a Japanese science fiction punk rock musical / action film. Released in 1982, the film was directed by Sogo Ishii. Primarily a showcase for both various specific punk rock bands of the time, such as The Roosters, The Rockers, and The Stalin, the film is also purely demonstrative of the culture and attitude of the punk rock community of Japan in the mid-to-late 1970s and the early 1980s. The film was distributed by the Toei studio.
The plot is not very complex, as much of the action and drama of the film relies on musical interludes, character interactions, and commentary on the class system in the film’s fictional universe. What plot there is follows groups of rival biker gangs in a dystopian future who are attempting to rebel against the construction of a massive power plant in “their” part of Tokyo.
The film is highly regarded among critics and audiences alike. Its hyperkinetic, unrelentingly high energy style was wildly different from other films of the period and extremely innovative. The film is also regarded for being purely inspired from music, and the way the punk aesthetic, culture, and music exerts its influence over every element, scene, and character in the film. It has been called one of the “starting points in contemporary Japanese cinema”, along with Ishii’s own Shuffle, Panic High School, and Crazy Thunder Road.
Burst City was released on Region 1 DVD by Discotek in June 2006.
