Have you ever taken a moment to think about what life would be like without music? For example, getting over your first breakup, or coping with the loss of someone close to you. How would you be able to do those things without your favorite band, or without the lyrics of some of the most poetic songwriters of our time? For me personally, I don’t know where I would be without music, especially the genres of punk and hardcore. For every breakup, there was The Smiths for me to sing me through the heartache. For every loss I faced, there was always Morrisey’s lyrics that held the answers. Thankfully for us music nerds, music has never faced extinction. Unfortunately, though, there are some bands who break up, and it suddenly feels like music has died. There’s a piece of us that feels lost forever, but fortunately, those songs are perpetually etched into a CD in your 6 disk changing cd player in your bedroom, or downloaded to your cell phone, or streamable from Spotify or Apple Music.

The Smiths is one of those bands who can hit any listener in the feels. The Smiths really stood out to me because of how ahead of their time they were. Morrisey was showing examples of how to cope with countless different things that were taboo in the 80’s. They really brought out the more sensitive and thoughtful side of punk that wasn’t always there. Granted, there were several bands before The Smiths who were talking about the same things, like Joy Division. But it wasn’t until The Smiths that it really hit a broader audience and the seemingly lost misfit kids finally found a savior that they could cling onto because everything they were questioning, he was questioning too. 

Shoplifters of the World is a film about the impact The Smiths had on the lost kids of the 80’s and how their breakup shattered the hearts of thousands. Director Stephen Kijak demonstrated first-hand how different fans of the emotional side of punk and rock were from the mainstream world. The film takes place in a world after The Smiths have announced their breakup and how it utterly devastates a particular group of kids in Denver, Colorado. The group consists of Cleo (Helena Howard), Sheila (Elena Kampouris), Patrick (James Bloor), Billy (Nick Krause), and Dean (Ellar Coltrane). These kids are undoubtedly some of the biggest Smiths fans in town. Each of them have a different personal connection with The Smiths’ music and throughout the movie, the audience gets to see how deeply the group was impacted by The Smiths. Whether it’s Billy’s struggle of feeling comfortable in his own skin as a biological male, Patrick’s questioning of his sexuality, Cleo and Sheila wanting to fit in and get away from their hometown, or Dean’s suicidal ideation, The Smiths were there for them, through it all, the music kept them sane, kept them alive. The music made them feel like they had a shoulder to cry on and it united the five of them as a family. After the announcement of the band’s breakup, the group goes out for a night on the town to mourn the loss, but Dean, a record store owner, doesn’t join them. Instead, Dean goes to their local metal radio station with a suitcase full of The Smiths vinyl and held radio DJ, Full Metal Mickey (Joe Manganiello) at gunpoint, and forced him to play nothing but The Smith’s for the rest of the night. This became the group's soundtrack throughout the evening. 

While the film is following the group, Dean and Full Metal Mickey are getting acquainted with one another. I mean, Dean does have a gun pointed at Mickey’s face, so you might as well get to know the guy. This is where I thought Joe Manganiello shined as the star of this film. Manganiello seemed tough on the outside, but he was a soft guy on the inside who loved metal and thought Metallica could do no wrong so of course he was reluctant at first to play The Smiths on a metal radio station. As the music played on, Manganiello as Mickey persistently questioned Dean on why he loved The Smiths so much. Dean explained how they saved him from his suicidal thoughts and eventually, Full Metal Mickey began to see his pain. Mickey opened up to Dean about how metal did the same for him and realized that even though their music taste is different, the listeners are the same. This led to Mickey giving Dean the courage to dedicate a Smiths song to his long time crush, Cleo. 

This film is filled to the brim with beautiful cinematography and nostalgia. The warmth of the film and the 80’s nostalgia give the audience a feel for the aesthetic of The Smiths and their music that perfectly complements the story that is being told. Another thing I absolutely adored is how they subtly included The Smiths song lyrics into the dialogue of the characters. The film also showed clips of the band being interviewed and playing live in between acts, which really tied together the whole aesthetic. I honestly didn’t have very many problems with this film. I only wish that some of the scenes were longer, like the scene with the bicyclers passing by the car giving a nod to The Smiths video for “Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before”. Other than that, the film is nearly perfect. 

Shoplifters of the World is a must see for any Smiths fan, or any fan of music in general, because it really shows you how much music means to all of us. With its cinematic shots and story line, this film will go down as one of the best music based movies of all time. Do not miss out on this one!

RORSHACH RATING:

Mental Health Moment: Morrisey was definitely one of the first songwriters of his time to talk about the kind of things that he did. He has always been someone who struggled with his sexuality and his identity. He became celibate and strayed away from sex and didn’t want to put a label on things. He was attracted to humans and didn’t know how to feel about it so he ended up writing some of the most influential song lyrics that ended up helping him and others too. The film shows the group dealing with different things like identity, placement, masculinity, sexuality, and just simply having the will to exist. Through music, they found solace, they had a place to express these things in a time where it wasn’t normal. And that’s the main thing I took away from this film. Punk rock absolutely created a home for the outcasts and misfits of society. It gave these kids a place to be themselves without judgment. Music is essential to mental health. I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again, we can’t get through this without one another. Don’t be afraid to be different. Be you and be free. There are others going through similar things and you will figure it all out and be okay.

If you or someone you know is reading this right now and struggling with suicide, depression, addiction, or self-harm - please reach out. Comment, message, or tweet at us. Go to victimsandvillains.net/hope for more resources. Call the suicide lifeline at 1-800-273-8255. Text "HELP" to 741-741. There is hope & you DO have so much value and worth!

Victims and Villains is written (and produced) by Josh "Captain Nostalgia" Burkey and others, and edited by Cam Smith. Music by Mallory Johnson and others. Shoplifters of the World is property of We do not own nor claim any rights.

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