Sid & Nancy Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.5

Sid & Nancy Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov July 27, 2017

Alex Cox's "Sid & Nancy" (1986) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion. The supplemental features on the disc include an original trailer for the film; new video interview with director Alex Cox; Martin Turner's documentary "England's Glory"; archival interview with members of the Sex Pistols; audio commentary with Alex Cox and actor Andrew Schofield; rare telephone interview with Sid Vicious; and a lot more. The release also arrives with and 18-page illustrated booklet featuring Jon Savage's essay "The Horrible Purity of Immortality", an archival piece from the director about Sid Vicious and Nancy Spungen, and technical credits. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

Junk love

It is hard to believe that their relationship actually lasted for as long as it did. Sid Vicious in Nancy Spungen truly cared for each other, but they challenged fate in the worst possible ways. When it all ended, it wasn’t much of a surprise. The people that knew them could see very clearly that for some time they were heading down the lonely path of self-destruction.

The film is directed by British helmer Alex Cox, who also did the cult action comedy Repo Man. It is fast, chaotic and unfiltered, which is probably exactly what a credible film about the punk era should be.

Cox begins the story of Sid and Nancy with the end. In a cold and poorly lit room, the iconic rocker is seen struggling to come to terms with the fact that the love of his life has died. Some cops ask him random questions but he does not even see them.

The film then jumps back in time where producer Malcolm McLaren (David Hayman, Rob Roy) has hit the jackpot with the Sex Pistols. There is some pretty obvious static between Sid (Gary Oldman, Prick Up Your Ears) and Johnny Rotten (Drew Schofield), but when they are on stage performing together they seem invincible. Their music is loud, distorted, oozing pure energy, and the crowds love them. The media also can’t get enough of their endless antics. It is clear that it is all coming together and faster than McLaren had imagined possible.

The drugs enter the picture soon after Sid starts hanging out with Nancy (Chloe Webb, The Belly of an Architect). Initially it is hard to tell what is it that he sees in her -- she is a needy and frequently unbearably annoying American junkie who seems lost in a country that does not care that she exists. But Sid embraces her eccentricity and quickly gets hooked on the same dangerous drugs that she has been poisoning her body with. It is all downhill from here. There are a few scattered episodes in which Sid chooses music over the drugs, but his addiction is already a lot stronger than him.

The saddest and perhaps ugliest sequence in the entire film is in the second act where Sid and Nancy visit her family. They gather around the table and have dinner together. At the end, Nancy’s parents basically force the couple to go to some lousy hotel on the opposite end of town. The whole thing is truly painful to watch.

Oldman and Webb look good together -- the clothing and hairstyles are quite wonderful -- but occasionally some of the outbursts feel seriously exaggerated. Then again, one can probably easily argue that this is exactly the type of erratic behavior that Sid and some of the other Sex Pistols members were known for. (Johnny Rotten has been quite critical of this film because apparently Cox never consulted him. He believes that a lot of the material in the film does not reflect accurately the evolution of Sid and Nancy’s relationship. He has also described his portrayal in the film as absurd).

The film has a cracking soundtrack that is loaded with classic punk hits. Oldman sung his songs, while Glen Matlock rerecorded a lot of the original tracks.

Sid & Nancy Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Alex Cox's Sid & Nancy arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Criterion.

The following text appears inside the booklet provided with this Blu-ray release:

"Supervised and approved by director of photography Roger Deakins, this new 16-bit 4K digital transfer was created on a DFT Scanity film scanner from the original 35mm camera negative at Deluxe in Culver City, California. Thousands of instances of dirt, debris, scratches, splices, and warps were manually removed using MIT Film's DRS, while Digital Vision's Phoenix was used for jitter, flicker, small dirt, grain, and noise management. The original stereo soundtrack was remastered from the 35mm magnetic track. Clicks, thumps, hiss, hum, and crackle were manually removed using Pro Tools HD and iZotope RX.

Colorist: Lee Kline."

It is pretty obvious that this upcoming release is sourced from the same outstanding 4K master that StudioCanal worked with when they prepared their release of Sid & Nancy in 2016. I personally could not see any meaningful discrepancies between the two to mention in our review. It is possible that on this release the film is just a tiny bit darker, but the difference is academic. Of course, the new master is vastly superior to the one that MGM used for the initial North American release of the film in 2011. In terms of clarity and especially depth there are massive improvements that literally transform entire sections of the film. The darker/club footage has some of the most striking improvements as shadow definition is much better and there are entire ranges of filmic nuances that are lost in the previous release; fluidity is far superior during the darker/club footage and the daylight footage as well. The new color palette is also quite striking -- there are new and very healthy primaries and fantastic nuances that match the film's bold and energetic style. There are no traces of problematic degraining or sharpening adjustments. Some minor fluctuations in terms of grain exposure are noticeable, but they are part of the original cinematography. On this release there is also room for some minor encoding optimizations, but you do not have to worry about serious anomalies affecting your viewing experience. The film looks simply terrific in high-definition. My score is 4.75/5.00. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray release. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free player in order to access its content).

Sid & Nancy Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and English LPCM 2.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

I have not changed my opinion about the Stereo track. When I viewed the StudioCanal release I thought that it was the better option for the live performances and even some of the dialog, and I think that this is still the case here. Obviously, you should experiment with the 5.1 track and see if perhaps you like it better, but I think that in terms of clarity, depth, and especially overall balance the Stereo track serves the film better. There are no pops, cracks, background hiss, audio dropouts, or digital distortions to report.

Sid & Nancy Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - original theatrical trailer for Sid & Nancy. In English, not subtitled. (2 min, 1080p).

