Party Monster (2003) User Reviews (168)

Underrated (***)

[Ronin47 · 7/10 · 23 October 2003]

In choosing "Party Monster" as his first film in 9 years, Macauley Culkin follows a traditional pattern. He quickly became America's favorite cute little kid in the first 2 "Home Alone" movies, but then began to fade in popularity after starring in one mediocre kid flick after another. So he went into hibernation, grew up, and now returns, going for acting credibility in a tough indie movie this time rather than mainstream popularity. Sure, it's calculated, but I'd rather see him as a narcissistic, gay killer in "Party Monster" than in another movie like "Getting Even With Dad", so I'm not complaining.

Culkin plays the real-life character of Michael Alig, a gay kid from the Midwest who moved to New York in the 1980's. He met James St. James (Seth Green), a ridiculously flamboyant socialite who is always dressed in bizarre costumes. There is a great scene in a doughnut shop early on where James demonstrates to Alig how to work a club, and this is Alig's introduction to that culture.

Alig, shy at first but extremely ambitious, gets a job promoting parties at the Limelight and for a short time there, becomes a genuine subculture "celebrity". Him and the "Club Kids" even appeared on talk shows because of their elaborate costumes and crazy lifestyle.

Eventually, his life spiraled out of control because of drug addiction and his own outrageous self-absorption, culminating in the murder of his drug dealer, Angel (Wilson Cruz), by hammer and injections of Drano. He let the body lay in his apartment for several days, before finally dismembering it and throwing it in the river.

Culkin is great as Michael Alig. It's hard to imagine how he makes a character who is so shallow and self-involved likable, but Culkin does it. Even in the end, after Alig has committed murder, we still don't completely hate him.

It's Seth Green, though, who absolutely steals the movie. As James St. James, the only character present who seems to have a real life force and a human heart beating under all that glitter, his performance is funny, touching, and surprising. It's also amazing how Green utterly transforms his voice and stature. He still LOOKS every bit like Seth Green, but he becomes almost unrecognizable because of his complete transformation into this larger-than-life character.

"Party Monster", on such a low budget, is rather sloppily made and it goes on for too long, but on the whole it's a good movie. One that shifts gears from entertaining to disturbing with comfort and ease. And in Seth Green's performance, it has one of the most interesting characters of the year.

So bad, it's good - a guilty pleasure, if not quite as hedonistic as the lives of the club kids themselves

[colettesplace · 6/10 · 2 January 2005]

Party Monster is based on the true story of 80s club kid and promoter, Michael Alig, infamous for his bizarre New York parties and, later, for the brutal murder of a drug dealer.

It's adapted from Alig's friend James St James' book Disco Bloodbath by filmmakers Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato, whose earlier documentary about Alig actually inspired St James to write the book. After a nine-year absence, Macauley Culkin returns to film as cherubic bisexual Alig, who persuades James St James (a camp Seth Green) to teach him the art of infamy.

Famous for doing nothing long before reality TV, Alig becomes a manufacturer of celebrity and a promoter, serving up some wild parties, including a Halloween bloodbath, truck rave and kinky hospital party. The costumes, by Richie Rich and Michael Wilkinson, are spectacular and capture the excesses of the era. These kids affix fake spiders and cobwebs to their faces, wrap themselves in blood-soaked bandages,wear full body costumes and never look less than fabulous.

Considering the low budget and appalling production values, the high profile supporting cast is a surprise. Dylan McDermot plays Galien, club owner and Alig's mentor, with Mia Kirshner as his wife, Chloe Sevigny as Alig's girlfriend, plus Natasha Lyonne, Marilyn Manson and John Stamos. Wilson Cruz is enigmatic as wannabe and drug dealer Angel, and Wilmer Valderra is suitably objectified as Alig's beloved beefcake, DJ Keoki.

Party Monster suffers from uneven performances and poor direction but despite this, it's fascinating. It captures the disposability of party drug culture convincingly and will most likely become a cult classic. ***/***** stars.

