I'M SET FREE // A FILM REVIEW OF "18 TO PARTY"

BY MATEO MORENO

Setting a nostalgia filled film in another decade, especially one like the 80's, is a tricky thing to get right. Many films have tried, hoping to grasp onto fond memories we have of the past. And although some obviously succeed, most seem to simply make a joke of the era instead of letting their characters truly live there. 18 TO PARTY makes no such mistakes. It takes place in 1984 and except for the fact that the film quality looks much better than any film did back then, it feels like it could be a lost movie from the Reagan era. From the sharp costuming to the fantastic soundtrack (featuring The Alarm, The Velvet Underground and Mick Jones, along with many other great tunes), writer/director Jeff Roda seamlessly transports you to a different era, one without cell phones and social media.

The plot centers around a group of kids, eighth graders in fact, in a small town who are waiting outside of a nightclub, hoping to get in. The younger kids have to wait in the back of the club until all of the older kids are let in through the front. Only then might they be allowed inside. They are a band of misfits, kids that may not fit into any popular circles but have all found each other (even if some of them really don't like each other terribly much). As they wait, they have nothing to do but talk so they talk about this and that and everything in between. We find out how 9,000 people in their small town has supposedly seen a UFO, with about half the group believing it and half still skeptical. We find out how several kids in their town have all killed themselves, oddly all at the same time. There's a possible romance beginning to bloom and a return of an old classmate with a dark history. Through it all, we listen. We listen to the kids talk and talk and just be kids. Kids with nothing else to do but wait and hope that they'll be able to catch a glimpse of their favorite bands inside those walls before them.

The entire cast is full of dynamic faces that you probably won't recognize, which makes it feel even more like a true slice of life, and the dialogue is sharp and fresh. Charming, funny, dramatic and strange, it hits all the right notes and never overstays its welcome. Better yet, there's not even a stand out actor or character in the bunch, because they all are equally standouts. They blend so well together you may forget that you're not watching a real group of friends from the 80's. Truly one of the best surprises of this year and one that makes you feel nostalgic and warm, 18 TO PARTY is one of the best films of the year.

GRADE: A

WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY Jeff Roda STARRING Tanner Flood, Sam McCarthy, Alivia Clark, Taylor Richardson, James Freedson-Jackson, Oliver Gifford, Nolan Lyons, Ivy Miller, Erich Schuett. Now playing in Virtual Cinemas. For more info: https://www.18topartymovie.com/