SLAVES TO THE UNDERGROUND |
| CREDITS: Director: Kristine Peterson USA 1996 (18) INTRODUCTION: Another indy flick (hence the continued lack of credit details), Riot Grrrl meets Slacker and a doomed romance ensues which sets them against their friends, a sort of Generation X "Romeo and Juliet" if you will, but with more lesbianism. SYNOPSIS: Shelly must choose between her lover Jimmy and her band 'No Exit' headed by another lover Suzy, Jimmy must choose between a respectable job at Microsoft and the continuation of his slacker 'zine, and Suzy must choose between a potentially lucrative record deal and taking her political crusade to the nations capitol, Washington DC. REVIEW: A simple enough plot that gives us access to the Generation X life style on the outskirts of the now mythical Microsoft campus in Seattle. A brilliantly observed script, perfectly capturing the Copland/Rushkoff style, mixes story and straight-to-camera monologues on such diverse subjects as 'zines and "The Graduate". Wonderful performances from the three leads bring the script alive, make the potentially dull monologues a joy to behold, and mark out the young performers as stars in the making. The violence is allowed to pass without comment, the rape is almost completely forgotten after it has served its purpose to the plot, and the cause of the kids anger is never fully explored, however that is to be expected from Generation X. Maybe I'm biased by my consideration of myself as a member of the generation represented here but I found the film, despite it's faults, a joy to behold. It's your typical slacker/stalker flick and yet it defines a generation. Mutt's Rating: **** |