Unavailable on home video for many years (except perhaps as a grainy, nth-generation VHS bootleg), Penelope Spheeris' seminal document of the young 1979-1980 Los Angeles punk scene includes chaotic live performances by now-legendary groups like Black Flag (with short-lived lead singer Ron "Chavo Pederast" Reyes), X (giving themselves stick-and-poke tattoos) and the Germs (whose unpredictable lead singer Darby Crash would commit suicide before the film's release) interwoven with talking-head interviews with teenage punks and, most entertainingly, older club owners trying very hard to describe a growing form of music they were clearly unprepared for. The footage of Fear's confrontational set would later grab the attention of John Belushi, who snagged the band a 1981 appearance on Saturday Night Live (and resulted in $20,000 in damage to the studio). - Tom Fritsche

Unavailable on home video for many years (except perhaps as a grainy, nth-generation VHS bootleg), Penelope Spheeris' seminal document of the young 1979-1980 Los Angeles punk scene includes chaotic live performances by now-legendary groups like Black Flag (with short-lived lead singer Ron "Chavo Pederast" Reyes), X (giving themselves stick-and-poke tattoos) and the Germs (whose unpredictable lead singer Darby Crash would commit suicide before the film's release) interwoven with talking-head interviews with teenage punks and, most entertainingly, older club owners trying very hard to describe a growing form of music they were clearly unprepared for. The footage of Fear's confrontational set would later grab the attention of John Belushi, who snagged the band a 1981 appearance on Saturday Night Live (and resulted in $20,000 in damage to the studio). - Tom Fritsche

The third (and seemingly final) installment in Penelope Spheeris' Los Angeles music trilogy, THE DECLINE OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION III follows not the punk acts of Los Angeles from 1996-1997 but their homeless teenaged fans. Musician interviews in this DECLINE are fewer but include interesting musings from Keith Morris from the Circle Jerks and Flea (credited as the "ex-bass player of Fear"). DECLINE III lives up to its title as Spheeris explores every facet of the gutter-punk life, from their damaged upbringings (nearly all were abused or neglected as children) to the self-destructive lives they lead on society's fringe (alcoholism, homelessness and run-ins with skinheads, among others). - Tom Fritsche

The third (and seemingly final) installment in Penelope Spheeris' Los Angeles music trilogy, THE DECLINE OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION III follows not the punk acts of Los Angeles from 1996-1997 but their homeless teenaged fans. Musician interviews in this DECLINE are fewer but include interesting musings from Keith Morris from the Circle Jerks and Flea (credited as the "ex-bass player of Fear"). DECLINE III lives up to its title as Spheeris explores every facet of the gutter-punk life, from their damaged upbringings (nearly all were abused or neglected as children) to the self-destructive lives they lead on society's fringe (alcoholism, homelessness and run-ins with skinheads, among others). - Tom Fritsche

The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years is a documentary film directed by Penelope Spheeris about the Los Angeles heavy metal scene from 1986 to 1988.

The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years is a documentary film directed by Penelope Spheeris about the Los Angeles heavy metal scene from 1986 to 1988.

拉乌尔（科洛维斯·科尔尼拉 Clovis Cornillac 饰）有一个18岁的儿子，在一场可怕的事故中，这个年轻的孩子不幸丧生。警察局调查的结果证明，这个孩子的死纯属意外，虽然感到万分的悲痛，但拉乌尔也不得不接受这个残忍的结果。 　　然而没过多久，一个名叫戴安娜（玛丽-乔西·克罗兹 Marie-Josée Croze 饰）的女人找到了拉乌尔，戴安娜告诉拉乌尔，他的儿子在生前曾经和一所医院签订过一份新药试验协议，而他所遭遇的意外很可能和药物实验有关。于是，在戴安娜的帮助之下，拉乌尔来到了医院所在地巴黎，开始着手调查儿子死亡背后的真相。

拉乌尔（科洛维斯·科尔尼拉 Clovis Cornillac 饰）有一个18岁的儿子，在一场可怕的事故中，这个年轻的孩子不幸丧生。警察局调查的结果证明，这个孩子的死纯属意外，虽然感到万分的悲痛，但拉乌尔也不得不接受这个残忍的结果。 　　然而没过多久，一个名叫戴安娜（玛丽-乔西·克罗兹 Marie-Josée Croze 饰）的女人找到了拉乌尔，戴安娜告诉拉乌尔，他的儿子在生前曾经和一所医院签订过一份新药试验协议，而他所遭遇的意外很可能和药物实验有关。于是，在戴安娜的帮助之下，拉乌尔来到了医院所在地巴黎，开始着手调查儿子死亡背后的真相。