The Decline of Western Civilization

The Decline of Western Civilization (1981) is Penelope Spheeris' documentary about the Los Angeles punk scene, and you can watch online on iFILM. Her camera drops into smoke-filled clubs at the turn of the decade, where bands the radio refused to play tear through their sets.

The film stitches together live footage and blunt interviews with Black Flag, the Germs, X, Circle Jerks, Fear, Catholic Discipline and the Alice Bag Band. Spheeris keeps it raw — bloodied noses in the pit, musicians talking trash in filthy kitchens, kids who treat the music like a lifeline. One stretch belongs to Darby Crash of the Germs, whose short life would end not long after filming wrapped.

It opens Spheeris' trilogy on music subcultures and stands as a primary record of early American punk, captured from the inside while the scene was still alive. Stream The Decline of Western Civilization (1981) online on iFILM.