moonspinner55 Review of It's My Party

It's My Party (1996)

Despite sorrowful theme and genuine poignancy, surprisingly not a downer...

[6/10 · 27 September 2009]

Writer-director Randal Kleiser does fine, fluid work here with this moving hybrid of "The Boys in the Band" and "'Night, Mother". When an upwardly-mobile gay man in Southern California gets a dreaded HIV-positive diagnosis, it helps to end the relationship he had with his lover; one year later, the two men find themselves reunited after the infected one discovers he has lesions on his brain and decides to throw a farewell party for himself before committing suicide. Movies centering on big, noisy parties rarely work, but Kleiser's accuracy in capturing this (not all gay) eclectic group of family and friends shows off a great deal of heart, sentiment, and a small bit of the requisite bitchy humor. A wonderfully odd gathering of celebrities and character-actors pop up in cameo roles, however the leads (Eric Roberts and Gregory Harrison) are the most surprising; with the help of astute editing, they are able to create a rapport that seems heartfelt and real, and Roberts in particular does some of his best work ever. Kleiser wanted this to be a celebration of life, not the mourning of a death, and he pulls it off with aplomb. **1/2 from ****