Party Monster
2003 Directed by Fenton Bailey, Randy Barbato
Synopsis
'Til death do they party...
Party Monster is the cult film that illustrates the rise to stardom of an infamous party promoter in New York City.
Cast
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Popular reviews
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Based on the true story of Michael Alig whose life in the late 1980's to early 1990's spirals out of control in the NYC party scene resulting in the brutal murder of a fellow clubber/drug dealer. Starring Macaulay Culkin and Seth Green as Alig and James St. James respectively, the two actors are just as outrageous as the actual individuals they portray.
One of the more interesting aspects of these two "characters" is that they are the only ones that break the fourth wall and speak directly to us, the viewer, either by looking at the camera or through voice over. While some might think this movie is over the top, I tend to disagree with this evaluation. What seems over the top is truly how the existence of the club kids of this time lived. If you think I'm wrong watch the "shockumentary" Party Monster: A Shockumentary (1998) and you'll see the reality of this film.
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This movie looked very cheap. The sets, the editing and the camera work all were pretty cheap. The script and narrative structure sort of fell apart a little as it started to reach its end. Even Wilson Cruz was rather laughably bad. That said, I enjoyed this film for the most part, especially the first half. I thought Culkin and Green were fantastic in this and did very admirable jobs and the way they played off each other was great.
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I wasn't too sure about this one at first, but ended up quite enjoying it by the end. I'm not usually a fan of Seth Green but he turned in a pretty solid performance here. Macaulay Culkin was pretty patchy and I was never that convinced by him. It was a pleasure to see Chloe Sevigny on screen as always. On the whole not too shabby but I preferred the documentary.
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It took me a while to ease into it, both because of Culkin and Green's overly affected acting (which, if you consult YouTube videos of the real-life figures they're portraying, is actually on the mark) and the awkward metafictional frame that the filmmakers used to introduce us to notorious Club Kids Michael Alig and James St. James. The middle sections are engaging, though, as a document of fin de siecle spectacle and excess, somewhere between Truman Capote's Answered Prayers on speed and Velvet Goldmine on ketamine.
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Absolutely, without a doubt, one of the worst things I have ever seen.
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One of my favorite movies of all time.
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I used to LOVE this film as a teen and I hadn't seen it for a few years.
On a rewatch in my twenties... this film is horrible. A horrible, cheap looking film about horrible people doing horrible things.
I love the costumes, make-up and music, but, like the club kids themselves, once you go beyond the aesthetic, there really isn't much here to celebrate.
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Looooove it. It's a sad, horrible story (an infamous cautionary tale, from which the NYC club scene has never fully recovered)... but done with uber-camp, so as not to be a total downer.
Seth Green is absolutely hysterical as James St James... perfect choice. And Macaulay's portrayal of Michael Alig has a lot of Richie Rich thrown in (he was pretty integral in the scene at the time, but is otherwise absent from the movie altogether). Both actors received quite a bit of flack from the public for their performances... but that's *camp*, folks; it's a style.
Great soundtrack... awesome track selection to identify the passing years of the story. Makes up a bit for the film's failure to paint…
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Based on the true story of Michael Alig whose life in the late 1980's to early 1990's spirals out of control in the NYC party scene resulting in the brutal murder of a fellow clubber/drug dealer. Starring Macaulay Culkin and Seth Green as Alig and James St. James respectively, the two actors are just as outrageous as the actual individuals they portray.
One of the more interesting aspects of these two "characters" is that they are the only ones that break the fourth wall and speak directly to us, the viewer, either by looking at the camera or through voice over. While some might think this movie is over the top, I tend to disagree with this evaluation. What seems over the top is truly how the existence of the club kids of this time lived. If you think I'm wrong watch the "shockumentary" Party Monster: A Shockumentary (1998) and you'll see the reality of this film.