The Decline of Western Civilization Part III

“Hi mom. Thanks for making me an alcoholic. I love you.”

For part III Spheeris went back to punk.  But the punk scene in LA is pretty different in the mid 90’s than it was in the late 70’s/early 80’s.  If you thought it couldn’t get any more dystopian then you thought wrong.

The thing with this one is that the music isn’t so much the focus.  It’s more about how these punks live and what they do to survive.  There are all of these kids from ages 15 to 22 living on the streets, begging for money, sleeping in alleys and getting drunk 24/7.  Essentially they choose to live this lifestyle because they reject conventional society. 

That may sound like what was happening in part I but most of the people shown in this movie aren’t even in a punk band.  For those that are it seems like music is just something to pass the time or it’s something that they do have an interest in but it’s not the most important thing in their lives. 

There’s very little talk of getting a major label deal and none at all about being rock stars.  These people are past not giving a shit.  They’re just in a state of existing without thinking about what more they could be doing.

It’s pretty sad to see so many kids homeless and nearly possession-less with the exception of the clothes on their back.  None of them have any intention of bettering their situation either.  This is what they have chosen for themselves and they embrace it.  At the end of the doc a bunch of the punks are asked where they think they’ll be in five or ten years and most of them say they’ll be dead.  These folks pursue this way of life even though they know it’ll kill them pretty quickly.  There has to be another part to that answer and one person does say it, “I’m not happy here.  The sooner I go the better as far as I’m concerned really.  I don’t live a happy life.”    

Once again, the title fits.  Is this where our society is heading?  Increasing poverty?  Is a whole generation of America’s youth lost?  Totally fucked beyond saving?

This third installment is definitely the most serious and strays away from the concept of the first two.  Shpeeris tries to mold it into something resembling what she had done previously but doesn’t have a lot of success.  Part III isn’t any less valid or well made though.  It’s just heavier making it a little tougher to watch.