Club kids on the primrose path: The movie that '54" should have been

[bmacv · 7/10 · 17 June 2004]

'I'm the lowest kind of celebrity, a playwright's wife,' Celeste Holm tells Anne Baxter in All About Eve. Fifty-plus years later, she might still make the snapshot page in Vanity Fair (once), but new kinds of celebrity have clambered up to push her further down the pecking order. There are the Elvis impersonators and celebrity look-alikes. There are the trash-talking competitors on the reality shows. And there are the Club Kids, urban counterparts to the beach bums of a generation or two ago who sought nothing more out of life than an Endless Summer. What the Club Kids want is an Endless Party, where they can flame out in a drug-enhanced limelight.

The Limelight was a fixture among New York City's young downtown hedonists in the last decades of the last century. It's the center of a very small universe for James St. James (Seth Green), a budding queen from across the Hudson who, equipped with little else than a trust fund and received notions of imperious glamor, sets out to be the social arbiter of the club scene. His misfortune (and ultimately opportunity) is meeting up with hick Michael Alig (Macaulay Culkin), just off the Big Dog from one of the square states, who will prove to be St. James' very own Eve Harrington.

Imagine Bob Hope and Bing Crosby gone gay, their bitchy dynamics holding these buddies together as they prance and stumble down the Rave Road. They live in cold-water walk-ups, spending what money they have on costumes and drugs (when they can't cadge them). As a living, they set themselves up as promoters and taste-makers for struggling entrepreneurs like Dylan McDermott, whose Limelight is barely breaking even. They dream up ever more outrageous parties to lure other kids from the bridges and tunnels and tenements once occupied by immigrants but now serving as digs for druggies and rodents. (Marilyn Manson as stoned drag queen Christina serves as 'driver' for one of the events, trying to maneuver a big rig in platform heels.) Along the way there are Alig's discarded or disengaged boyfriends (Wilmer Valderrama) and girlfriends (Chloe Sevigny), sexual preference always taking a back seat first to Ecstasy and K, then to crackpipes and snorted heroin.

Party Monster derives from St. James' memoir Disco Bloodbath – as a result of his plunge into addiction, Alig ends up incarcerated for the murder of his dealer Angel (Wilson Cruz). And as St. James, Green delivers a pitch-perfect performance, blackly funny yet with intimations of the shallow life he knows he leads. It's Culkin's misfortune to have his co-star so expertly steal the movie, but, with his sullen, pouty mouth, his child-star successes well behind him yet not quite filled out enough for adult roles, he's plausible as a callow social-climber who's nothing but surfaces and attitude anyway. (And as his good-time-gal-pal mom, Diana Scarwid is, as always, memorable). Party Monster maintains a deft balance between its faintly horrifying humor and its somber notes. It's a story about kids old beyond their years who, as they proudly proclaim, are utterly superficial, but still not (quite) the 'monsters' they pretend to be. Party Monster – a much more interesting and accomplished piece of work – is the movie that '54" should have been, and maybe even thought it was.

beautiful

[foccaciayou · 8 March 2004]

this film is an amazing work of art and must be viewed as such. if you're looking to understand the storyline, you MUST read the book disco bloodbath (rereleased as party monster) by james st. james. it's also helpful to watch the director's commentary on the dvd with fenton bailey and randy barbato. so much is explained between these two sources that is taken for granted in the film (ie michael and james' sources of incomes, explanations of michael and peter's relationship, and a more logical timeline). the most important thing to realize and keep in mind throughout watching this film is that michael alig was (is?) incredibly insecure but at the same time incredibly loving. the most telling line in the movie is delivered by seth green, when speaking to macaulay culkin after the latter's feigned attempt at suicide: "There's not enough love in the whole wide world to satisfy you." party monster the film is incredibly intelligent, as is the book. the story and its retelling are hysterical and horrifying at the same time. this film acts as both a warning and a touching memoir - a must see for fans of realism and those who enjoy seeing human emotion and drama rather than special effects and airbrushed muscles.

