The Decline of Western Civilization (1981)

Penelope Spheeris’ The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years (1988) goes into depth about the livelihoods of the most famous rock stars, such as Aerosmith, Ozzy Osborne, and Kiss, to name a few. The film is a documentary, focusing on heavy metal in the late 80s and tackles topics like drug addiction, alcoholism, sex, masculinity, and of course, rock and roll. However, this didn’t feel like any documentary, I’ve ever seen before. I saw the most beautiful shots, some of which, were taken in the most bizarre settings. One of the things, I love about this documentary is, hearing Spheeris asking questions to the subjects. Sometimes, the questions are cut to make it look like the person is just pouring their heart out when really, someone was guiding them to answer the questions. I think, Spheeris wanted her audience to know that, they are watching a documentary, and hearing her interactions with the rock stars, and heavy metal fans created an intimate space that you don’t see in documentaries.

4. Alice Cooper with the Noose                                                                                                                                                   

In this scene from The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years, Spheeris asks members from different bands how they feel when other bands rip off one another’s music. We cut to Alice Cooper, who is surrounded by a gothic execution set stage, holding on to a noose. He responds, “I could think of a few that I would like to have right about now, right about here’” as he yanks the noose. This scene of Alice Cooper shows how this documentary can be viewed as a comedy because of the honest testimonies and the anger some bands feel when their songs can no longer be considered original.

3. Gene Simmons in a Lingerie Store

I’m embarrassed to say, it took me a while to know where Gene Simmons was in this scene, and when I realized where he was, a part of me was thinking, “Should this be happening right now? Can this be shown in theaters?” Luckily, the Hays Code got outlawed in 1968. I don’t know much about Gene Simmons, let alone KISS, but it’s very peculiar to set an interview within a lingerie store, and to have Simmons look at a woman’s butt, when being asked questions. Whether you think this is disturbing, or some sort of joke, this scene tells us a lot about how male rock stars view women. In a few testimonies, some heavy metal wannabes said, they wanted to be rock stars to get girls, and some of the successful bands, also said, they did it for the girls. In a discussion about groupies, Simmons shares an experience, when a fan once said "Hi" to him, and lifted her shirt to show him her breasts. In some ways, heavy metal can be compared to the horror genre because both genres eroticize and dehumanize women--The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years showcases this comparison perfectly.