Shoplifters of the World

If The Smiths were not the soundtrack to your life, at best this will be a. John Hughes-inspired 80's flashback film about that group of friends in the waning days of high school lamenting their future without each other.

If however your life made much more sense once you discovered Morrissey and Johnny and every coy twisted lyric that made you feel better about yourself and the world we live in, this is the movie that will make you laugh and cry and remind you that you are not alone, you were never alone and how at the worst of times, you can still sing your life.

This loving and respectful homage to everything The Smiths, with layers of references done in a period-piece style, should probably have been made decades earlier... but is well worth the wait.

Thank you to the entire team who gave this gift to those of us who will watch it over and over again.

This review is more about the style of the 80s in this movie, from the POV of a '88 grad GenX deeply into the alternative music scene.

Writing this partially in response to a review stating no one dressed like Madonna. Yes, we did dress like Madonna, granted not as closely emulated as in this film. That said, the film itself wasn't great, but the (underdeveloped) characters were fun. Except Cleo. Ugh! The stereotypes were exaggerated but it was nice to see a Robert Smith lookalike because, yes, there were always a few of those dudes roaming the halls in high school, as well.

As for replicating the 80s, it was hit or miss. Cleo's makeup was too contemporary (Instagram model soft, blended eyeshadow? Please.), while others, including the extras, were authentically wearing heavy black eyeliner and frizzed out hair.

Side note - as an Aquanet devotee, that was NOT an 80s style container. We really did carry those in our purses, but they had big white click on lids on a perfectly cylindrical can. That was a modern can of hairspray. Annoying!

I'll admit though, watching for inaccuracies was pretty fun, and along with the soundtrack, the best part of the movie.

Felt I had to create an account to leave a review.

I wanted to like this or even tolerate it. I knew it was not going to be great cinema but as a huge Smiths fan of course I'd watch it.

It's horrible. Listen to their music instead.

The acting is awful especially from the main character Chloe. And the dialogue! Ugh! They try and cram every Smiths lyric possible into this movie. So cringy.

I wish I could unsee this. Definitely not "so bad its good" its beyond. Skip it.

Life before internet... before social media... WAS fun.

Your enjoyment of this film will probably depend on your awareness of the Smith's music. One of the best and most important bands to come out of England in the 1980s, but still (bizarrely) unknown by a lot of people. I personally enjoyed this film, but then I'm a big fan of the Smiths. I could pull the film apart and say it was a bit cheesy, a simplistic story, etc, but my enjoyment of the film and the music superseded all that. At the end of the day it's just nice to see this band get more recognition, especially in the 2020s.