Hey, everyone. Capone in Chicago here, with a quick look at the latest from a writer-director I'm guessing a lot of you have some opinions about. I happen to like most of Larry Clark's films, but I think people are going to have a much easier time digesting and appreciating Wassup Rockers. Read on...
It's a little too easy to categorize writer-director-photographer Larry Clark (Kids, Bully) as a middle-age man obsessed with the lives (and often the sex lives) of young people under the legal age limit to drink, have sex, or even drive. Clark's films are filled with the shocking accounts of the actions--sometimes deviant, usually dangerous--of teens who either live like they think they will live forever or don't care whether they live to see the next day.
Wassup Rockers manages to be something different while still staying on topic. Here, Clark's lens falls upon Hispanic youth living in South Central Los Angeles. These particular kids stand out perhaps more than any other in their high school. The are essentially skater kids who listen to and play skater punk rock, wear tight pants, and have long, shaggy hair. They are often picked on by the black kids at school, who berate them for not conforming to the gangsta lifestyle, fashion, or music trends. They are also fiercely loyal and protective of each other. Clark hung out with this group of kids for a year before attempting to tell their story and casting them (non-actors all) to play themselves.
The film opens with the de facto leader Jonathon (Jonathon Velasquez) speaking to the camera as if being interviewed. He speaks in a monotone, but somehow that makes his power of his words hit harder. He details various stories about himself and his crew, some funny, some painful. Although the script is credited to Clark, it becomes clear that the first half of the film is a barely fictionalized account of events that actually happened to these kids. One boy attempts suicide by submerging his head in a sink full of water. It seems funny until you realize he really doesn't understand that you can't drown yourself in the sink.
We follow the group of genuinely nice kids as they knock about in and out of school. They drink and talk about sex, even the ones who are still virgins. Eventually the group ends up at a skate park in Beverly Hills, where something resembling a plot begins to take shape as they get harassed by the police, hit on by two curious white girls, and beaten up by the girls' male friends and relations.
The boys are forced to make their way through the back yards of various mansions in the Hills, stumbling upon the strangest and most bizarre people and gatherings. Clark gets his chance in these scenes to unload on the freakish nature of Hollywood parties, fashion glitteratti, and poseurs in general. Look for a self-effacing cameo by one-time supermodel and current reality show star Janice Dickinson.
By dialing back the sex and violence, Wassup Rockers becomes Clark's most accessible work and his most affectionate towards his subjects. He clearly has a great deal of admiration for these kids and gives them all a chance to shine in the film. With names like Kico, Spermball, and Porky, how could you not love them? The film is filled with slice-of-life accounts that move gracefully from being scary to funny to outright heartbreaking.
There is a sense that these kids, despite all that life has piled up against them, want so much more out of their lives, and they will do what is necessary to make their lives as fun as possible until that day comes. With a pounding punk rock soundtrack and an electric cast, Wassup Rockers is a loving and lovable character study about people whose lives never make it to the big screen, and clearly deserve to. The film opens today at the Landmark Century Center Cinema.
Capone
