Matching the righteous political fury of The Clash and San Francisco's Dead Kennedys with the Beastie Boys' funky street-level humor, Mexico City's Molotov charged out of the gate in 1997 with a fast, smart and often controversial take on modern Mexican life that attracted legions of fans and detractors alike. Still going strong after two decades and enjoying a previously undreamed-of level of global success, the band has managed to stay true to its voice, calling truth to power while managing to sell millions of records. Yet director Olallo Rubio's fast, engaging film is no standard 'rags to riches' rockumentary.
Like the brilliant Sex Pistols doc THE FILTH AND THE FURY, GIMME THE POWER contextualizes Molotov's birth and rise as an outgrowth and response to a perennially crippled social structure, a revolving-door dictatorship whose soothing words and 'updated' guises still can't mask its brutal essence. From the country's indigenous and colonial foundations through to the cultural revolutions of the 60s and the seismic shift brought by the 1971 Avándaro Festival, Rubio traces Molotov's origins and legacy with the irreverent energy and exuberance of a class given by your rowdiest friends (and plenty of beer).
Playfully using archival footage and film clips alongside interviews with Mexico's most infamous rockers and critics, GIMME THE POWER is, like the anthemic song it's named after, a galvanizing blast of three-chord energy and the loudest, most punk rock history lesson.
| Directed by | Olallo Rubio |
| Written by | Olallo Rubio |
| Company | 1inMM Productions1inMM Productions1inMM Productions |