Bizarre

[claudio_carvalho · 7/10 · 8 January 2006]

This movie tells the story of a murder committed in the 80's, in New York, by a drugged bisexual called Michael Alig, played by Macaulay Culkin. The story begins with two gays, Michael and James St. James (Seth Green), meeting each other in New York, and trying to become famous in the night. Michael is supported by the entrepreneur Peter Gatien (Dylan McDermott) and promotes his night-club, The Limelight, creating the Club Kid parties. Completely addicted and drugged inclusive in heroin, her kills his roommate and drug dealer Angel (Wilson Cruz) with a hammer, cuts his body in pieces, put them in a TV box and throw it in Hudson River. Later, his friend James writes a book, called "Disco Bloodbath" and Michael is sent to prison. "Party Monster" is very bizarre film. Marylin Manson is very funny in the role of Christina; Seth Green is amazing in the role of a glamorous gay; the plot is unconventional and not for all tastes. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Party Monster"

Actually it was pretty good, weird, but good

[Smells_Like_Cheese · 7/10 · 20 May 2006]

I know this film doesn't have that good of a rating, but actually I thought this was an interesting film. It had such an incredible story to it, it is set in the 80's and is about the club kids and how clubbing came to be so popular. To be different was so cool and the make up, the sex, the drugs were such a way of being released from the "normal" world. Where Alig was going into such high places, you guess it, it can only go downward.

Seth and Maculy are just so adorable in this film, I just loved their chemistry and how they played off each other. These were such risky roles, but they took them on and accepted them into their own. They also researched the film and I believe should get more credit for it. It's a new age Rocky Horror Picture Show, sit back and feel fabulous!

7/10

This made me obsess

[breemartell · 7/10 · 2 March 2022]

If you are a fan of true crime I strongly advise watching this movie and then do a deep dive as I did after! This story was so interesting to me and the movie had a lovable/quirky vibe that kept it light enough for such serious topics. The YouTube, interviews and documentary after this movie will only surprise you more.

Not as good as you'd want it to be

[EnjoyablePresence · 5/10 · 22 April 2010]

The material here (covered in a similarly named documentary) is fascinating. The 90s New York club kid scene was a distinctive period with many crazy sights and scenes. Unfortunately, this film is poorly made on just about every level.

Most of the acting is not just bad, but some of the worst you'll ever see in a mainstream film. This is exacerbated by poor directing. The dramatic scenes don't feel dramatic (I yawned as one character nearly died). The costumes are very good, about on par with the actual club kids. So the film looks good at least.

Another issue: they changed so much for this movie from the actual story! If you research the actual murder and such after watching this you'll just be confused as to why they made all those arbitrary changes. I certainly wasn't to make a great film. Many people like this film, but I suspect deep down they want to live in the 90s club kid scene, and aren't objectively judging the film for its merits.

Want to take a strange trip?

[Mr_Vai · 10/10 · 21 March 2005]

The old saying is "truth is stranger than fiction," and you know what, it's true. In "Party Monster" we are taken on a very trippy and true little journey that allows us to see first-hand, the crazy club life of New York City in the 1980s. In particular, we get an up-close and personal biography of the "club kids." The "club kids" were a group of young party monsters that were actually paid by club owners to show up at their clubs. Mind you, these kids did not do any kind of performing at all, they simply showed up. However, when you see their outrageous costumes and attire, you see why people had their eye out for them. These kids were bizarre and odd and stoned and well, weird. Livng lives that were so out of balance, tragedy was inevitable. Green and Culkin portray the two most prominent members of this group and they are both good. However, it is Culkin that really steals the movie, breaking away from his stereotypical characters of the past and playing somebody that very few actors would be brave enough to take on. The reason I gave this movie 10 stars, is the look and sound. This movie is like watching an acid flashback from the 1980s. I mean, you are there, in the room with them as they strut in and snort up. The music is 1980s, the attitude is 1980s, it is hard to describe. Much of the film is dream-like. Moreover, Culkin is mesmerizing as a character too odd for words. No, the story and acting are not Oscar-worthy, but the look of the film, the feel of the film, wow! I predict that this film will become more popular as the years go by. It has the qualities of all those great midnight movies of the 1980s. I really recommend it for people craving something different and historical (in a weird sense).

Strangely delightful yet completely creepy

[xxxpinkglampyr · 7/10 · 5 August 2005]

In ways I really liked this movie. It accurately portrays the club kid scene in that the kids are eccentric and sometimes odd. On the flip side it shows the dark underbelly of the club scene involving drug addiction, back stabbing, and crime. As this movie was based on a true story it's not surprising that someone gets killed, then dismembered. Yet The fact that Culkin is the one to pull off such a diverse roll is probably the most shocking part of the whole thing. But I commend him for his portrayal of this eccentric NYC club kid. And Seth Green is great with this role it is such an off the wall character for him to play yet James was my favorite.

