A dark November begins with our most controversial movie yet, Larry Clark’s, Kids (1995). It received an NC-17 rating upon its release, and in the subsequent years, a lot of kids have felt accurately represented on film, while parents are still shocked and the rest of the world feels sucker-punched in the gut. Nineteen-year-old Harmony Korine wrote this film about an unsupervised teenage world full of immediate gratification, curiosity, unbridled vulgarity and never thinking about consequences. Kids was a wake-up call to the world.

▶️ Taking place in a 24-hour time span, Kids follows a teen girl who, after having sex with only one person, discovers she’s been infected with HIV. She spends the rest of the movie trying to track the boy down. In between and intertwined with the main story, the film is a voyeuristic endeavor into teenage lives concerned only with drugs, sex, talkin’ smack and lots of partying. We’ll discuss the issues tackled by the controversial film, emotionally difficult scenes, how Kids sparked the careers for its director, writer, all main actors, including Chloë Sevigny and Rosario Dawson, and why this film is still important over 20 years later.

▶️ Picks of the Week go in different directions this time out. Justin went with a shocking, yet analytical depiction of how a group of teens deal with a murder of a close friend in The River’s Edge (1986). Lindsay takes us to the beginning of the end of a bygone era, filled with transparent friendships and elitist, bourgeoise college grads in The Last Days of Disco (1998).

▶️ Maybe Billy Murray wasn’t a careless, New York club-goin’ skateboarder like the ones in Kids, but he did cause some trouble in his youth. Find out how he once got kicked off a plane and arrested in this week’s MurrayMoment!

▶️ Kids may be jarring and harsh, but its ugliness is effective and meaningful. One can assume the message is only about practicing safe sex, but the honest and impactful generational voice of the film should serve as an eye-opening story that goes deeper. Take a moment to let yourself be submerged into the world of Kids — it’ll be an experience you won’t soon forget. Viewer discretion is advised.

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