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Rude Boy

Rude Boy

  • Status: Released
  • 25-07-1980
  • Runtime: 133 min
  • Score: 6.3
  • Vote count: 30

Rude Boy is a semi-documentary, part character study, part 'rockumentary', featuring a British punk band, The Clash. The script includes the story of a fictional fan juxtposed with actual public events of the day, including political demonstrations and Clash concerts.

Ray Gange

Ray

Joe Strummer

The Group

Topper Headon

The Group

Paul Simonon

The Group

Mick Jones

The Group

Jimmy Pursey

Guest Singer

Caroline Coon

Clash Girlfriend

Johnny Green

Roadie

Barry Baker

Roadie

Terry McQuade

Terry

Elizabeth Young

Ray's Girlfriend #1

Sarah Hall

Ray's Girlfriend #2

Barry Myers

DJ

Colin Richards

Sex Shop Customer

Lutz Becker

Sex Shop Customer

Kenny Joseph

Solicitor's Clerk

Lizard Brown

Suspect

Hickey Etienne

Suspect

Inch Gordon

Suspect

Lee Parker

Suspect

Colin Bucksey

Police

Ari Up

Self (uncredited)

CinemaSerf

If you are a fan of "The Clash" then you might get more from this fly-on-the-wall, partially dramatised, documentary that follows their ascendancy in the UK towards the end of the 1970s. To give it some sort of narrative, there's a fan inserted into the mix and he serves as a conduit to not just the story of the four piece's musical journey, but also to illustrate a Britain that was wallowing after many years of ineffective government, out of control trades unions, and on the cusp of electing Margaret Thatcher (who does feature now and again telling us about the safety of old ladies walking along the street). What's interesting about their conversations is that the band vacillate entertainingly from the banal gibberish of stoned, drunk, opinionated would-be rock stars to perfectly lucid men with astute views of society and the causes of the misery which many of us Brits experienced at the time. The drama doesn't really work so well, but when they are on stage the thing can be quite electric, and the bands engagement with a wide demographic delivering some potently observational lyrics; plenty of ripe and vivid language, and some poor soul sent to the hotel corridor so another could get laid in their shared room brings some humour to it too. It's far too long and indulgently paced though, and there's not enough music to really stop in from becoming a bit too repetitive. Needs a shortening to tighten up the story, but still interesting enough.