This movie starts out somewhat innocently enough with James and Alig sitting in bed doing special K, and James says, "nice shoes." "Thanks their Angels."-Alig "Hey, where is Angel?"-James "I killed him." James passes out and Michael Alig (Culkin) begins his story about how he, a gay kid from the Midwest, moved to New York. With hopes of being someone and something big. He meets James St. James (Green) where he invites him to party he is hosting at the Limelight. He also then meets Keoki and declares, "you can be my boyfriend." Alig hosts his first big New York party with the main entertainment is Christina (Marilyn Manson), needless to say the party is a complete bust. He then pleads with the club owner to let him host a few more parties. He's given the chance and strangely enough his parties take off. Alig rockets to club scene stardom. At what is quite close to the peak of this trip Alig meets Angel, a drug dealer. He makes Angel part of his crew and thus begins the downward spiral. They are then brought onto a TV talk show which ignites even more acknowledgment. Alig and his troupe of misfits then go on a tour to recruit more kids. Where he meets his new girlfriend. They go back to New York and the Limelight owner and his wife give Alig an ultimatum that he must go into rehab if he wants to continue to promote parties. Instead he gives his boss a "vacation" which ends up a horrible drug trip and he has his first drug overdose of the movie. After he emerges from the hospital and returns home James is finally fed up with Alig's ways and moves out. This leaves Aligs little troupe of "drug addicts" to wallow in their trouble. Eventually Angel shows up wanting his money, in which case Alig freaks out and he instructs another kid to stop him. Which results in beat him to near death with a hammer. Then we cut to James who is doing special K, during his "trip" a rat comes and sits on the couch with him. The rat tells him what actually happened to Angel, not only did they beat him to near death with a hammer but then after he's laying there helpless they injected him with Drano to make sure it was done. Then Alig went into Angels closet and stole all his drugs and money. He then instructs the other kid to go to Macy's and buy a TV and some kitchen knives. When he returns they dismember Angel and stuff his parts into the TV box. They then leave this box in the living room for another week before the smell gets so bad they are getting sick. Then the box is dumped in the river. After hearing all this from the rat James writes his novel. Cut to Alig and his girlfriend in their hotel room. They have fun in the tub and go to bed. They are woke up by the police busting into their room. Alig is given a shortened sentence if he will "rat" out his boss at the Limelight for drugs, (which his boss was never actually a part of). Cut to James sleeping face down on his desk, there's a knock at the door, it's Alig he walks in and they talk a little. Alig thumbs through James' completed novel to reveal that the pen ran out of ink after the title page. At this point we then cut to James doing a TV interview about his book. When his cell phone rings, it's Alig and he reveals that it was him that got Alig arrested for the murder.

One of the worst films of 2003

[preppy-3 · 1/10 · 20 September 2003]

Truly horrendous dramatization of the true story of Michael Alig. A gay man, he became the king of the club kid scene in the late 1980s. Eventually he became hooked on drugs which led to his downfall and involved murder.

There is only one good thing in this film--Seth Green's performance as James St. James, Michael's best friend. He's flamboyent, hysterically funny and plays his role with just the right amount of camp. That aside, virtually everything else sucks.

The casting of Macaulay Culkin in the lead is easily the worst mistake. He can't act and says everything in a dull monotone with a blank look on his face. He's worse now than when he was a child actor! Wilmer Valderrama briefly perks up the movie as Michael's lover DJ Keoki. He's incredibly handsome, full of charisma and gives a much better performance than the material deserves. Unfortunately he disappears after the first half hour. Also the movie doesn't play fair here--when Alig and Keoki are about to kiss, the camera goes black! I think in the year 2003 audiences can deal with 2 guys kissing--especially in an R-rated film. Dylan McDermott gives in a dull one-note performance as club owner Pater Gatien. Chloe Sevigny pops up late in the film...and is given nothing to do. Wilson Cruz (looking just great) also helps the movie playing Angel...but is also given nothing to do.

The script is scattershoot--it rambles all over the place and, by the end, you don't know where you are or what's happening. Where is Alig living at the end? Where is he getting all the drugs when he has no money? Why does Keoki even bother showing up at the end? Why does Angel demand money when he knows Alig is broke? etc etc. Also the direction is WAY off. Half the time the camera isn't even pointing at the actors who are speaking...other times it seems to wander around aimlessly.

