It has been nearly 20 years since the last installment of the Penelope Spheeris trilogy The Decline of Western Civilization hit theaters. Fans of the stunning documentaries will be able to buy all three in June as a box set when they are released, officially, for the first time on Blu-ray and DVD, Rolling Stone reported. Bonus features for the classic docs will include high-res restoration, previously unseen interviews and commentary by Dave Grohl.
"I am so grateful to the fans of these films, and the bands that appeared in them, for their loyalty and patience," Spheeris said in a statement. "This is my life's work, and I like to think that when I go to my grave, The Decline is what I'll be remembered for."
The first Decline premiered in 1980 and featured bands like Black Flag and X, examining the hardcore punk scene of Los Angeles. Its sequel, The Metal Years, offered a look at the exuberant hair metal culture that took hold in 1988. Famous interviews from that film included Ozzy Osbourne in his kitchen and Gene Simmons at a lingerie shop -- less humorous was the chat that took place poolside with W.A.S.P. guitarist Chris Holmes.
Spheeris captured the gutter punk lifestyle in L.A. for the third Decline, which was released in 1998.
"I feel that a documentarian has an obligation to tell the truth as he or she interprets it," Spheeris said following the release of Decline III. "And what I mean by that is that documentarians don't necessarily have the same sort of obligations that a journalist might have. A journalist might be called upon to be objective, whereas a documentarian is sort of forced to take sides."
All the movies have received high praise. The second Decline is perhaps the most memorable because it examined a genre that was so mainstream at the time. Check out a clip below.
The box set is due out June 30.
