Kids

Rating:
Summary: The Stark Truth of Kids Today
Review: Hey Kids-this one tells it like it is. The life of teenagers in America today, all the drugs, the alcohol, the illicit sex, and the dangers and diseases that follow. The film follows a group of kids in present-day New York through the course of a typical day of alcoholism and narcotics abuse. During the film, these NY teens engage in all the actions that your mother warned you about which culminate in a party at the end of the film that will stay with you for a long time. There are some great performances by some up-and-coming actors, especially Chloe Sevigny and Justin Pierce. Unfortunately Pierce hung himself in 2000, so we'll see no more of "Casper", although he did have a minor role in "Next Friday". I found the music in "Kids" to be quite compelling, and the visuals by Larry Clark are something to behold. If you have children, or are planning on having children, you owe it to yourself to see this film so that you can try to keep your own kids from ending up the way that the misbegotten youth in this picture did.

Rating:
Summary: It's Worth Watching
Review: I was about to buy the movie and that's what got me reading some of the reviews.Alot of people had alot of different things to say about it.when I first saw this movie I thought it really was real, just a camera following a day in teen life.I thought this because for me everything that goes on in this movie is what my days and some of my friends days are like.I don't live in nyc, but any poor area is usually just like this. the stuff these kids are doing is the same as what myself or friends of mine are doing.parents do not play any big roles in this movie,and that's how it is for kids doing these things.if you have parents in your life than you're not gonna act like these kids do.and to those who said kids are not really this bad,kids have hopes and dreams. that is very true,but when you get caught up in a lifestyle like the one shown in this movie, you stop thinking about all that stuff and just consentrate on what's goin on around you. This movie is gonna shock the people who don't know about these things, but to those who can relate, it's gonna be entertaining.When I first saw it,it brought back memories of mine that was like stuff going on in the movie. To parentswho were freaked out by this movie-just keep an eye on your kids, it's when you're never around to get them in trouble that gets them acting like this, they need to be raised to know thay can't do whatever they want.

Rating:
Summary: Special-K's writing debut
Review: Kids is the most important movie of the 90's. I've heard many people on here leaving comments that read something like "this isn't real. this stuff doesn't actually happen." Well, in reply, I'm a teenager. Right now, I'm a teenager. And I can honestly say, yes it bloody well does. All too much. I've seen oodles of movies, and this movie represents real life better than any work of fiction I've ever seen. If you disagree, I don't care, honestly, because I'm living in this world. And I see what happens in my school and what happens where I'm at. Truthfully, this isn't a work of fiction. This has happened many times and teenagers really are like that. Not every one, but many are, and all the middle age white guys who say this movie isn't real need to stifle.

Rating:
Summary: The "Kids" Aren't Alright
Review: "And all the vampires walking through the Valley/Move west down Ventura Boulevard. -- Tom Petty, "Free Falling"

Move Tom Petty's "Free Falling" from Los Angeles to New York and you get the movie "Kids", an occasionally shocking but ultimately uninteresting look at a twenty-four hour period in the lives of the new Lost Generation, a glimpse of humans (only in the strict species sense) who have no ambitions or goals drifting aimlessly from one location to the next in search of satisfaction of their most basic animal needs.

Leo Fitzpatrick plays Telly, an adolescent "Decameron" and self-described "virgin surgeon" whose whole life revolves around the deflowering of young girls. "Take that away from me," he confides in one voice-over, "and I really got nothing." He relates his latest conquest (brutally filmed in the movie's opening) to his best friend Casper (Justin Pierce), then, after shoplifting some beer and stopping by a flophouse crammed full of boys and drugs, he reveals his latest plan: he has set his sights on a thirteen-year-old girl named Darcy, and wants to make his conquest that night. "Two virgins in one day?" Casper says. "That's gotta be illegal or something." (Well, yes, it is, though not in quite the way he thinks.) Meanwhile, Jenny (played by Chloe Sevigny) has just discovered that she has contracted HIV from her single encounter with Telly, and spends the movie trying to find him to give him the news. (A caveat: if Telly is only interested in virgins, then how did he contract HIV? Never mind, I don't want to know.)

It's grim stuff, made even less comfortable by Larry Clark's direction. Clark shoots everything with such gritty realism that the picture takes on a documentary feel. And it's effective; we feel the heat of the day, the sweat on the bodies, the texture of the grimy city, and the result is sensory overload. That the cast is made up of unknowns who try not to remind us that this is only a movie contributes to the effect. It manages to shock even the most jaded moviegoer. At first.

