Looking for Johnny: The Legend of Johnny Thunders is a fitting tribute

Johnny Thunders (right) with fellow New York Dolls / Heartbreaker member Jerry Nolan.

Following his illuminating The Rise & Fall of the Clash documentary, director Danny Garcia has set his sights on the very roots of punk rock with Looking For Johnny: The Legend of Johnny Thunders.

From his role in the pre-punk glam rock of the New York Dolls in the early 70’s, through to his work with The Heartbreakers and his innumerable solo genre hopping stints throughout the 80’s, the film paints a picture of a songwriter with remarkable talent, saddled with a crippling addition to heroin that would haunt him throughout his short life.

As an Italian New Yorker who chose rock n’ roll over his initial passion for baseball, Johnny Thunders was always an enigmatic character, possessed with near-limitless charisma, and the chops to match. As a founding member of the New York Dolls, Thunders helped kickstart the nascent punk scene, inspiring fellow New York artists to pick up instruments and eventually form punk’s first wave, including The Ramones and Television.

Following the breakup of the New York Dolls, Thunders and former Dolls drummer Jerry Nolan quickly started up The Heartbreakers, a revved-up take on early rock n’ roll mixed with the grime of 70’s era New York City, complete with references to Thunder’s newfound dependance on heroin. Their 1976 European tour with the Sex Pistols influenced a whole generation of UK punk bands, including The Clash, with the unfortunate sidetone that The Heartbreaks allegedly also introduced heroin into the UK punk scene at the same time.

Thunder’s output throughout the 80’s was a scattershot look at his influences, including a stripped-down acoustic album, and a sweeping rock n’ roll revue complete with a female backup singer and a sax player. His ability to continue to play so well over the years despite his incredible appetite for drugs was legendary, which made the mysterious circumstances surrounding his death in a New Orleans hotel room at just 38 fodder for conspiracy junkies for decades to come.

Garcia’s film tracks down a great number of aging characters from the early days of NY punk to discuss Johnny’s life and influence, including his wonderfully charismatic former New York Dolls cohort Sylvain Sylvain, Patti Smith guitarist and rock expert Lenny Kaye, various girlfriends of Johnny’s throughout the years, and rare interviews with former managers Marty Thau and Leee Black Childers, shortly before their deaths. Most of the assembled participants have now comfortably slipped into middle-age, so it would have been welcome to include any of the myriad of bands influenced by his work over the years, but there is something to be said for a film that focuses on recollections by those who knew Thunders best.

Looking For Johnny is essentially a film by a fan, for the fans. There is likely little in the rough live footage here to win over many new converts, which is unfortunate. The film runs with the idea that the audience clearly knows how ahead of their time the Dolls were, and needs no primer that The Heartbreaker’s L.A.M.F. is one of the best rock albums of all time. Despite that caveat, the film ultimately succeeds as a showcase for Thunder’s determination and legacy, and as an honest look at the ravages of drug addiction. MVD’s DVD release features 20 minutes of additional interviews that are actually worth a look, as well as some full live clips, and behind-the-scenes footage.

Looking For Johnny is available now on DVD. Check out the film’s trailer below.