Film Review 1: How to Talk to Girls at Parties // John Cameron Mitchell

How to Talk to Alie… I mean girls… at Parties

Review by: Annie Thompson

Rock bands and cannibal cults. Pretentious aliens and angsty teens. Teased hair and sleek uniforms. Not making a connection? Once you learn how to talk to girls at parties, it’ll click. Going into the film, I really had no idea what to expect, but I assumed it would be a bunch of buys attending different parties like Wedding Crashers. I was way off. If you haven’t done your research, this film is not at all what you might expect, but even if you do your research, you will still be surprised by what is in store. John Cameron Mitchell’s How to Talk to Girls at Parties, adapted from a Neil Gaiman short story, is out of this world and will make you laugh, cringe, and rock out.

Its 1977. The punk infiltrates the large town of Croydon on the walls, the clothes, the music, and even the air.  After attending a concert, three angsty teens search for an after-party to hit up. Hearing a beat coming from somewhere off in the distance, they stumble upon a house with colorful lights shining through the windows, looking like the go-to house party, but instead ends up being the extraterrestrial’s home-base. Inside this house, our main guy Enn (Alex Sharp) meets the dreamy Zan (Elle Fanning), a curious one inside the bunch, longing to “further access the punk” once Enn gives her a little taste. Enn shows Zan the way of the world of punk, and we are also learning that way of life through the jumpy cinematography, angsty costumes, and banging score.

The most important element of the punk, besides the goth-esque clothing is the ear-piercing noise that comes along with it. Nico Muhly and Jamie Stewart really made the room vibrate with their heavy metal score and you’ll want to jump out of your seat and start convulsing your body to the sound of this music. Another soul worthy of acclamation is the three-time Oscar winning-costume designer Sandy Powell, known for her work on The Departed (2006), The Wolf of Wall Street (2013), and Shutter Island (2010). She creates the whole new world of the alien cult and also dramatizes the punk rock look of the residents of Croydon. Futuristic and frightening, yet sleek and simple, is the alien cult, with primary-colored uniforms dominating each separate colony. These futuristic costumes actually enhanced my experience with the film. Some of the alien cast actually showed up to the premiere of the film in their Xenon-looking attire and walked the red carpet.  In addition to these striking and vibrant latex costumes, the punk/rock look juxtaposes this conservative extraterrestrial society. The black, the fishnet, the camouflage, and more. These costumes turned these actors into the angsty person they needed to be. The transformation of Zan from alien to punk is a clear transition with her wild hair, clothes, and makeup.

Zan ties together both of these worlds by acting as a punky alien. Elle Fanning does and incredible job taking on this double persona of the rebellious and wanting-to-be-free girl. Punk style involves dark colors, makeup, and usually hair with some form of black in it, so it could be difficult to picture petite and blonde Elle Fanning taking on this persona. She does such an amazing job with this role that now I actually believe she is punk in real life. Ms. Fanning became her role, as did Ms. Kidman. In this film, Nicole Kidman looks like a rock-n-roll Cruella De Vil with her voluminous multicolored black and white hair and fishnet leggings. She performed perfectly her loud and rebellious side, and the role really took over her self. As she watches over the punk performances, her glare bursts through her thick black eye liner, and you can really see the angsty side of her.

            The cinematography will stun your eyes, the costumes create a whole new world connected into the one we know, and the acting will make you believe Nicole Kidman falls asleep listening to Anarchy. You will laugh, smile, (want to) dance, and, most importantly, learn how to talk to girls at parties.

Comedy, Music, Romance

Rating: R    Run Time: 1h 42min

Director: John Cameron Mitchell

Writers: Phillippa Goslett (screenplay), John Cameron Mitchell

Stars: Nicole Kidman, Elle Fanning, Ruth Wilson