A documentary where we sort of know all the characters and the stories in advance has to be a special to make a mark. ’50 Years Of Punk’ has tough boots to fill, but we’re left mostly satisfied by this incredibly fast-paced retrospective of the birth of punk in the UK.

If there’s one thing that anyone who talks to a group of old punks for more than five minutes realises, there’s no consensus on anything about the scene in the seventies. Even the simplest questions about who was a main player or even when anything started are open for endless beer-soaked debate. Obviously, a movie that took in every single polarising opinion from the OGs would be longer than the director’s cut of Lord Of The Rings, so ’50 Years Of Punk’ had to take a stand with a single prevailing narrative. There’s a lot of points in this movie which historians and survivors of the first wave of punk will disagree with, such as the role of Vivienne Westwood and Malcolm McClaren in the creation of the scene, or whether Adam And The Ants count as punks. In a way, taking a single strong stance is a very punk thing to do, as well as being a necessary adaptation to try to encompass an entire social movement in an hour. As long as we take every timeline and view presented with a pinch of salt, ’50 Years Of Punk’ is a great collage of a pivotal moment in music history. 

The great strength of ’50 Years Of Punk’ is the original footage, not only of the bands and shows but the grainy atmosphere of the seventies that made up the milieu of the sound. Whether it’s the piles of garbage during the Winter Of Discontent, the Camden alleys that the Clash skulked down or the very creepy footage of the mainstream music shows, it adds so much for those who weren’t there at the time. The static of everyday life combined with the smashed together live clips captures the sheer excitement of the start of punk. Slamming Bill Grundy’s condemnation of the Pistols with top tier live shots is genius and just makes the sound seem that much more appealing. 

That verve and vibrancy, and the spirit of being able to just get up and smash something, infectiously lights up the celebrity gallery of talking heads. Fans of The Damned, The Clash, and The Slits will rejoice at appearances from members of their favourites, but there’s some big holes in the lineup. Yes, we’ve got Glen Matlock and Terry Chimes, but where are John Lydon and Paul Simenon? On one hand, it’s great to hear from lesser-known voices and hear Iggy Pop given the respect he’s due as a huge influence, but there are some big names who feel like they should have been included. Perhaps these characters wouldn’t fit with the ‘PG-13’ ethos of the movie; there’s no mention of drugs or booze, and only passing glimpses of violence. The story we’re told is very inspirational, and cool, and artistic…and very suitable for the whole family. 

The other forgivable hole is that the movie assumes punk was largely a sui generis only located in the late seventies. Yes, a documentary needs a structure, and yes, including why some became disillusioned with the movement is very cool as an antidote to veneration, but there’s a ton of bands who are making punk rock today, however you want to debate the definition. Rebellion Festival is held up as the bastion of the punk movement, and of course it’s an ace weekender, but there’s also so many more bands in the DIY scene and further into the mainstream.

However, while it might not come out and say it directly, the second fabulous thing about ’50 Years Of Punk’ is how crystal clear it makes the parallels with today. Young people in the seventies, we’re told, were disillusioned with government lies, terrible employment prospects, and felt alienated from the future… which sounds like every single Guardian think-piece from the last couple of years.

’50 Years Of Punk’ is a documentary which can inspire kids to pick up a guitar and do what they think is right, as long as they don’t look too closely into the omissions in the tale it tells. 

KATE ALLVEY

’50 Years Of Punk’ is released in cinemas on 18th  September 2026