The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle

The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle is a documentary film directed by Julien Temple. The film chronicles the peak of the Sex Pistols' career -- a time when they were considered by some to be "the most dangerous band in the world". The film was made on a low budget in the summer of 1978 and, after much editing, went to theaters in October 1979. It was derided by critics as being of poor quality. Created following the band's break-up, it tells its story from the perspective of the Sex Pistols' manager, Malcolm McLaren, and aggressively criticizes lead singer Johnny Rotten.

Related Topics:
Documentary - Julien Temple - Sex Pistols - Malcolm McLaren - Johnny Rotten

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The band regained the trademarks to their name and images from McLaren after a court battle in the late 1980's, and their newly-formed business partnership, Sex Pistols Residuals (a collective d/b/a for Rotten, Jones, Cook, Matlock, and the estate of Sid Vicious), permitted the home video release of the movie in 1993 by Warner Reprise Video in the US and Virgin Music Video elsewhere. In 2005, the partnership licensed the DVD rights to Shout! Factory; the DVD features commentary by Temple.

Related Topics:
D/b/a - 1993 - 2005 - Shout! Factory

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Temple would later direct The Filth and The Fury, a similar film, but one made with more resources, and showing the actual band members' sides to the story.

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The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle was also the name of the Sex Pistols' second album (and a song from that album). Though billed as a Sex Pistols album, it is actually the soundtrack of the film, and includes performances by several other artists.

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