That first twenty minutes is shocking, indeed. We see the deflowering of a young girl, theft, and drug use, we hear frank talk about sex from both boys and girls, we feel the vaccuum that has sucked all vitality and humanity from their lives. Unfortunately, in time the shock wears off, and it becomes obvious that Clark and Korine haven't bothered to present us with interesting characters. We want a reason to care about what happens, but we never do, because screenwriter Harmony Korine has failed to present anybody with an inner life. Aside from some vague pity for Jenny and loathing for Telly, we never feel anything but our own revulsion. Perhaps the point Korine is trying to make is that these kids have nothing to look forward to and nothing to hold onto, but that does not make for good drama. Or any drama at all.

Clark and Korine continue to provide us with shocking images--more drug use, casual violence, crude attempts at symbolism (at one point Telly sucks red Kool-Aid from a tampon), compulsive partying--in a rather desperate attempt to hide their lack of a compelling story. The shock thus becomes exploitative and sensational, much like the set pieces and special effects of a typical Hollywood movie. The effect is less genuine realism than hip nihilism.

Problematic, too, is the absence of any discussion of the issues raised. This is especially frustrating, for this is a movie which should spark debate. We see this movie and ask questions: how did these young people devolve into this cultural catatonia? What were the causes? What can be done about it? Casper, at the end of the movie, dozes naked in a living crowded with other partiers, then wakes and asks, "What happened?" It's exactly the question we're asking, but no answer is forthcoming. Again, maybe Korine and Clark feel there are no solutions, but if that's the case my question becomes, "What's the point?"

While watching "Kids" I was reminded of "Fresh", another powerful look at contemporary urban life and its effect on the young. Both unflinchingly tackle the theme of inner city despair, but "Fresh" also managed to present us with characters who had hopes and dreams; despite an environment of random cruelty and parental apathy, they were still recognizably human, and they made us care. "Kids", despite its aggressive stance and catalogue of unpleasant behavior, has nothing more to offer than its own bleak outlook. It is as empty shell; strip it of its shock elements, one finds nothing of import and little of consequence. In the words of Telly, "Take that away from me and I really got nothing."

Rating:
Summary: Talkin' bout my generation
Review: I am 17 years old, but was 15 when I saw the film "Kids". At that time I had to take the required high school health class. I nearly told my teacher about this movie, but I decided against it. I'm not sure how adults would handle seeing this movie. Come to think of it, I'm not even sure I know how I handled it. It really made me take a hard look at the attitude of people my age. What shocked me more then some of the despicable things the characters did, was their overall sense of misdirection and ennui.My generation is bored, rich, and unsupervised. These are the facts, not merely my opinion. Oddly enough, I felt the most disturbing part of the movie was the ONLY one with a parent in it.(Telly's mother.) She had absolutely no consern about what her 17 year old son was doing, yet she brought another child into the world.Despite what other reviewers say this film is real, and it's happening in subburbs just like the one I live in. See the movie,it scared the living snot out of me.

Rating:
Summary: I hate wiggers
Review: The sex, drugs, violence and constant marijuana usage didn't get to me. What got to me where the unbelievably annoying accents of white kids trying to be black. Not to mention the fact that Telly is a ratfaced wigger who thinks he's a pimp.

Check out that complection in the mirror before you bust out with ebonics, ya'll.

Rating:
Summary: Special-K's writing debut
Review: Kids is the most important movie of the 90's. I've heard many people on here leaving comments that read something like "this isn't real. this stuff doesn't actually happen." Well, in reply, I'm a teenager. Right now, I'm a teenager. And I can honestly say, yes it bloody well does. All too much. I've seen oodles of movies, and this movie represents real life better than any work of fiction I've ever seen. If you disagree, I don't care, honestly, because I'm living in this world. And I see what happens in my school and what happens where I'm at. Truthfully, this isn't a work of fiction. This has happened many times and teenagers really are like that. Not every one, but many are, and all the middle age white guys who say this movie isn't real need to stifle.

Rating:
Summary: This movie should have been called "Morons"
Review: What is the point of this movie? To prove that there are really stupid teens living in the city with nothing more to do than talk about "gettin' some" all day?

The acting in this film is pretty good but that is where my praise stops. I found this film to be a repulsive, steaming pile with no redeeming value.

If I was Chloe Sevigny, or anyone else involved in the making of this film, I would be embarassed to have my name on it.

Rating:
Summary: Nothing Even Compares
Review: First of all, if you think this movie glorifies sex/drugs/alcohol, you either weren't paying any attention whatsoever, missed the ending, or are a complete moron. This movie is the least-glorifying out of anything I've seen. The cinematography, along with superb acting all across the board, creates a documentary-like realism. Hell, the first time I saw a brief part of it, I could have sworn I was watching a documentary. Anyhow, if you are put off by any content early on, do yourself a favor and just put up with it. You must see the end of this movie to truly understand the tragedy and obvious message in the story. And trust me, it'll stick with you. Especially if you see it twice (a good idea).

Rating:
Summary: Moving and Powerful
Review: I am only 16, but this film is truly amazing. If you haven't seen this excellent film, I reccomend you do. It's good.