In 1999, James St. James published a memoir titled, “Disco Bloodbath.” The book chronicles the life James who was formerly close friends with recently deceased party promoter, Michael Alig. The pair founded “Club Kids.” A group of party animals wearing flamboyant outfits partying non-stop. They even became a part of fashion culture. Chaos Ensues when Michael becomes heavily addicted to drugs, damaging his friendship with James and eventually murders Andre “Angel” Melendez. Thus, Club Kids was dissolved ending an era. The book was later adapted into a movie retitled as “Party Monster” starring Seth Green as James St. James & Macaulay “Mac” Culkin as Michael Alig.
Party Monster was released in 2003. (same year Kill Bill Vol. 1 came out) It received negative reviews from critics. Plus, it failed to make revenue at the box office. Yikes! That’s pretty bad!
Macaulay Culkin will co-starred in the upcoming 10th season of “American Horror Story,” airing in 2021. Pretty jarring for Ryan Murphy to handpick Mac on one of my favorite shows. If I were Ryan, I would’ve picked Jason Statham or Sean Bean. That’s just me. I’ll be the judge of Mac’s performance once Season 10 airs.
For those who aren’t aware of Party Monster or Disco Bloodbath, there will be some SPOILERS present. Is it worth a watch? Let’s find out shall we?
Healthy & Unhealthy Elements
Healthy: Seth Green, Dylan McDermott, Chloë Sevigny, Natasha Lyonne & Wilmer Valderrama all did a good job for their respective performances.
Fun Fact: Mac, Dylan & Chloë later partake in separate seasons of American Horror Story. Dylan was in Seasons 1, 2 8 and 9, Chloë was in Season 2 and 5, Mac will be in the upcoming 10th Season.
Speaking of Chloë, she used to be a part of Club Kids back when she was modeling before she made her film debut in “Kids.” She’s come a long way transitioning as a Club Kid to Golden Globe winning actress.
Marilyn Manson (not lying) appears as a transvestite.
This is Macaulay Culkin’s first film since “Richie Rich.” He hasn’t been doing so well in his career. His status is currently in the sewage.
The film is set in The 80’s to The 90’s which chronicles the rise and fall of Michael’s career as a club promoter when drugs took a toll on his life eventually leading to his recent death.
Somebody wears a meat dress before Lady Gaga made it popular at The MTV Music Awards.
Bill Hader & John Mulaney officially confirmed Stefan (from SNL) is a parody of Club Kids.
John Stamos makes a brief appearance as a talk show host.
Unhealthy: Cinematography can be a little Shaky at times.
Mac’s performance as Michael, didn’t match the mannerisms as the real Michael. I watched a few interviews with the real Michael. He sounded a bit like Edward Norton. Mac’s voice however, is an exaggerated parody. Felt like he was trying too hard. Bill Hader can do a better job playing a Club Kid than Mac. Heck, even Edward Norton played Stefan on SNL’s 40th anniversary.
EGADS! I cannot believe I witnessed Mac’s bare ass wearing what’s supposed to be a thong or whatever the heck he’s got on! Gosh darn it! I wanted to see Chloë’s ass (sorry about my male instincts) not Mac next to her! This movie leaves me no choice but to Triple Down this con for putting a mental picture of the kid from Home Alone’s ass forever cemented in my brain.
How the heck did Michael first encounter Gitsie? There’s no proper explanation why they met.
When Michael suffers an overdose, poor editing feels like it belongs in a cheesy old MTV music video. I can picture “Beavis & Butthead” in my own eyes making fun of this scene. Another scene suffers from the same editing problems.
The movie lack emotional or physical stakes. I never cared about anybody who was mistreated by Michael. Without both aforementioned stakes, what’s the point on not caring for any character?
The Final Verdict: F, FOR FAKER!
From my point of view, Party Monster is one big total cluster fudge of an arthouse biographical crime drama lacking emotional or physical stakes. If it wasn’t for issues I’ve listed regarding Macaulay Culkin’s performance, sleazy editing by a hyperactive coffee addict, poor cinematography among a few boo boos, Party Monster could’ve been a masterpiece and a comeback for Mac. Sorry Mac, you missed the bullseye. If you want to watch a real biographical crime drama, I strongly recommend Charlize Theron’s Oscar winning performance as Aileen Wuornos in “Monster.” Don’t forget to read Disco Bloodbath for more intel. If another adaptation happens in the future, I would like Disco Bloodbath told as a mini-series on Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu or HBO Max.
Nickthemoviecritic.com 