“We are the mods, we are the mods, we are, we are we are the mods”. Few chants are as iconic in British cinema as Franc Roddam’s peerless Quadrophenia. With a star- making turn from Phil “Park life!” Daniels as frustrated “face” Jimmy, plus brilliant support from the likes of Jamie Winstone, Sting, Leslie Ash, Toyah Wilcox and Phil Davis, it’s still excellent after all this time.
Gritty and grimy, like the working class riots between the mods and rockers that are the main thrust of the narrative, it emulates the brilliant kitchen sink dramas that came before it, such as ‘A Taste Of Honey ‘ and ‘Saturday Night and Sunday Morning ‘ with a soupcon of the more stylised (and pretty overrated) hedonism of ‘Blow Up’.
It’s where frustrated sixties kids in dead-end jobs longed for a purpose, but couldn’t reconcile their baser instincts for scrapping, drugs and fucking. Numerous shots of Brighton beach waves serve as a metaphor for drowning in their own circumstances.
Daniels’ central performance as Jimmy epitomises the wide-eyed ennui, cheek and blankness of the time, pretty reckless but seemingly incapable of getting out of his rut. There’s more than a sliver of vulnerability to him too and suffice to say, it doesn’t end well for the lad. It resonates more with every viewing, absolutely timeless.
Screened as part of Film Four’s Youth Season
Hit The North 
Great movie – thanks for posting
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