Boring, pointless, unpleasant and seems much much longer than it's 98 minutes. A total waste of time. Avoid at ALL costs!!!!!!

"Saved" by the pill....

[ptb-8 · 9/10 · 2 July 2005]

A famous quote by Pauline Kael about Greta Garbo was that "she was the complete reason to see a film". Well, let me tell ya, I will agree, astonishing even myself, that Maculay Culkin fits this description about PARTY MONSTER. Off screen for 9 years and making two excellent eye-popping returns (the sly wry and hilarious SAVED is the other) 23 year old Culkin is nothing more than front and center startling and compelling in this very clever club culture expose of the very real and very cruel pill bunny Michael Alig. Released clumsily on one print in Australia and off screen in 2 weeks, this film deserved smart marketing and even a reissue before DVD dumping because it has a potentially huge audience and major industry credit as a very difficult genre to re create successfully. I think PARTY MONSTER is a complete success in its serious efforts to capture the dance party scene of the 90s and the glittering bowel of its dark side. The performance by Seth Green is equally disturbingly funny, complete with effete rantings and flummoxed quips that leave the viewer smiling in admiration at his genuine talent. The look of PARTY MONSTER is almost as if Larry Cark re made "Studio 54" and got Bob Mackie to create the costumes. The art direction and costume design is especially perfect and adds hilariously to what is, I believe one of the most clever and nasty black comedies to emerge from the USA this century. Marilyn Manson as gigantic dopey drag queen Christina (geddit) is especially hilarious and shocking. If you have seen the equally brave and hilariously tragic HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH and also read Roger Ebert's superbly written and accurate review of PARTY MONSTER then you will be well equipped to deliciously slurp up every frame of this - literally - sensational disco bloodbath. To say that the astonishing and entertaining performances of Culkin and Green are fearless is the understatement of the century. 20th or 21st! PARTY MONSTER is a major achievement.

Weak production of an outrageous story

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 19 February 2014]

Michael Alig (Macaulay Culkin) is a kid from Indiana who befriends James St. James (Seth Green) in NYC and becomes a big party promoter for Peter Gatien (Dylan McDermott) and his wife (Mia Kirshner) during the 90s. Michael is aggressively ambitious, vindictive, petty, and self-promoting. He befriends Angel Melendez (Wilson Cruz) turning him into one of the club kids. As his drug haze filled life deteriorates, it culminates in the murder of Angel.

It's a fascinating story. The actors are giving their all. Macaulay Culkin puts in an all encompassing performance. The fact is Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato don't know how to direct a big movie. The digital video format and the amateurist directing relegates this to nothing more a TV movie. And so much of this seems to be toned down. A more aggressive treatment of the material is needed.

If an hour and a half of drugs, drugs, outrageous fashion, and more drugs is what you're looking for, you've found it.

[mcfinke2121 · 4/10 · 24 December 2004]

Alright, I'll admit it. I was very interested in the film, "Party Monster" for the first half-hour. Once I realized that that was basically the entire movie, I had lost interest completely.

The outrageous make-up and costumes are a show by itself, but that doesn't compensate an entire film. Seth Green does well portraying the 'fabulous' James St. James, the tutor of Michael Alig's party ways. However, he is given nothing to work with thanks to MaCauly Caulkin's bore-some acting, which has no development or growth of any kind. One can argue that the character of Michael Alig goes nowhere, but the script seems to differ.

Half the fun of "Party Monster" is just watching the gaudy and out-of-this-world costumes. But as I said before, they become a tiresome spectacle that wears out the movie. Even the supporting cast becomes rather boring to watch. Dylan McDermott portrays Alig's party sponsor. With the exception of one particular scene, he shows no emotion throughout the film.

This film is a real shame, considering it is one of the most intriguing stories about the real-life underworld of the eighties. The film still fails when capturing the essence of Michael Alig and the club kids.

When Seth Green says the line "I'm not addicted to drugs, I'm addicted to glamour!", you should know what the entire movie is about. With the overblown use of intense drugs and random party scenes, "Party Monster" instantly becomes a party disaster.

Breathtaking - Green steals the film

[HippieLizzie · 8 April 2004]

Living in the UK means you very rarely get to see some amazing films. Having read the book I heard about the film and as you do, immediately ordered it to be shipped over, not expecting to find it anywhere near as good as the book. Boy, was I wrong.

