“Club Kid”
(USA)
Metacritic (8/10), Letterboxd (4/5), Imdb.com (8/10), TMDB.com (8/10), Imdb.com critics review
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Telling a conventional story in an unconventional manner is quite a feat for a filmmaker, especially in his or her initial directing effort. But so it is in the debut feature from actor-writer-director Jordan Firstman. Stories of unsuspecting parents being thrown together with children who they never knew they had are nothing new in moviemaking circles, but this material has nearly always been handled with fairly traditional treatment in their saccharin sweet, formulaic, eminently predictable narratives. And they have generally been embraced lovingly as adored family viewing fare – commendable but often overly cloying. So it’s refreshingly different for a comedy-drama like “Club Kid” to handle its story in a totally irreverent way. When New York LGBTQ+ party promoter Peter Green (Firstman) discovers that he unknowingly fathered a child while in a drug-induced stupor a decade earlier while on a trip to London, he’s astounded, convinced that he could never have had sex with a woman let alone produced a child as a result. But, when he meets 10-year-old Arlo (Reggie Absolom), he’s in for a rude awakening. When Arlo’s temporary but unreliable caretaker, Edison (Kirby Howell-Baptiste), arrives in New York with the boy in tow, she informs Peter of the death of the child’s mother and is prepared to hand over custody to his unaware biological father, a revelation documented on the youngster’s birth certificate. But Peter is ill-prepared for the responsibility. As an immature thirty-something drug dealer and user, he’s hardly the sort of role model for raising a child. He has a full plate otherwise, too, attempting to resolve problems with his irascible party planning business partner, Sophie (Cara Deievingne), and a ne’er-do-well roommate, Nicky (Eldar Isgandarov). Some might also see his circle of friends – an assortment of hard-partying LGBTQ+ club hoppers – as anything but a healthy influence on a 10-year-old. However, as Peter soon discovers, Arlo is mature beyond his years, a street smart, savvy youngster who’s more responsible than he is. In that regard, Arlo does as much to raise Peter as Peter does to raise Arlo. And, because of Arlo’s obvious senses of wisdom and maturity, Peter treats him more like an adult than a child, welcoming him into his world while simultaneously diligently shielding him from the potential downsides around him. They make quite a pair, and a strong bond quickly develops between them. But can they sustain this unlikely connection? That’s what awaits them as their story unfolds. And what a story it is. While the narrative here is indeed somewhat formulaic, it’s embellished with a plethora of elements that distinguish it from nearly all of its cinematic predecessors. It’s a story full of warmth, wit and laughs, unapologetically loaded with references (some of them quite uninhibited) to the LGBTQ+ community and lifestyle, some of which sensitive viewers could find wholly outrageous. But then this is a film that’s not afraid to take chances, to bend or break rules for pictures in this genre. It’s also insightful that its title is equally applicable to both father and son, with both essentially growing up at the same time, giving each other what they need most. Moreover, “Club Kid” is peppered with smart, snappy dialogue that doesn’t sound the least bit out of place and an array of memorable, colorful characters. Granted, a few story threads aren’t resolved as fully as they might have been, and several sequences slightly overstay their welcome. But this awards season contender is one of those well-constructed “it’ll make you laugh, it’ll make you cry” feel good tales that’s well worth the time. It’s a picture that often defies what’s considered conventionally acceptable but that also simultaneously shows what can work despite widely accepted reservations. And, in the end, isn’t that what’s really in a youngster’s best interests?