rage. Interview additions from the likes of LaBruce, John Waters, and Kathleen Hanna give the picture necessary reflection, but "Queercore: How to Punk a Revolution" always burns brightest when Leyser works through footage of the bands and artists in action, generating a vivid display of discontent and mischief that accurately sells the time and place of this new understanding of an age-old need to belong.