Macaulay Culkin as Alig is annoying and my one pet peeve of the film. He just didn't make Michael real to me. His entire performance seemed to scream "I was a child star, now I'm playing a gay addict! Look at me!". The role was also written for him and I got the impression that because of this he felt he didn't have to act too hard to be brilliant. He never, despite his attempts, gave Alig another level. The accent didn't add anything to the character and by the end I was left wondering why everybody had loved Michael Alig.

Seth Green on the other hand stole the film from right under Culkin's nose. His performance as James St James was one of the best I have ever seen in my life. He transformed himself until you didn't even realise it was the guy from Buffy you were watching. His mannerisms were spot on and really did St James justice. His voice was not as whiny or non descript as Culkin's, it was simply a prop used by him. His character managed to appear human throughout the entire film and his habit of touching his hair at least once a scene was fabulous. Green deserves an award for such an amazingly real, yet flamboyant performance.

The supporting cast were also fantastic and each and every person added to the story. The removal of Mavis from the film did annoy me slightly but after a while you forget she was ever there. The costumes, and behaviour of every single Club Kid in this film were fantastic. You really felt as though you were actually watching this happening. Marilyn Manson as Alig's first Superstar Christina was perfect, adding to a character not mentioned a lot in the book.

All in all an absolutely fabulous film that deserves far far more credit than was given to it. Seth Green really held the film together, showing rare glimpses of humanity amongst all the glitter. Green was perfectly cast and deserves at least some recognition for a fantastic performance. The only downside was Macaulay Culkin, who simply did not shine. He stood back and let the supporting cast, and especially Green turn this into their movie, not his.

Fun, somewhat touching

[pabelkis · 7/10 · 11 July 2003]

Saw this flick last nite.....it was fun, somewhat touching. The two leads played well together. The film could stand some tighter editing though. I, along with most of the theater, was squirming long before the end. Some scenes drag on.....

An art of cinema and storytelling that is not understood anymore

[Healing_Process · 7/10 · 14 March 2022]

This film is about Michael Alig who was a club promoter during the early 90's that pled guilty to first degree manslaughter for killing his drug dealer over drug debt.

Some people believe Macaulay Culkin's acting in the film was misplaced and campy for his portrayal of Michael Alig. The film was oddly directed and it was definitely low budget, but the film had a gritty and uncanny truth to it. I feel Culkin's acting was.well-placed for a character and setting of the movie. I don't know the whole story of Michael Alig and I'm not saying he was accurately portrayed here but Culkin's character shows that he is a narcissistic and unrelenting self-centered man mixed with diva characteristics and drug culture.

The Diva back-and-forth banter and strong stereotypes of narcissistic gay men can be off-putting to some, but I do feel there is some truth to the character portrayals. Mixed with the 2003 film grain and odd directing and muddled drug perspective camera work I feel the film is fine for what it is portraying. Truly this film comes down to the viewers personality of whether they will think it is a waste of time or not as it flirts within the boundaries of being objectively passable and subjectively confused or unnecessary.

Culkin Hot but Green Skilled!

[serenaarikan · 6/10 · 16 September 2003]

Sorry Mac....you are pretty to look at with your bee stung lips and nice bod, but Seth kicks your butt in the acting arena! I have been following this story for a long time and read the book, and I feel that Seth perfectly captured the droll but self deprecating humor of Mr. St.James, where as Mac just kinda,(sorry), sounded like his voice is still changing. Consolation if any? I believe that Michael is too complicated for anyone to replicate! See, and enjoy!

Definition of quirky

[Leofwine_draca · 5/10 · 29 September 2015]

PARTY MONSTER is a very strange and one-of-a-kind low budget tale. The characters and situations in which they find themselves are so exaggerated that you feel they can't bear any relation to real life but, what do you know, this is a true story so everything you see taking place on screen pretty much happened.

PARTY MONSTER is a thorough exploration of the New York party scene in the 1990s, in which hedonism and excess were the order of the day. It's a mood piece more than anything else, a near plot less affair chronicling the rise and fall of two characters who found themselves at the forefront of counter culture. Seth Green gets the big, showy role, but Macaulay Culkin is inevitably the focus of attention here, looking the same as in his kiddie films but contributing an intense and dark performance. I liked him, just as I liked his sinister turn in THE GOOD SON. As a whole I don't think this film's up to much, but those with an interest in the material or indeed the actors should enjoy it.

