Entertainment
Unhinged, R-Rated Party Flick Will Take You On A Stylish Downward Spiral
By Robert Scucci
| Published
Macaulay Culkin is obviously best known as the child actor who starred in the Home Alone films, My Girl, and Richie Rich before stepping away from the limelight in 1994. When he resurfaced and started taking on dramatic roles as an adult, he broke hard against type and starred in 2003’s Party Monster alongside Seth Green in what may be the most unhinged party movie to come out of the early aughts.
A biographical crime drama based on the novel Disco Bloodbath by James St. James, the character Green depicted in the film, Party Monster, offers an unsettling look into the party life that dominated New York City during the 80s and early 90s.
A drug-addled odyssey of hedonism and living for kicks, Party Monster is a neon-glowing fever dream of debauchery, bad decisions, addiction, and murder that’s delivered with unapologetic flamboyance. Beneath all that fabulousness, it will shock you and scare you straight out of the nightlife and into the nearest self-help book.
It’s All About Fabulousness
Party Monster frames its story through Michael Alig (Macaulay Culkin) and James St. James (Seth Green) as they recount the events that led them to their current situation, where Michael openly admits he committed a murder. As they argue over whose movie this actually is, the narrative shifts and gives us a crash course on the chaotic lives they’ve lived.
Michael, a painfully awkward young man from a small town, meets James, who prides himself on being the life of the party through sheer force of style and attitude. James encourages Michael to embrace his authentic self and find a place in the scene, which quickly descends into madness as Michael becomes consumed by nightlife and loses any sense of grounding.
Michael’s addictive tendencies escalate as he racks up debt and consumes copious amounts of party drugs, transforming himself into a local legend who is determined to be nationally recognized. After hosting events at The Limelight, a struggling nightclub owned by Peter Gatien (Dylan McDermott), his parties explode in popularity.
Soon, he’s traveling the country, recruiting more Club Kids and building a small empire. In his mind, he’s now the King of the Club Kids, and the entire party world should be taking notes.
As he spirals, Michael becomes close with Angel Melendez (Wilson Cruz), Gitsie (Chloe Sevigny), and Brooke (Natasha Lyonne), and the festivities continue far past the point of reason. While he may feel unstoppable, his physical and mental health are collapsing under addiction, mounting debts, and the looming possibility that Peter will cut him loose from the club circuit if he doesn’t get his life together and go to rehab. Everything leads toward the murder alluded to at the start, making it clear Michael has crossed a line he can’t return from.
A Difficult Watch, But An Interesting One
The amount of reckless behavior in Party Monster is enough to make you queasy as Michael and James drift apart thanks to Michael’s glitter-coated downfall. It’s a spiral of addiction, duplicity, betrayal, and eventually, crimes that can’t be undone.
Culkin goes so far against his early on-screen persona that you have to respect how willing he was to distance himself from past successes. Party Monster is rough, chaotic, and often disjointed, but it works if you approach it as an arthouse portrait of collapse. Just be warned that watching Michael lose his grip on reality and morality isn’t going to sit well if your week has already been heavy.
Party Monster is currently streaming on Tubi.
