***(out of 4 stars)Back in the early 90's, Director Todd Phillips (Hangover, Road Trip) was a film student at NYU. The idea for a documentary was something that Todd had pondered for quite awhile. Todd needed an interesting subject, as most documentaries thrive on good subjects. The question was what? Or who?
Well, Todd found the end all to be all in subjects. It was the self proclaim messiah of Rock 'n' Roll, GG Allin. Now, I don't know if shit, piss, self mutilation and assault are what you're looking for the next time you go to a club to see a show, but if that's what you were looking for in the late 90's, GG Allin and the Murder Junkies was the band to see. Of course, you also hear some punk rock thrown in the mix. That's only if you survived the first line of, "Bite it, you Scum".
Whether you liked or Hated GG Allin, there's no denying what an interesting guy he truely was. His onstage antics were brutal, disturbing, dangerous and more often than not, violent. He was a lunatic on stage and gained notority with appearences on such day time talk shows like, Geraldo, Jerry Springer and The Jane Whitney show. Cops hated him, parents feared him; yet others found him intriguing and certifiable. He would often threaten parents, saying that their kids where his kids and that he was going lead the youth to a revolutionary revolt resulting in violence and mayhem. He also stated on numerous occasions that he would kill himself on stage and take his followers with him.
Now, you tell me that this guy isn't an interesting subject for a documentary. If I haven't pursuaded you yet, read some more.
It's a Friday night. You and a friend are aimlessly walking the city in hopes of doing something that takes you away from the mundane world you live in. You see a sign in front of a club that says: GG ALLIN AND THE MURDER JUNKIES: ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK. Being young and adventurous you don't see the harm in entering the show. You lead the way; as your friend follows with a big, cocky grin on his face.
Once inside, you see a naked man with a very small penis, screaming his lyrics. You and your friend look on and are enticed. This may turn out to be an interesting Friday night after all. Next, the naked singer proceeds to defecate on stage. After shoving a pile of his own feces in his mouth, he throws it in the audience. It hits your friend right in the face! Bullseye! His grin turns into a (literal) shit eating grin. The naked man screams the chorus, BITE IT, YOU SCUM, as he viciously beats himself in the head with his microphone. His face is bloody and his eyes are wild. He ventures in the audience and your unsuspecting friend is caught off guard with a fist to his shitty face. His nose is busted and gushing blood. This onslaught goes on for a few more minutes until the club's owner finally cut the sound.
You see this type of stuff in this documentary. But it also takes you inside the mind of GG Allin and how he interprets the world. You travel with him from town to town and gig to gig. The interviews conducted are with his bandmates, teachers, fans, close friends and of course, Allin himself. Todd Phillips did a decent job documenting the times of this one of a kind type of guy. We see several live performances, an NYU spoken word that turns ugly, and many scenes of bodily fluids being consumed in someway, shape or form. In GG's mind he was bringing violence and chaos back to Rock 'n' Roll. And he was doing it all because he believed that's how music should be. He truely believed this and he truely believed in himself and the words he spoke. Never conform, never put restrictions or boundaries on music and never forget that he was GOD and that his word was, THE WORD!
Take that how you want to take it. This documentary was interesting enough to sit through. I watched it, not really being a huge fan of Allin, but more of wanting to see something disgusting. I feel that if you're a music fan, chances are you should see this. If your a film fan, or just like documentaries - check it out.
You got my recommendation. Go see it.
Starring: GG Allin, Merle Allin
Director: Todd Phillips
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