Surprisingly Good.

[roswellian-1 · 8/10 · 9 January 2005]

When I started to watch this movie I wasn't at all aware what it was about. I just saw that MaCaulay Culkin and Seth Green were in it and thought, "Cool! Maybe this'll be good." A lot of people say this movie was bad, that it was horribly acted, but I think they just couldn't get past Culkin's shortcomings. I don't believe he was a bad actor, I simply believe he got stuck on the idea of how he had to humanize his character, and that was his ultimate downfall (in the special features he explained this was something he wanted to bring to the character).

Seth Green, as always, is adorable and can completely immerse himself into a character and really bring him to light. Marilyn Manson played Christina wonderfully, if only for a short time. Wilmer Valderrama was terrific as Keoki and it was a disappointment to see he was only in such a little portion of the film.

All in all, this movie was great. It had a great cast and a great script. The movie was meant to poke fun, not to make you think about any hidden meanings or to wonder why they were acting so strange. Club Kids were all about glamour, mocking celebrities, and, in the end, drugs. They didn't want to grow up, and they certainly didn't want to live a normal life.

Culkin had his moments where he pulled Alig off well, and in others, you could tell he was trying to stretch the character into places he wasn't meant to go. And if he was, Culkin certainly wasn't the actor to do it.

All in all, a "fabulous" film. Highly recommended if you're interested in how some of the 80's really played out.

One Freaky "Party"

[EmperorNortonII · 7/10 · 28 September 2003]

"Party Monster" tells the strange, colorful and tragic story of Michael Alig, the flamboyant, outrageous club kid. Macauley turns in a surprising performance as Alig. It's a far cry from "Home Alone"! This movie also offers a very interesting look into club kid culture. This look at post-disco/post-Warhol lifestyles is rather reminiscent of "54." Other interesting performances came from Seth Green as James St. James, Alig's mentor-turned-sycophant, and Wilmer Valderrama as DJ Keoki, who becomes Alig's lover. You won't know whether the outrageous characters are accurate or exaggerated!

the 2nd worst movie i have ever seen in my life

[tutormaryj · 1/10 · 4 April 2004]

i'm going to have to agree with the reviewer who asked, "why, oh, why, do they let culkin act?".... my friends and i asked ourselves the same question after renting this film on a whim (the cast and plot synopsis on the dvd case looked rad). however, i've seen a ton of excellent experimental films, some good ones, some mediocre ones, and, yes, several bad ones -- and this one probably takes the cake. actually, i almost thought about knocking verbinski's "the mexican" from its perch as the #1 worst movie i had ever seen and replacing it with "party monster", but i felt so bad for seth green's attempt at salvaging this movie and his character that i placed this film at #2 out of pure pity. now, i understand the premise of the film -- and i like the premise -- i like the idea of doing it in an impressionistic, experimental, excess-laden, requiem-for-a-dream-soulless style. however, i do not think that this film was quite able to successfully create the feeling that it attempted to. culkin's performance was so mildly annoying throughout the whole film that it began to gnaw on me and my fellow filmgoers to the point where we wanted the seth green character to just kill him mid-film -- not because we hated the character culkin played (which would work in a film like this), but because the acting was so horrible, and that damned accent/giggle/blank stare of his was soooo off. just off. there was something just missing from this film in general. i want to say it just barely misses the mark, but i kind of feel like it probably misses the mark by a whole lot. my friends and i got the impression that this film was done as a favor by the actors and that not much effort or research was put into the characters, thereby creating these fake impressions -- not artificial, mind you, WHICH WOULD WORK, since the characters were supposed to be artificial (but they ended up just seeming annoying and stupid) -- but unbelievable, fake impressions of people more complex and insidious than the actors portrayed them to be. i also think that this film was poorly written, and had several time discrepancies which i would have forgiven had i thought the film was tongue-in-cheek; however, it didn't quite pull off the tongue-in-cheekiness, although i understand that it might have been going for that angle. again, nothing really materialized. i would not recommend this film for someone who is looking for a film that will make them think, or even for a good story. this is a somewhat boring and annoying film that strives for uniqueness and lunges at experimentation, and comes out sour and stupid. F-.

