Parka Avenue and Blue Sunshine presents: We are the Mods - The Movie

I had the pleasure to attend, a few times this year, the Blue Sunshine Psychotronic Cinema Space. Run by two passionate movie buffs, Kier-La and David, they will dig out the most obscure documentaries and movies to ever hit the movie screen. Let me be clear, obscure and underground do not equal boring.

I've been particularly fond of their music themed Thursdays. White Light / White Heat: The Velvet Underground Day by Day, John Peel's Record Box and The Touchables are a few of the movies I got the pleasure to see. So imagine how excited I was when Kier-La accepted to co-present the Californian independent movie We Are The Mods. I have to give her all the credit for getting the film and obtaining all the rights to show it.

Parka Avenue's duties were to provide the arriving guests a short DJ set with a mix of soul classics, garage favorites and Mod revival anthems. I had also prepared a presentation on what ended up being close to an hour-long overview of the Mod movement throughout the years. Rare clips, never published photos and rare memorabilia were used to win over the audience. A bit worried that I had run long, I was relieved when a few people came up to me to say that they enjoyed the presentation as much as the movie.

One of the unique clips I selected appeared on YouTube around 3 years ago. Filmed in 1964, at the pinnacle of the Mod movement, you get to witness raw footage of The High Numbers before they became The Who. It's a rare look at Mods clearly "blocked" on Purple Hearts or pumped up on Blues. You also get a glimpse of Pete Townshend in the early stages of doing his famed windmill guitar move. Simply admiring Keith Moon working his magic on the drums is awe-inspiring. Why The High Numbers have never recorded one of my all-time favorite R&B numbers Ooh Poo Pah Doo is totally beyond me.

The movie itself might never attain the same cult status as Quadrophenia but unlike some critics from certain Mod circles, I'm not as quick to dismiss it. It's your basic coming-of-age tale with your mixture of teenage angst, relationship woes, drugs and teenage sexual discovery. If you stop and think about it, it sure sounds like a modern day Quadrophenia to me. Who is to say that in 30 years, this movie won't be used as a reference for a new generation of Mods?

Granted, it has its fair share of clichés. But I don't care. The music is good, the clothes are sharp and one of the guys has a beautiful SX200. It's a true honest effort. Personally, I don't get some of the nasty comments from certain YouTube users who base their opinion uniquely on the trailer. And what is all that out-of-date, centric view that Mods can only be British? The music is American and Jamaican, the clothes are based on the American Ivy League look mixed with French and Italian fashion and the scooters are Italian. Can we get passed this please? Mods are now a worldwide phenomenon.

We Are The Mods might not be the classic I was hoping for but I was certainly entertained. And judging from the smiling faces after the show, I wasn't the only one. And that's a fact.

Bronco Bullfrog - A piece of Suedehead history

The Who's Quadrophenia has to be one of the major reasons why I got so involved in the Mod culture when I was a teen. Jimmy's character spoke to me. Just like him, I always wanted to be part of the "in-crowd" and being French speaking, I always felt a bit like an outsider. For so many of you out there, that was part of the Mod Revival, probably felt the same way. There's no denying it, Quadrophenia is THE Mod movie. The same could probably be said of Suedeheads in Bronco Bullfrog.
 

I never had the chance to see it before. Released in British theaters in 1969 for only a short time, it achieved cult status almost instantly. It was never commercialized before this summer on video or DVD and its rarity made certain that it retained its cult movie standing.
 

Bronco Bullfrog is one of the rare and most honest depictions of the Suedehead culture. Suedeheads are the natural evolution and close cousins of the Mods. When Mods were becoming out-of-date in the late sixties, they eventually branched out into the Hard Mods, the Soul Boys or the Suedeheads.
 

I had heard there was going to be a one time showing of the movie at Blue Sunshine, Montreal's Psychotronic Film Center. What is a psychotronic film center exactly? Well... It's basically a third floor apartment on St-Laurent Blvd where a couple of movie buffs show some real underground stuff.
 

I met my friend Stéphane there and was invited to the kitchen for some beer and then to take place in the living room turned movie theater. We were treated to some Small Faces 60s concert footage while we were waiting for the movie to start. Quite a pleasant and unexpected bonus, I might add.

Our hostess then put the film in context by reading an excerpt of Richard Allen's novel Suedehead. Wow! She did her homework! She also explained how she obtained the rights to show the film. The story is quite simple. She wrote director Barney Platts-Mills prior to a trip to London and asked him if they could meet for coffee. He accepted! I thought her story was as captivating as the movie itself. She also warned us that she obtained the subtitled version. Really? Do we absolutely need subtitles? You bet we do!

Our hosts

The cast is composed of amateur actors that had no previous training. It is said that some of the dialogue was also improvised. Does this mean that I witnessed one of the first pieces of reality entertainment? Not quite, but for the untrained ear, the subtitles are obligatory.

The story revolves around the growing pains of Del Walker and his mates. Set in London's East End, the gang follows Bronco to pull off a heist. I found the film fascinating and touching. It won't be the type of movie I will likely watch dozens of times but I did escape to another time during 86 minutes. I wish that the soundtrack was more indicative of the Suedehead movement but overall I enjoyed it.

You can have a look at the trailer of the movie here:

Bronco Bullfrog - The trailer

You should also check out the good folks at Blue Sunshine for the upcoming events.

http://www.blue-sunshine.com/