How to Talk to Girls at Parties

I managed to watch this online through my Roku on the Kanopy streaming site through my public library's subscription.

To mention that this is a very unusual movie is a big understatement. It starts normally, for a British setting, with the usual goofiness, but then everything changes when a group of three friends crash a party full of people in what appears to be a very strange cult. This is not the kind of movie I'd like to watch often but as a one-off it is very entertaining for those of us who can appreciate the very unusual.

Most of it takes place in the 1970s but there is a scene at the very end in 1992, apparently some new ones start to show up. In the credits is a statement, "No aliens were harmed in making this film" which gives a hint to what we just watched.

It has some of my favorite actors, including Elle Fanning, Nicole Kidman, and Ruth Wilson, all dressed strangely and playing very strange roles. It was a bit disconcerting to see Kidman and Wilson in such nontraditional roles.

Enn (Alex Sharp) is a disaffected youth in late 70's suburban London. He and his friends follow the local punk scene. He writes his zine and has trouble talking to girls. The boys crash a party after the club. They find the people there strange and Enn believes them to be a cult. Zan (Elle Fanning) decides to leave the group to find unique experiences with Enn. The group go to see advent-guard artist Queen Boadicea (Nicole Kidman).

This has some fun and some weirdness. The problem is that it doesn't have quite enough fun nor enough weirdness. Director John Cameron Mitchell is best known for Hedwig and the Angry Inch. I did check out the Neil Gaiman graphic short story which has two regular dudes from an all-boys school and the story takes place mostly at that party. I'm sure Mitchell added the punk element which actually added color to the story. Elle Fanning is definitely a beauty which explains why Enn would tolerate her weirdness. The story should really take place over one night. That has the tendency to intensify the narrative. It would also allow Kidman to join the movie earlier. I only laughed once when the aliens blocked the hallway in formation. Otherwise, this is an odd little movie which fails to elevate.

I liked the setting and aesthetic quite a bit.

Though, it was a strange film-- better than your typical Hollywood schlock that fills up most theaters, but it's in no way great. I feel like much more could have been done with this concept, but it just left me, kinda uninterested about halfway though.

The film is not bad, but it's also not good.

If you can watch it for free, eh go ahead.

5/10

When I read Neil Gaiman's short story of the same title, I wanted more. It is a beautiful story, I wanted more of it, and this movie delivered for me.

If you want to know what you are getting into before watching, it is a blend of romanticized teenage punk scene with fantasy world aliens. It is nostalgic, fun, and touching. You can read the short story before watching the movie, or read the comic book (it is beautiful).

Some negative reviews I've seen say the movie failed their expectations, which were based solely on the title (lol), or cast. Don't be that person. Or maybe they are just punks?

It's pretentious and cheesy, unique and amazing. The only promise I can make is that you have never seen anything like it. That in itself should be enough to make any movie or art lover feel like this movie was money and time well spent. Of course there are flaws, but it's punk, that's what gives it character. If you spend all your money on Hollywood reboots, stay far, far away...

You can enjoy the humor in this movie on the surface level or try to dig deeper into the many metaphors. I just went along for the ride and had a great time.