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"GROOVE"
(2000) (Hamish Linklater, Lola Glaudini) (R)

Alcohol/
Drugs
Blood/Gore Disrespectful/
Bad Attitude
Frightening/
Tense Scenes
Guns/
Weapons
Heavy None Moderate None None
Imitative
Behavior
Jump
Scenes
Music
(Scary/Tense)
Music
(Inappropriate)
Profanity
Mild None Minor None Extreme
Sex/
Nudity
Smoking Tense Family
Scenes
Topics To
Talk About
Violence
Heavy Moderate None Minor None


QUICK TAKE:
Drama: Various young adults attend a large, one-night party and discover new things about themselves.
PLOT:
It's Friday night in San Francisco and Ernie Townsend (STEVE VAN WORMER) is planning a guerilla-style rave party in an abandoned warehouse. When New York transplant Leyla Heydel (LOLA GLAUDINI) sends out a request over the Internet for a ride to the party, word quickly spreads about the impromptu get-together.

Among those attending are Colin Turner (DENNY KIRKWOOD) and his girlfriend Harmony Stitts (MACKENZIE FIRGENS). Colin has a surprise in store for Harmony and wants his brother, David (HAMISH LINKLATER), to hit the party with them. An aspiring writer whose career has so far been limited to writing computer manuals, David, a natural loner, is reluctant to go as he's never attended a rave, but his brother eventually convinces him.

As Ernie and his crew get the rave started, he must contend with a variety of conditions and complications, including hearty partygoers fueled by Ecstasy and other drugs supplied by Cliff Rafferty (ARI GOLD), as well as worries about the police showing up and shutting down their party.

When Colin proposes to Harmony at the party and David eventually takes his first hit of Ecstasy, things seem to be going well, especially when the latter meets and immediately falls for Leyla. With the night wearing on and after a run-in with a police sergeant (NICK OFFERMAN), the partygoers get down to the sounds of various legendary DJs - such as DJ John Digweed (JOHN DIGWEED) - while various attendees, including David, Leyla, and others, try to make sense of their young lives and the surprising revelations that occur as the dawn approaches.

WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT?
If they're into the rave or techno-pop music scene they probably will, but otherwise it's not very likely.
WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: R
For drug use, language and brief sexuality.
CAST AS ROLE MODELS:
  • HAMISH LINKLATER plays an aspiring writer/loner who's reluctant to attend the rave but eventually does after his brother convinces him. Once there, he takes Ecstasy and gets high and meets and then falls for Leyla. He also uses some profanity.
  • LOLA GLAUDINI plays a rave veteran who befriends David and helps him with his first rave experience. She also smokes and uses some profanity.
  • DENNY KIRKWOOD plays David's brother who takes Ecstasy, proposes to Harmony during the rave, but then ends up making out with a man there. Eventually, however, he has sex with Harmony. He also uses strong profanity.
  • MACKENZIE FIRGENS plays Colin's girlfriend who must deal with two surprises he drops on her (asking her to marry him and then making out with another guy).
  • STEVE VAN WORMER plays the rave coordinator who illegally sets up such parties only for the gratification of knowing he made someone else's day & night by doing so. He uses some profanity, smokes, and tries lying to a cop about the rave.
  • ARI GOLD plays the local drug dealer who supplies the rave's attendees.
  • JOHN DIGWEED plays himself, a legendary deejay who spins records for the rave.
  • CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO

    HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE


    Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit?
    Then read OUR TAKE of this film.


    (Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below).


    OUR WORD TO PARENTS:
    The following is a quick summary of the content found in this R-rated drama. Various characters who attend the rave take Ecstasy, while others smoke pot or inhale nitrous oxide, and one is a drug dealer who supplies most of them. We see two characters having varied, adverse reactions to drugs. Several characters also smoke.

    Profanity is rated as extreme due to the presence of more than 20 "f" words, while other expletives and colorful phrases are also present. A sexual encounter (with movement and sounds but no nudity) is seen from a distance, while some groping/caressing occurs and we see several men kissing. Beyond that and the fact that the rave/party scenes might entice kids to attend one, the rest of the film's categories have little or nothing in the way of major objectionable content. As always, though, if you're still concerned about the film's appropriateness for those wishing to see it, you may want to take a closer look at our detailed content listings.


    ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE
  • Colin has a drink.
  • Cliff is a drug dealer who tells a friend of his (who has a beer) that to be a successful drug person, one has to be well informed. A comment is then made that they're going for a suburbia meets opium den kind of thing.
  • Some young men buy LSD from Cliff.
  • A man pops a pill (of what's presumably Ecstasy).
  • Colin, Harmony and David take what's presumably Ecstasy. David then reacts to the drug and Leyla has to help him calm down. Later, both Colin and David seem pretty drugged up, and Colin takes more pills.
  • We see all sorts of people sucking on lollipops (thus suggesting that they might be laced with something).
  • Two men share a joint outside the club.
  • People buy more drugs.
  • Some young men inhale nitrous oxide.
  • A guy says that he's going to get drunk and pass out in the gutter.
  • Several people try to keep one wasted guy awake so that he doesn't pass out and possibly die, while a woman asks someone if they ate dinner before they did drugs.
  • Some people drink beer in a car.
  • BLOOD/GORE
  • None.
  • DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE
  • The various characters have both for trespassing on private property where they hold their party and then later for disobeying police orders to vacate the premises.
  • Ernie tries lying to a cop about the nature of their party as well as his occupation.
  • FRIGHTENING SCENES
  • None.
  • GUNS/WEAPONS
  • None.
  • IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR
  • Phrases: "F*ck me," "I'm pretty f*cked up," "Shut the f*ck up," "F*ck you," "You're f*cked up," "Sh*thead," "Shut up," "Take a piss," "Ugly ass," "Busting your ass" and "Slut."
  • Teens may be enticed to attend one of the all-night raves and/or take Ecstasy and/or inhale nitrous oxide.
  • A character has tattoos all over his body.
  • JUMP SCENES
  • None.
  • MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE)
  • A tiny bit of ominous music plays in the film.
  • MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE)
  • None.
  • PROFANITY
  • At least 23 "f" words, 12 "s" words, 5 asses (2 used with "hole"), 1 crap, 1 damn, 2 uses of "Jesus Christ" and 1 use each of "Jesus," "Oh God" and "Oh my God" as exclamations.
  • SEX/NUDITY
  • We see a brief sketch of a woman that shows her bare breasts.
  • Two gay men talk about it being their first anniversary and they kiss.
  • Leyla shows some cleavage.
  • A man massages a young woman's clothed butt.
  • We see a small group of people lying intertwined with one another, caressing each other's clothed bodies (although not particularly in erotic sections).
  • Two men kiss and we see a heterosexual couple making out on the floor.
  • We see the side of a woman's bare breast.
  • Another woman shows cleavage.
  • Harmony sees Colin and another man making out at the party.
  • Harmony and Colin make out back behind the party. Later, and seen from a distance, the two of them have sex (with her on top of him with movement and sounds, but no nudity).
  • SMOKING
  • Ernie and Leyla smoke several times, while David and various other minor/background characters smoke once.
  • TENSE FAMILY SCENES
  • None.
  • TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT
  • Attending such parties and doing such drugs.
  • VIOLENCE
  • None.



  • Reviewed May 9, 2000 / Posted June 30, 2000

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