• England's Glory - this archival documentary was produced by Martin Turner in 1987. It blends raw footage from the shooting Sid & Nancy and some quite entertaining observations from cast and crew members. A couple of half-drunk blokes with meaningful things to say pop up in front of the camera as well. In English, not subtitled. (31 min, 1080p).

• Alex Cox - in this new video interview, director Alex Cox discusses his career, and the shooting and critical reception of Sid & Nancy in the U.S. and UK. The interview, which was conducted in 2016, also appears on the recent Region-B release from StudioCanal. In English, not subtitles. (24 min, 1080p).

• Sad Vacation - presented here are excerpts from Danny Garcia's recent documentary Sad Vacation: The Last Days of Sid and Nancy (2016) with comments from actor Victor Colicchio, Howie Pyro (D Generation/Intoxica Radio), photographer Bob Gruen, actor Ned Van Zandt, author Brett Dunford, and Kenny "Stinker" Gordon (Pure Hell), amongst others. In English, not subtitled. (15 min, 1080p).

• D.O.A.: A Right of Passage - presented here are scenes featuring the real Sid Vicious and Nancy Spungen as well as some punk fans and anti-fans from D.O.A.: A Right of Passage, a documentary about Sex Pistols' American tour which was produced by Lech Kowalski in 1980. In English, not subtitled. (11 min, 1080p).

• Sid Vicious, 1978 - on January 19, 1978, five days after the last Sex Pistols concert and three days after experiencing nonfatal overdose, Sid Vicious got on a plane headed from San Francisco to London via New York. He fell into a drug-induced coma during the flight and, upon touchdown in New York, was rushed to Jamaica Hospital. Presented here is a phone interview with Sid Vicious which was conducted on the next day by photographer Roberta Bayley. In English, not subtitled. (14 min, 1080p).

• The Filth and the Fury! - presented here is the notorious scandalous episode of the British program Today, hosted by Bill Grundy, that established the Sex Pistols' controversial image in the United Kingdom. In English, not subtitled. (3 min, 1080i).

• The London Weekend Show - presented here are excerpts from British television journalist Janet Street-Porter's exploration of punk music and fashion in London that appeared on The London Weekend Show on November 28, 1976. Included in the excerpts are clips from interviews with the Sex Pistols and punk fans. In English, not subtitled. (14 min, 1080i).

• Audio Commentary One - this audio commentary features recorded interviews with screenwriter Abbe Wool, actors Gary Oldman and Choe Webb, cultural critic Greil Marcus, filmmakers Julien Temple and Lech Kowalski, and musician Eliot Kidd. The bulk of the information is about the era in which the Sex Pistols emerged and the disillusionment and frustration that was channeled through the punk movement, Sid Vicious' persona and controversial public image, the type of research that was done for Sid & Nancy and the representation/misrepresentation of facts and characters in the film, the death of Nancy Spungen, the music performance in the film, some of Roger Deakins' specific lensing choices, etc. The commentary was recorded exclusively for Criterion in 1994.
  
  1. The essence of naysaying
  2. Laughably wrong
  3. "It's so Sandra Dee"
  4. The Bromley Contingent
  5. Punk is where you find it
  6. "Audible chainsaw soul pain"
  7. Too Kool to Die
  8. Chloe has bruises
  9. Nobility and integrity
  10. Situationists, punks, and money
  11. Cartoon antihero
  12. D.O.A.'s influence
  13. Blow job
  14. The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle
  15. Dirty mattress in a brown hotel room
  16. Stupidity and acting
  17. Propaganda
  18. Punks in the library
  19. Hopeless joke
  20. Sid wasn't a punk
  21. Bad David Lynch equals good Alex Cox
  22. Sid as casualty
  23. Nancy's death
  24. Punk is dead

• Audio Commentary Two - this audio commentary features director and cowriter Alex Cox and actor Andrew Schofield, who plays Johnny Rotten. The exchanges between the two gentlemen focus primarily on the shooting of various sequences from Sid & Nancy, the characterizations, and some of the music performances. There are plenty of very funny observations/comments as well. (See the segment with the dominatrix who reads a popular British feminist magazine). The commentary was recorded in 2001.
  
  1. Quality art film
  2. Plate of beans
  3. Kathy Burke
  4. An American band in London
  5. The premier anarchy scene
  6. Strummer's score
  7. Triple camera setups
  8. Gods Flying
  9. A priest carrying whiskey
  10. Edward Tudor-Pole
  11. Pull back from fascism
  12. "Six Pistols"
  13. "You were really shit"
  14. Homage to Julien Tmple
  15. The second five weeks
  16. "Play it as a Scouter"
  17. Sy Richadson
  18. The kitten scene
  19. Do the right thing
  20. Courtney Love
  21. Playing in masters
  22. The life of the junkie
  23. Argument of indulgence
  24. "The bullshit message of this film"

• Booklet - 18-page illustrated booklet featuring Jon Savage's essay "The Horrible Purity of Immortality", "On Sid and Nancy and Sid & Nancy" (material gathered by Alex Cox from interviews conducted by the director before beginning work on his film), and technical credits.

Sid & Nancy Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I am not convinced that Sid & Nancy is the serious classic film that it is made out to be. It gets stuck somewhere between being an authentic documentary and a punk romantic drama and the closer one examines it, the clearer it becomes that it has some very serious credibility issues. There is no doubt in my mind that this is the very reason why Johnny Rotten has openly dismissed it. On the other hand, it is hard not to agree that it is a very colorful film with a cracking soundtrack that does leave an impression. Criterion's upcoming release is sourced from an excellent recent 4K master that director of photography Roger Deakins supervised and approved, and has a very impressive selection of new and archival supplemental features. RECOMMENDED.