Own it:
|
With: Leo Fitzpatrick, Justin Pierce, Chloë Sevigny, Rosario Dawson
|
Written by: Harmony Korine
|
Directed by: Larry Clark
|
MPAA Rating: NR
|
Running Time: 91
|
|
Date: 07/21/1995
|
|
|
|
Not for 'Kids'
By Jeffrey M. Anderson
Larry Clark's savagely controversial, deeply brutal Kids, the debut of many notable talents, was notorious in its day and still is — it's not for "kids" — but it's an unsettlingly effective cautionary tale.
Teen Telly (Leo Fitzpatrick) bullies his way into sex with a teen girl, leaves, and immediately boasts about his achievement to his friend Casper (Justin Pierce), adding that he especially loves having sex with virgins. They steal a bottle of malt liquor and go to a friend's apartment, where many boys begin bragging about their sexual experiences.
Meanwhile, teen Jennie (Chloë Sevigny) and Ruby (Rosario Dawson) and some girlfriends are also talking about sex, and their personal likes and dislikes. It turns out that Ruby is getting an HIV test, to which Jennie accompanies her for moral support. Ruby, despite having at least eight lovers and unprotected sex, tests negative, but Jennie, who also decides to test, and has only slept with Telly, tests positive.
She decides to find Telly and stop him from exposing any other girls to the disease. Across the city, Telly and Casper steal some money, buy some pot, and beat a man unconscious before Telly decides he wants to have sex with another virgin, 13-year-old Darcy (Yakira Peguero).
Made at the dawn of the internet age and before the rise of social media, Kids may be missing those components, but it has lost none of its power; the bullying, selfishness, and nihilism are the same.
A directing debut by photographer Larry Clark, working from a debut screenplay by Harmony Korine (who reportedly wrote it when he was 18), the movie does not compromise, and does not explain. There are no excuses as to why the kids are like this. It's simply an observation.
At the same time, the movie is startlingly natural. All the inexperienced actors give nuanced performances, with very little improvising.
Despite all this, the movie grabs you, makes you furious and sick. Telly, with his crooked smile and lackadaisical posture, would be a goofball hero in any other movie. But, in truth, he's a deplorable person with no redeeming qualities. And Korine's invention of the race-against-time story (Jennie trying to prevent Telly from having sex again) makes it strangely suspenseful.
Above all, it's a warning that teens need to be better taught about mental health, morals, the feelings of others, and so much more. (Unfortunately, it is now considered, by some, to be a cult classic.) Kids is a difficult watch, and a movie you will never forget, but it's also one you'll hope you never have to see again.
|
