Totally F***ed Up

This film was great...I thought it showed the disenchanted at a level that was easy to identify with, especially for young queers. low budget movies always seem a bit cheezy but it brings them down to a level which is easily understood by the general populace. (sounds patronising I know, but it's a fact). It showed a bit of light in a lost world and is easily my favorite Araki film. The characters were great, the cinematography, while sometimes a bit hard on the eye, was interesting for me as a young film maker...it was also easy for me to identify with, although I'm in a totally different cultural climate and country from where this was filmed, growing attached to these characters was easy for me because I've been there and felt that, no matter how cheezy it is to say. I wonder one day if I can make a film as good as this...I want to give a bit of hope back to my generation and generations to come of young queers and let them know that there are others out there who feel the same way, give them a little hope in this dark.

This is the first film from Gregg Araki, the man who made "Doom Generation" and "Nowhere". Like those films, the theme is the end of the world and features a backdrop of industrial music (Ministry, My Life With the Thrill Kill Kult, 16 Volt, etc.). The only difference is the lack of budget and big name actors (no Rose McGowan or John Ritter). We follow the lives of a group of gay and lesbian teenagers over the course of roughly two weeks. We see their struggles against oppression, their personal lives. An AOL user would summarize this films as "Buttsecks? O RLY? Ya RLY." but that's just ignoring the overall themes to focus on the more distasteful aspects of the film. If you're ans Araki fan or want a new experience, check this film out. It's not nearly as weird as his other films (no aliens or talking decapitated heads), but it will warp your perception of the world. And the end, while very abrupt, leaves something of a lasting effect.

My fourth Araki. Another of his 90s End-of-the-World series. Again, here James Duval is front center with his group of rag-tag not-your-average LGBTQ misfits akin to John Hughes clique. Unlike the strawberry tinged life of those 80s cliques, this kids have to face isolation, sexual identification and familial rejection where being out is still also being out there.

I love how film's tackle this LGBTQ teenager's problems. Especially, the character's talking about being thrown out or cheating and such, which given the time it was made, handled with care and compassion. It was after all, the 90s. AIDS death was still on the uptick. Its nice to see how they have each other's back even with some of stuff.

Stylistically, it is very lofi, no budget vibes. You could feel the indie-ness of the film. Its rough and almost scratchy which makes me remember those Waters and Warhol films. And with the additional talking heads, made it have that documentary feel.

Overall, this was a very interesting watch. A great time capsule of a troubling time. When out is also being out there alone with other alike. Excited to watch Nowhere soon.

It's obvious that the other person who did a review of this movie was not an Araki fan. In order to understand this movie, you have to be a hardcore Gregg Araki aficionado. This was one of his first films, and he was just beginning to develop his unique style of directing and writing. The language used is supposed to emphasize the immaturity of our generation even though we are in such serious situations as shown in the movie. It's actually a great juxtaposition. As for the cinematography, I would rather see a movie filmed in the way Totally F***ked Up was than any other uninterestingly-filmed movies. At it's core, this is really a story about the struggles of anyone who has ever felt like an outcast. It does leave us hanging at the end, but so do other Araki movies. That's just his style; and if you don't like it, then too bad for you. If you do happen to like this film or are interested, I urge you to see the rest of the Teenage Apocalypse Trilogy [next: The Doom Generation, Nowhere], and all other Araki films. They are all interesting and stylish.

I saw this film in 1995 at the ICA in London, and it blew me away - and it still does today. Mostly because it treates the characters as genuine real PEOPLE,

and without stereotypes. Even in today's age of "will and grace" crap, it still holds up as ten times more genuine.

A lot of people complain that nothing much happens - but that's what these

characters are destined to do- nothing much. They're problem is that they can't find a place to hang out, to fit in, to find others like them. They are nihilistic outcasts, and because they're gay in 1993, they're even more outcast - but

partially by themselves. This film shows this better than any film I've seen since...

-ken