Rude Boy featuring The Clash Review

Reviewed by David Savage

Starring: Ray Gange, Joe Strummer, Mick Jones, Paul Simonon, Nick “Topper” Headon, Jimmy Pursey and Margaret Thatcher
Directors: David Mingay, Jack Hazan
Certificate: 18
Running Time: 228 minutes
Format: DVD. Blu-ray
Release Date: 6 April 2015

Rude Boy is a fictional documentary featuring real live events and footage from the political situation of the late 1970’s with racism and thieving rife, and of course with concert footage from The Clash.

Twenty year old punk rocker and hapless drunk, Ray (Ray Gange) works in a West End sex and loves music, especially that of The Clash. Always hanging around the band when he is offered the chance to become a roadie for the band he quits his job and travels up and down the country with them.

He soon becomes disenchanted with the band as he doesn’t like them introducing politics into their music and likewise Joe Strummer and the rest of the band have had enough of him eventually ditching him while on tour.

Overall, Rude Boy as a story is not the greatest and Ray Gange is not a great actor, very wooden and mumbling his lines in places. But fans of The Clash will love it as if features 19 songs, 28 performances and 72 minutes of live Clash footage and taking in the Rock Against Racism Carnival in Victoria Park, London as well as Clash On Patrol and Sort It Out UK tours. It also features footage from the band in rehearsals and even the recording studio for their second album.

It also captures perfectly the political situation of the time with racism, the National Front, Margaret Thatcher rise to power and corrupt police using live footage from the time.

Fully restored in high definition with 5.1 surround sound this would make a great collector’s item for anyone that loves The Clash.

Rating: 4/5

RRP: £15.99 (DVD), £19.99 (Blu-ray)

For more information or to buy visit Fabulous Films here.