The Ramones were a group of kids from the same New York neighbourhood who formed a band that proved enormously influential without ever quite achieving the highest pinnacle of success. They stayed together for over twenty years, but they didn't actually like each other that much: Johnny was (unusually for a rock star) highly right-wing; Dee-Dee was clearly a damaged individual while Joey, in spite of being the nominal front man, was terminally shy. This film charts the course of their career, and benefits from a surprising amount of grainy early footage; while in true rock-and-roll style, both Joey and Dee-Dee died during the making of this movie. The nature of the band gives the story an unromantic air, even despite the tragic ending; the punk attitude saves the band from indulgent self-worship, but does turn their tale into something of a sequence of fiercely remembered quarrels and mishaps: a downbeat account of a life on the road.
