Party Monster (2003)

Based on the true story of Michael Alig, a Club Kid party organizer whose life was sent spiraling down when he bragged on television about killing his drug dealer and roommate.

Directors:

Fenton Bailey, Randy Barbato

Writers:

Fenton Bailey, Randy Barbato

Stars:

Macaulay Culkin, Wilson Cruz, Seth Green

4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Seth Green	...	James
Macaulay Culkin	...	Michael
Diana Scarwid	...	Elke
Dillon Woolley	...	Young James
Marilyn Manson	...	Christina
Dylan McDermott	...	Peter Gatien
Mia Kirshner	...	Natasha
Wilmer Valderrama	...	Keoki
Elliot Kriss	...	Cabbie
Janis Dardaris	...	TV Reporter
Wilson Cruz	...	Angel
Manny Perez	...	Johnny
Justin Hagan	...	Freez
Brendan O'Malley	...	Young Michael
Phillip Knasiak	...	Young Wrestler

Storyline

Set in the New York club scene of the late 1980's thru the 1990's, a tale which is based on the rise and fall of club-kid promoter Michael Alig, a party organizer, whose extravagant life was sent spiralling downward when he boasted on television that he had killed his friend, roommate, and drug dealer, Angel Melendez. Originally from Indiana, Alig moved to New York, and came to be an underground legend, known for his excessive drug use and outrageous behavior in the club world. At his peak, he had his own record label, and magazine, and hosted Disco 2000, one of the biggest club nights in New York in the '90s. He was doing a lot of drugs, and as his addiction got worse, his party themes became darker and more twisted. Alig's saga reached its tragic crescendo when he viciously murdered his drug dealer, Angel, by injecting him with Drano and throwing him in the East River. The power he wielded on the club scene made him feel untouchable, so he didn't hesitate to boast of the murder. The...

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Plot Keywords:

gay | homosexual | ketamine | true crime | bare chested male | 

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Taglines:

'Til death do they party...

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Genres:

Biography | Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for pervasive drug use, language and some violence

Did You Know?

Trivia

Macaulay Culkin's first film in 9 years.

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Goofs

During the scene in Texas ("Money, Success, Fame, Glamour"), Freeze is wearing black, leather, zippered underpants in some shots but not in others.

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Quotes

Michael Alig: You'll love me, I promise.

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Connections

Referenced in Howard Stern on Demand: Wilmer Valderrama (2006)

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Soundtracks

Money, Success, Fame, Glamour
Written by Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato
Performed by Felix Da Housecat Vs. Pop Tarts featuring Macaulay Culkin, Seth Green and Chloë Sevigny

User Reviews

Mac "acts"

The movie's lines are interesting and the film is never dull, but it doesn't have much verisimilitude; you don't know where or when anything is happening. There are no characters other than the club kids and [the Limelight boss] Gatien, except for an occasional bemused "drearie," and there is very little sense of the time and what else is going on in New York (AIDS, ACT UP, gay activism, erotic clubs, Ed Koch, OutWeek, Republicans in the White House, Musto at the Voice, coked-out Wall Streeters).

The real Alig has a very subtle, slightly sardonic, dry and understated personality, which is what makes his flights into fantasy and lunacy so interesting. I had a cable program ("The Closet Case Show") on Manhattan Public Access from '84 to '94, so I had occasion to tape a lot of Alig's activities, including parties at Tunnel and Limelight, and his infamous Burger King [Times Square] Outlaw Party (restaurant name changed in the movie). In 1989, after getting serious coverage in The New York Times, Michael and Keoki appeared for a half-hour interview on my show. I gave a tape of this show to Mac so that he could study the subtle ways in which Michael spoke and gestured. Apparently, Mac felt that Alig's dry wit was less interesting than a more theatrical flamboyant queeniness would be, so Mr. Culkin degrades the movie by making Alig an evil faggot, overplaying the character, I guess, so that everybody would be sure that the once-married Mac was only "acting" and by no means gay himself. [Mac, as Michael A. taught everyone, and as Michael J. no doubt taught you, there is no such thing as "gay" or "straight," only sexual, with the unfortunate majority being repressed away from normal bisexuality until temporarily liberated by mood drugs.]

A more secure Mac would have played a more real Michael, and that would have helped the film immeasurably. Alig, as I told Mssrs. Bailey and Barbato, is a true tragic hero. He contributed in a positive way to the Age of Aquarius, but he was brought down in the end by excessive pride and the faulty belief that he was, as a super celeb, invulnerable to the world's evils. Aeschylus could have written the screen play.

That said, the costumes will get an Oscar nod, and probably a win, which should be shared by all the kids who created and sported the originals.

Details

Country:

USA Netherlands

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 October 2003 (UK)

Also Known As:

Party Monster

Filming Locations:

Chateau Marmont, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$5,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$15,163, 31 August 2003

Gross USA:

$742,898

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$782,606

Company Credits

Production Co:

World of Wonder Productions, Killer Films, ContentFilm

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1