Oil City Confidential

The band that was punk before punk even existed. That's how Dr. Feelgood is described in Oil City Confidential, a stylized portrait of the British punk-rock band. The members of the band grew up in Canvey Island, a dreary corner of southeast England dominated by the petrochemical industry. Influenced by rhythm & blues, the young men formed a "jug band" and went on to conquer London and the rest of the world in the early 1970s. In an era in which the music scene was dominated by long-haired musicians playing experimental music, Dr. Feelgood stood out with their uncompromising punk rock, short hair, and cheap suits. Director Julien Temple chronicles the rise and fall of this groundbreaking band in film noir style, interviewing the band members themselves as well as members of The Clash, Blondie, and The Sex Pistols. The film also follows the proverbial trail of drink, drugs and women, and the inevitable bust-up between the guitarist and the lead singer, and freely associates on the basis of archive footage and excepts from classic black-and-white movies. Temple is known for his concert recordings and music films, and has covered bands such as The Sex Pistols. His documentary Glastonbury, about the huge English music festival, was released in 2006.