Quadrophenia (film)

Quadrophenia is a 1979 British film based on a 1973 rock opera album Quadrophenia by The Who. The film stars Phil Daniels in the leading role as a Mod named Jimmy. The film also stars Toyah Willcox, Mark Wingett, Leslie Ash, Ray Winstone, Timothy Spall, Phil Davis, Michael Elphick, Kate Williams, Sting, Gary Shail and John Altman. It was directed by Franc Roddam in his feature directing debut.

Phil Daniels - James Michael 'Jimmy' Cooper
Leslie Ash - Steph
Philip Davis - Chalky

Mark Wingett - Dave

Sting - Ace Face

Ray Winstone - Kevin (as Raymond Winstone)

Garry Cooper - Peter
Gary Shail - Spider
Toyah Willcox - Monkey
Trevor Laird - Ferdy
Kate Williams - Mrs. Cooper - Jimmy's mother
Michael Elphick - Mr. Cooper - Jimmy's father
Kim Neve - Yvonne

Benjamin Whitrow - Mr. Fulford
Daniel Peacock - Danny

Soundtrack
The Who - I Am the Sea
The Who - The Real Me
The Who - I'm One
The Who - 5:15
The Who - Love Reign O'er Me
The Who - Bell Boy
The Who - I've Had Enough
The Who - Helpless Dancer
The Who - Doctor Jimmy
The High Numbers - Zoot Suit
Cross Section - Hi Heel Sneakers
The Who - Get Out and Stay Out
The Who - Four Faces
The Who - Joker James
The Who - The Punk And the Godfather
James Brown - Night Train
The Kingsmen - Louie Louie
Booker T. & the MG's - Green Onions
The Cascades - Rhythm of the Rain
The Chiffons - He's So Fine
The Ronettes - Be My Baby
The Crystals - Da Doo Ron Ron
The High Numbers - I'm the Face

In 2004 the magazine Total Film named Quadrophenia the 35th greatest British film of all time.

The cast of this movie were reunited after 28 years at Earls Court on 1st and 2nd September 2007 as part of 'The Quadrophenia Reunion' at the 'London Film & Comic Con' run by reelevents.biz. Subsequently the cast have agreed to be part of a Quadrophenia Convention at Brighton in 2008

Plot
It's London, 1964, and Jimmy is a member of a Mod gang (working class youths who imitate the attire of upper-class citizens, and ride Vespa and Lambretta scooters). The Mods are always fighting with Rockers, who in turn wear black leather and ride motorcycles. Disillusioned by his parents and a dead-end job as a runner in an advertising firm, Jimmy only finds an outlet for his teenage angst with his mod pals Dave, Chalky and Spider. However his angst and confusion are compounded by the fact that one of his Rocker rivals is in fact childhood friend Kevin (Ray Winstone), to whom he comments "I don't wanna be like everybody else - that's why I'm a Mod, see?". A three-day bank holiday provides the excuse for the rivalry between the two gangs to come to a head, as they both descend upon the seaside town of Brighton.

But when Jimmy is arrested during the Brighton riot, which was based on the real life "Second Battle of Hastings" Brighton area Bank Holiday riot of 1964, his life begins to go downhill. He is fined and kicked out of his house by his mother, who found his stash of blues (blue pills of amphetamine). He then quits his job, blows his severance package on blues, and finds out that his crush, Steph is now the girlfriend of his mate Dave. After a short fight with Dave, he wrecks his scooter and finds out his idol, the suave Mod "poster boy" Ace Face (played by Sting), is in reality a bellboy. He steals Ace's scooter and heads out to the cliffs, leading him to an uncertain fate-
In the famous ending, we see the scooter fly off a cliff without Jimmy in dramatic fashion, crashing on the rocks below. This has led people to debate on whether or not Jimmy purposely went off the cliff himself to commit suicide.

A figure can be seen on the top of the cliffs in a split second shot as the scooter flies through the air. Arguments to Jimmy committing suicide say it could be a bystander or a continuity error (such as a camera man). Arguments to Jimmy surviving claim that it is Jimmy watching the bike, and also that the opening scene of the film is an epilogue to the story. Jimmy is seen walking back up the incline from the cliff-edge, however there is no way to tell if it is that same day. Regardless of whether he died or not, he has symbolically trashed the culture of mod in the trashing of Ace Face's scooter. Ace Face is not all he seems, and Jimmy realizes that the whole raison d'etre of mod is built on fragile foundations, from which he is now freeing himself to move on with life, in a frustrated, coming of age style resolution.

It is arguable that what eventually frustrates Jimmy about the Mod lifestyle is its tendency to accommodate itself too readily with mainstream society. Jimmy comes to detest the world of work, but a friend tells him, "You've got to work if you want money, and I love money". This is also evidently the deal made by the Ace Face with his job as bell-boy; and is a position that Jimmy obviously finds unsatisfactory. Similarly, Jimmy demands something more from Steph than her casual attitude towards their relationship. The crashing of the Ace's bike represents Jimmy's final rejection of Mod in favour of some form of search for personal truth or identity, rather than absorption into the confomrity of either gang culture or the world of steady jobs. Where this search leads Jimmy is never made clear.

A featurette included on the VHS release, featuring photos of the production, includes several shots of Jimmy falling from the scooter as it approaches the cliff edge. The final shot shows him standing on the cliff edge, looking out to sea.

On the DVD Commentary, director Franc Roddam states that the ending can be perceived as ambiguous, and that many viewers disregard certain facts and have their own beliefs concerning Jimmy's fate.

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