Party Monster
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Movie Reviews of Party Monster
Movie Review: One Account of "Club Kids" Vogue; Seth Green Steals the Show
Summary: 4 Stars
"Party Monster" has a unique history behind that production. The film is an interesting account of Michael Alig's life seen from his friend, but the most intriguing part of the film is that it features Macaulay Culkin after 9 years absence from the screen. The film's directors Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato once made a documentary film "Party Monster: The Shockmentary" in 1999, which is based on the murder of Angel Merendez, also one of the aquaintances of Alig. Now, the same team give a fictional account of the same case, helped by the book "Disco Bloodbath" by James St. James, who was, besides Alig, one of the faces seen in the "club kids" vogue in New York City in the 1990s. This newer "Party Monster" features talented Seth Green (in drag) as James, who recounts the days of the party, drug, and the eventual downfall of Michael Alig. And you know, Alig is played by Culkin.
OK, but don't try to find out the "truths" of the murder. The film is more about the relations between James and Alig, or how Alig met James, and is taken under his wings to gain the short-lived celebrity status. The film, using flashbacks, follows the crazy days of party, drug, and eventual downfall of the man.
What is most attractive is the acting of Seth Green. His face might be associated with "Austin Powers," but actually he is a good actor, or far better than you miight think. See how he plays the role of flamboyant James with a slight touch of humor and irony. Remember, his debut was back in 1982 in "Hotel New Hampshire," and he's been doing this job more than 20 years.
As to Macaulay Culkin, it is true that he is less effective, but still good. Perhaps we have seen one too many "Home Alone" film. The supports include Chole Sevigny, Natasha Lyonne, Dylan McDermott, and Marilyn Manson. But their roles are not big, and I am afraid Ms. Lyonne is unrecognizable to some.
The story is not the strength of the film. You cannot find the answer to the question -- question, I mean, about how come the vogue, though briefly, took over the media to become the talk of the people. After all, it is about the bubble-like movement, and the film is not trying to rationalize that fact.
Still, the film is interesting to see if, like me, you didn't experience the trend as first-hand knowledge, especially the 'anything goes' style these characters show in their desperate attempt to reach fame, and be fun. We know it will end in emptiness, or the film, not to be judgemental, presents all about the emptiness of their behavior as it is.
Movie Review: See the Documentary FIRST.
Summary: 4 Stars
Man, this movie would have been somewhat OK if I had ABSOLUTELY NO PRIOR KNOWLEDGE of Michael Alig. Unfortunately this is not the case. I have many many tapes from talk shows where the "club kids" made appearances on including one rare Donahue appearance and scores of their appearances on Geraldo, including the ones (I believe there were 2) where "Angel" made an appearance. Plus I've also seen the documentary version of Party Monster where James St. James recreated the times and follies of Alig with the help of the same directors who made the newer release.Frankly the documentary is MILES better than the Culkin movie, but the extra actor interviews and Alig interviews make both movies must-rentals, preferably at the same time so you can compare the differences.
Some of the finer points:
1. James St. James is portrayed brilliantly in the documentary, but appears as some sort of vemonous faggot in the new film... This is obviously helped along by James' terrible screenplay himself who from what I can gather is a trust fund kiddie who just happened to be in the right place at the right time.
2. Culkin can obviously act, but sometimes it seems like he's STILL using the same Home Alone type of overacting in order to portray Alig. Granted that Alig was himself over-the-top, but the difference is noticeable in the first 10 minutes enough to get on any historical buff's nerves.
3. Wilmer Valderrama plays Superstar DJ Keoki incredibly well, but the rest of the major star cast is somewhat limited... possibly since the real people were sort of lackluster in comparison to Alig and James in real life... Chloe Sevigny shows only a limited sense of the tragic Gitsie's real persona, Natasha Lyonne seems like she was put there for comic relief in her portrayal of Brooke, and Dylan McDermott's portrayal of Peter Gaitan is stilted.
KUDOS TO:
1. Marilyn Manson as Christina, plays the part beautifully... One has to wonder if he actually knew the long-deceased drag queen in his early days of east coast exploration.
2. Diana Scarwid as Elke Alig, is virtually indistinguishable from Alig's natural mother.
3. Wilson Cruz as Angel Melendez, so why does Cruz always play the tragic gay? People want to know.
Final thoughts...
While I recommend the movie, I would much rather reccommend the documentary first for the real story (and better portrayal)... If you like that, then rent the movie itself for the brilliant extras. The extras for the movie alone made waiting for this DVD's release well worth the wait.
Movie Review: Pleasantly Surprised
Summary: 4 Stars
If you expect to watch a plot driven movie,this is not for you. This film uses a murder to draw you into the time of the Club Kids, a time when it only mattered if you were seen.
I sat down to watch this out of boredom. I am not a fan of Macaulay Culkin and did not think I would last the entire film. Instead, after writing this review, I will be watching Party Monster again.
