D.O.A.: A Rite of Passage

The film centers around the Sex Pistols 1978 tour of the United States which ended with the group breaking up. The tour was the only one the group played in the U.S. Film director Lech Kowalski followed them with handheld cameras through the clubs and bars of their seven-city Southern tour. Mixing this with footage of other contemporary bands, trends in the fashion capitals, and punks of all shapes and colors, Kowalski created a grainy, stained snapshot of a movement at its peak,[4] showing how certain authority figures saw the movement as a threat.[3]

It features interview footage (including the famous interview of Sid Vicious and Nancy Spungen in bed), and behind the scenes shots from the tour as well as interviews with audience members who had strong and widely varied reactions to the group.[5]

The majority of the material surrounds the Pistols tour as well but it also included other performances by first wave Punk acts such as The Dead Boys and Generation X with Billy Idol.[3][4][5]

This indie film was shot mostly in bars and clubs on 16mm film, and documented early years of punk from both in front of and behind the stage.[3]

The film's poster is featured prominently in one scene of the 1981 film Neighbors. D.O.A. also featured in The Filth and the Fury, a 2000 rockumentary film about the Sex Pistols directed by Julien Temple, and in the 2002 television series Hollywood Rocks the Movies: The 1970s.[5]

The film premiered on April 10, 1981 at the Waverly Theater in New York City.[1] The DVD was released in Japan in 2003. However it is released in Region 0. In 2017, the film was released on Blu-ray as the inaugural release of the MVD Rewind Collection.

The musical performances/tracks contained in the documentary are as follows:

1. "Nightclubbing" Written by Iggy Pop and David Bowie; performed by Iggy Pop
2. "Anarchy in the U.K." Written by Paul Cook, Steve Jones, Glen Matlock and John Lydon; performed by the Sex Pistols
3. "Oh Bondage Up Yours" Written by Poly Styrene; performed by X-Ray Spex
4. "God Save the Queen" Written by Paul Cook, Steve Jones, Glen Matlock and John Lydon; performed by the Sex Pistols
5. "Pretty Vacant" Written by Paul Cook, Steve Jones, Glen Matlock and John Lydon; performed by The Rich Kids
6. "Liar" Written by Paul Cook, Steve Jones, Glen Matlock and John Lydon; performed by the Sex Pistols
7. "Police and Thieves" Written by Lee "Scratch" Perry and Junior Murvin; performed by The Clash (CBS Records)
8. "Kiss Me Deadly" Written and performed by Generation X (Chrysalis Records)
9. "I Wanna Be Me" Written by Paul Cook, Steve Jones, Glen Matlock and John Lydon; performed by the Sex Pistols
10. "Lust for Life" Written by Iggy Pop and David Bowie; performed by Iggy Pop
11. "All This And More" Performed by The Dead Boys (Sire Records); recorded live by Joe Sutherland
12. "Pretty Vacant" Written by Paul Cook, Steve Jones, Glen Matlock and John Lydon; performed by the Sex Pistols
13. "No Fun" – Sex Pistols
14. "New York" Written by Paul Cook, Steve Jones, Glen Matlock and John Lydon; performed by the Sex Pistols
15. "Rip Off" Performed by Sham 69; recorded live at Roundhouse Studios
16. "Borstal Breakout" Performed by Sham 69; recorded live at Roundhouse Studios
17. "I Wanna Be a Dead Boy" performed by The Dead Boys
18. "Holidays in the Sun" – Sex Pistols
19. "Holidays in the Sun" Written by Paul Cook, Steve Jones, John Lydon and Sid Vicious; performed by The Sex Pistols
20. "E.M.I." Written by Paul Cook, Steve Jones, Glen Matlock and John Lydon; performed by the Sex Pistols
21. "Bodies" Written by Paul Cook, Steve Jones, John Lydon and Sid Vicious; performed by the Sex Pistols
22. "A. P. Special" Written and performed by Augustus Pablo

• D.O.A.: A Right of Passage Review by Richie Unterberger at Allmovie
• D.O.A. Review at Channel 4 Film
• D.O.A. at IMDb
• D.O.A. at TV Guide
• Survival Instincts by Ed Halter at The Village Voice