A well informed movie about drug abuse.

[okami_ito · 8/10 · 9 October 2005]

I often wondered why U.S. American movies involving young people who are into drugs are either pathetic (f.e. Drugstore Cowboy) or even downright ridiculous in their conservative portrayal of the dangers of drug use (f.e. Traffic, The Movie). Party Monster is very different. It's easy to see that the people who made this movie really informed themselves about what they tried to show. By doing this they achieved one of the best movies about adolescence i've seen in a long time. It's has a very sad and tender tone and though some scenes seem a little bit too stagy, the performances of the two leading actors are pure magic. It's pure joy just to watch them and as you got to see a lot of them there is plenty of fun. Nevertheless the movie leaves you with a very intense and ambivalent feeling towards it's characters who were indeed something very special. I even dreamed about this picture after seeing it! Thanks for the strange dream!

Rather better than you might expect

[pfgpowell-1 · 7/10 · 15 January 2012]

A bald synopsis of Party Monster - gay, outrageous, drug-addled, self-centred and utterly amoral club party organiser murders his drug-dealing flatmate - simply doesn't do the film justice. In the wrong hands - and in the mainstream Hollywood hands - it could have been quite awful. But Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato, who jointly wrote and directed Party Monster, get something exactly right. For this viewer at least, Party Monster hits all the right notes, and I sense that it was rather more skill than luck that it did so. In Party Monster style reflects content and content reflects style as in boring English lessons we were always told it should. But there is nothing boring about about Party Monster. Everything about it, from Macaulay Culkin and Seth Green's somewhat stylised acting to the slightly flat and washed-out garishly coloured look of the film (or was it video? - it might well have been) comes over as utterly artificial and vapid, as artificial and vapid as the lives of Club Kids Michael Alig and James St James and their followers, who compete with each other in coming up with ever more fantastical party costumes and make it clear that their lives have absolutely no other meaning than to party and ingest as many and as varied drugs as they can without killing themselves.

Elsewhere Party Monster has been criticised for not offering and explanation for Alig's character, but that is merely to miss the point by a country mile: in a sense Alig doesn't even have a character and doesn't need a character. He is what whatever he chooses to be every day, although there is no variety: he is always just a differently costumed variation on his egocentric self. There is only one passing, but important, hint at what just might be going on inside the concoction of make-up and costume fantasy: the wife of the owner of the club in which he holds his parties (the club likes it because they attract business), who is possibly the only character in the film not in the slightest drawn to Alig, tells him bluntly that he simply cannot face any kind of real life and Alig/Culkin's reaction to her blunt honesty touches a raw nerve. But he turns away and the moment passes and it is back to the artificiality of it all, the drugs, the camp banter, anything really to keep life at bay.

Despite the callousness of the murder committed by Alig and his other flatmate (they were, in fact, only convicted of manslaughter even though it is made clear that being hit over the head with a hammer several times did not end the drug-dealer's life and he is then injected with drain cleaner to see him off), the film does not judge anyone. You might argue that perhaps it should have done. I would argue that it doesn't have to: the utterly vacuous lives of the Club Kids will make it clear to everyone but the most stupid that there is nothing remotely admirable about their lifestyle. Any overt moralising would simply overegg the pudding and would have gone some way to spoiling an otherwise very good piece of film-making. The overall rating given here is, in my view, surprisingly low. I suspect that those who don't rate it as highly as I do (one review is entitled 'So bad it's good' which means someone has definitely missed the point) have taken it rather too literally. This is worth very minute of the time you should take to watch it.

I've seen backyard home movies shot by 10 year olds that look better!

[DIANE_451 · 1/10 · 23 January 2003]

A home movie trying desperately to pass for a film. Not one redeeming quality here. Anyone out there who still believes narrative films can be shot on video and pass for something of substance is a fool. This piece of garbage looks terrible, sounds terrible, is poorly written and dreadfully acted. There is a reason Macaulay Culkin has not acted in a while and it isn't because he needed a break, it's because he truly SUCKS! I would expect more from Seth Green, but he sucks in this as well. Supposedly it cost 5 million to make this. It looks like they spent 5 bucks on a VHS tape and ran around New York for a day, then pieced it together with two VCRs. A complete waste of time.