This film is almost as much about the time as it is about the people. Michael Alig and James St. James happened to be the people who took us to the late 80s, early 90's pre-Giuliani New York night club scene in this film. My exposure to the Club Kids prior to viewing this film was limited. I had managed to see them on Joan Rivers and thought what they were doing was a cool idea, just living to be seen, in a sense. The young men and women were existing for the next party, the next person to give them attention and the next high (both natural and chemically induced).
This movie transports you to a time and place that most of us will never experience, and it manages to do it quite well. The beginning and end did not fit in with the rest of the film and the attempt to bookend the film did not quite work out well, although the end did tie in reminder that Alig only cares for attention in case we had forgotten what his driving force is. I still found these scenes to be tacked on. They did help me travel from now back to the time period of the film and back again but it still seemed a bit disjointed.
Make no mistake, this film is low budget. This was especially obvious in a couple of scenes that take place outside the club on the street. I could almost see the tape for the roped off area, the lack of natural foot traffic was obvious. The two main actors (Seth Green and Culkin) both had several scenes where it was clear they had not had time to work on practicing their lines, and that rehearsals were needed (the beginning of the first scene in the fast food joint comes to mind).
I was surprised at the performances by Chloë Sevigny (yes, gay men can have friends that are girls), Dylan McDermott (who played an excellent role in Wonderland -- another low budget gem, around the same time) and Marilyn Manson as Christina.
This is a good movie to view if you want to leave the world you are in for a couple hours, but a better budget would have really helped this film.
Movie Review: moneysuccessfameglamour
Summary: 4 Stars
You know, the craziest thing about Party Monster is the fact that it's based on a true story. From the looks of it, you would think that it was a good story made up by writers in a K-Hole.But no, these events actually happened.
Party Monster is the story about the rise and fall of Michael Alig, the party promoter who was "King of the Club Kids" and was poised to become the next Andy Warhol, until drugs wrecked his life and ultimately led him to murder Angel Melendez. The movie is based on "Disco Bloodbath" by Michael's former best friend James St. James, as well as the infamous documentary of the same name.
Taking the role of Michael Alig is none other than Macaulay Culkin, who many of you know from the movie "Home Alone". While Culkin's portrayal of Alig has been criticized by critics, if any of you have seen the documentary, he pulled a pretty accurate portrayal of Michael Alig. Probably the best acting job, however, goes to Seth Green, who plays James St. James. Seeing him play a flamboyant drug addled club kid was not only amusing, but he pulled it off with great results.
Other's that take part in the movie are indie legend Chloe Sevigny as Michael Alig's girlfriend(or f*g hag, depending on how you look at it), TV star Wilmer Valderama as aspiring DJ Keoki, and in a surprising appearance, shock rocker Marilyn Manson as freaked out tranny Christina.
The only reason that I gave this movie 4 stars and not 5 is because it irked me at how many liberties were taken on the actual story. While I know that this is probably a must when making a movie, it still tends to bug the s**t out of me.
Still, this a great movie that goes hand in hand with the documentary. If you want a good clubbing flick that's also a true crime story, check out "Party Monster". So far this movie has gotten quite a cult following, which really doesnt surprise me. While Alig's crime was horrible and impossible to condone, there's still a part of us that's amazed by him. Why? I guess because, if you exclude his crime, there's areas of his crazy persona that we all have, whether they're noticed or not.
Movie Review: The true story of the most famous Club Kid
Summary: 4 Stars
'Party Monster' is the true story of Michael Alig, a notorious Club Kid, who in 1996 murdered a nobody drug dealer known as Angel. Birthed in the 80's, the Club Kids were the legendary sparkle of the wild club scene populated by Andy Worhol types and flamboyant gays and drag queens.
Michael (played by Macauley Culkin) bursts into the scene, weaseling his way in through celebrated contributor James St. James (played by Seth Green). He makes a name for himself by organizing club parties, usually starring cleaver wielding singer Christina (played by Marilyn Manson, who shows up surprisingly thicker than I thought he'd be). As his reputation builds, so does his popularity, until he's sitting pretty right on top of the scene. James remains Michael's best friend, though it's a love/hate relationship. James has always been a drug user, but as Michael falls into the abyss of drug use, his personal and society lifestyles change for the worse.
The movie is peppered with a soundtrack of 80's tunes, perfect for the setting. The costumes are wild and realistic to the fashions of the Club Kids. The movie could have used more club scenes, since the clubbing is all the "kids" lived for. Both Seth Green and Macauley Culkin give great performances. It must be a drag for Culkin to always be associated with his child films, it would be nice if he could overcome the stigma like Ron Howard did.
Be sure to read the book 'Party Monster' written by James St. James about the murder, and if you can, watch for the real life story of Michael Alig (with the real Michael) aired on American Justice.
While good, the movie fails to live up to great. I feel the association Michael and James had was too light for what I know of the real life murder, and too much of the club incidents were left out (like Michael's birthday Bloodfest party). Still, if you're interested in the case you should watch the film. Rent first. Enjoy!