The Clash: Westway to the World

although it somewhat skirts around the truth of the matter, "westway to the world" is a must have for clash fans. it's not nearly as good as other punk rock docs like julien temple's brilliant "the filth and the fury", or jem cohen's "instrument", but worthwhile, nonetheless. my major point of contention is the fact that the movie just kind of wraps with the clash "breaking up" in 1982, when in fact mick jones was kicked out, and the clash went on to release their most horrible album, a "back to basics punk record", in 1985. the early years are well documented, and the stories of life on the road with the sex pistols are great. of course the music is top notch. the dvd also includes a short film called "clash on broadway", which includes a lot of footage also in the feature.

First the obvious: Don Letts is no Julien Temple. For those who don't know or need a reminder, Temple was director on both the Sex Pistols' The Filth and the Fury and the recent Joe Strummer documentary The Future is Unwritten. As far as the latter goes it is for at least 2/3 of the time focused on Strummer's time leading up to and in the Clash, and oddly enough that short time period in the midst of a two hour movie may be somewhat more substantial as enthralling documentary cinema and storytelling than Westway to the World. This doesn't mean to say that Letts' work in putting together the interviews and a very general outline (i.e. general in about 80 minutes or less running time) is necessarily bad. It isn't. It's actually quite good. But when compared to the buck-stops-here docs on the quintessential British punk rockers, it ends up a little short.

This isn't to say that if you're a fan you shouldn't check it out. In fact, it works even greater when seen in conjunction with the Future is Unwritten. Not least of which because Temple, making his film years after, lifted some specific lines from Strummer for his film in voice-over, but because we get to see with Letts' film an idea of what it was like to be in the highs and lows and what-the-hell-is-this-trip quality of the Clash. They were a band that started out with almost a "Stalinist" method of cutting off from previous friends, starting from ground zero, and made some of the most eclectic and hard rocking and lyrically important music of the 20th century. Like the Doors or Jimi Hendrix they were around for less than a decade, but their mark is significant for their natural musical ability, their tough but rewarding forms of musical collaboration, and their f***-all attitude about doing things very proper in conforming to what people would want.

What one takes away with in Westway to the World is a solid glimpse at a band that knew what they wanted and broke apart for reasons that were petty and harsh but also akin to what many band goes through in terms of mistakes and rubbish between friends. At the same time we also get the sense from all members that they would do it the same if they had to do it over again. That takes some guts. One only wishes that Letts, who has here some notable musical performances (some never seen before) and a couple of choice nuggets as far as real confessions or interest goes, could have gone a step further with the style or not relied as heavily on the shabby title cards. But, as said, it's a must for fans of the "only band that mattered."

Its amazing to me how well this documentary was made with absolutely no narration whatsoever outside the band members or key people involved with the clash. In that respect its truly unique and innovative.

For anyone that wants to learn more about what empowered The Clash early on until the implosion and ultimate end of the band this is the movie for you. Great live footage and interviews with all the band members chalk full of interesting stories and facts about the early punk scene and music in general. Loads of extras also on the DVD version including a full catalog of all recorded music.

4 out of 4 stars, I highly recommend this anyone with avid music enthusiasm.

The story of The Clash is rather incredible. They went from a fringe punk band who often sounded cacophonous in the beginning to a stadium filling mega band in the 80s...and almost immediately imploded and were no more. It's rather well documented in the recent documentary "The Rise and Fall of the Clash". While I am not a lover of most punk (aside from the Ramones, who were brilliant), I was intrigued enough after seeing this documentary to want to learn more. A friend of mine had a cope of "Westway to the World" and suggested I give it a look. Unfortunately, it bored me to tears much of the time--mostly because of the style of the film.

Now there are some very good things about the film. There is a lot of excellent film footage that's almost completely in color and in great condition--not the usual grainy stuff you expect in 70s and early 80s footage. But the film also lacked any sort of narration or coherent direction and just consisted of the band members (and no one else) talking about the band. They are all very talented folks...but they also were way out of their element and came off as a bunch of amateurs, as does the film. So, instead of a document showing the band's creation, rise and fall, it's more a bunch of guys remembering their past...somewhat. Not my cup of tea. Perhaps it might have been better and more professional looking had I not watched the director's cut- -20 minutes or so longer than the original film.

Being that I am only the age of 16 I have never had the privillege of seeing my favorite band The Clash. But watching this film has showed me what they were like in person and showed lots of live footage. Its a MUST for any clash fan!