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The world of sex, drugs, and rock-n-roll has rarely provided a more effective canvas for a film than in 1986's Sid and Nancy, an unapologetic and voyeuristic look at the relationship between 1980's punk rocker Sid Vicious of the Sex Pistols and longtime girlfriend Nancy Spungen, whose murder scene opens the story.
This gritty and uncompromising drama looks at a relationship that defies logic and sense most of the time but does make for compelling movie viewing. According to director and co-screenwriter Alex Cox, Vicious was a self-destructive drug addict who really didn't care about anything, including Nancy or his career and why Nancy stays with him and defends him also defies logic. The film follows the Sex Pistols' humble beginnings on London's lower west end to the American tour which destroyed the group and Sid's feeble attempts to ignite a solo career with Nancy's help, but it all takes a back seat to their addiction and how nothing else becomes important.
This gritty story is fueled by two electrifying starring performances...Gary Oldman is strikingly unhinged as Sid, a performance so riveting that it should have earned him an Oscar nomination. Oldman completely loses himself in this performance and apparently began his career as one of cinema's greatest chameleons. Chloe Webb's explosive performance as Nancy matches him note for note and these performances make this film worth investing in.
The film is pretty much a long anti-drug commercial and goes where you expect it to and you see the tragedy of Sid and Nancy when they connect to the real world, which comes shining through in a scene where they visit Nancy's grandparents. The film is long and depressing but the performances of Oldman and Webb make it worth watching.
The world of sex, drugs, and rock-n-roll has rarely provided a more effective canvas for a film than in 1986's Sid and Nancy, an unapologetic and voyeuristic look at the relationship between 1980's punk rocker Sid Vicious of the Sex Pistols and longtime girlfriend Nancy Spungen, whose murder scene opens the story.
This gritty and uncompromising drama looks at a relationship that defies logic and sense most of the time but does make for compelling movie viewing. According to director and co-screenwriter Alex Cox, Vicious was a self-destructive drug addict who really didn't care about anything, including Nancy or his career and why Nancy stays with him and defends him also defies logic. The film follows the Sex Pistols' humble beginnings on London's lower west end to the American tour which destroyed the group and Sid's feeble attempts to ignite a solo career with Nancy's help, but it all takes a back seat to their addiction and how nothing else becomes important.
This gritty story is fueled by two electrifying starring performances...Gary Oldman is strikingly unhinged as Sid, a performance so riveting that it should have earned him an Oscar nomination. Oldman completely loses himself in this performance and apparently began his career as one of cinema's greatest chameleons. Chloe Webb's explosive performance as Nancy matches him note for note and these performances make this film worth investing in.
The film is pretty much a long anti-drug commercial and goes where you expect it to and you see the tragedy of Sid and Nancy when they connect to the real world, which comes shining through in a scene where they visit Nancy's grandparents. The film is long and depressing but the performances of Oldman and Webb make it worth watching.