The idea of this films makes me think the myth and legend of Darby Crash (originally born Paul Beahm Sept 26th 1958 - Dec 7th 1980) may now be tainted the way Hollywood likes to do things. I'm all for biopics and sometimes stories are important and need to be told to a mass audience that can learn something from peoples lives and how they affected the future. However, a film dedicated to a band who were around less than 3 years and whose audiences were made up of a small collective of people who regularly traveled from club to club and city to city in search escapism and something to live for cannot be do justice to the person they think they are doing justice to. Its true that without The Germs there would be no Nirvana, Melvins, Meat Puppets, Circle Jerks, Gorilla Biscuits and to some extent 70% of what was known through the 80's as Hardcore, but this cannot be grasped without being there at the time. The irony being that the film is called What We Do Is Secret, well not for much longer mate!
Below: The real Darby Crash (Lorna Doom in the background)
Don't get me wrong, everyone is entitled to form there own opinion, but this is mine and its difficult to accept that this film could be of use except for maybe rekindling the fame that Pat Smear and Lorna Doom once enjoyed whilst playing with The Germs and then later Nirvana and other bands. My advice is to listen to MIA by The Germs and then read Lexicon Devil: The fast times and short life of Darby Crash and The Germs. Buy their music not their image.
For further interest watch The Decline of Western Civilization, a documentary made in 1981 tracing the origins and lives of the kids involved LA punk scene.
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