By Dan Skip Allen

Charli XCX is a pop singer who had a moment if you will last super with her brat album that had the world all in a flutter. “The Moment” which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival about a week or so ago, depicts a version of what this British sensation went through trying to create a one woman show for Amazon Prime. A brat concert Film. It’s similar in tone to This Is Spinal Tap from deceased director Rob Reiner about a fictional rock band. The only kicker here is the mockumentary if you will stars the woman herself. It’s an interesting concept, but with Spinal Tap having a sequel last year, I’d say it’s a little late for another music mockumentary.

Charli XCX stars as a version of herself preparing for an expic concert with a brat concept attached to it, but as things can happen, there are a few roadblocks on the way to the performance. She is trying to capitalize on her brat summer, where her album and she created a whole new outlook for a specific demographic of people all around the world. A director, Johannes (Alexander Skarsgard), is hired to get the show in shape for the last performance, but he causes more problems than he’s worth. The level is frustrated by all the things going on, and Tammy (Joanna Arquette), the executive in charge, has had enough. Eventually, all of these shannigans come to a head.

As this is a comedic film, it has to have some cameos of some big name celebrities that have had interactions with Charli XCX in the past or are considered her friends. The first was when she appeared on The Colbert Report, which was an interview that wasn’t very good and didn’t go so well for the pop star. Another cameo was from Kylie Jenner, who the singer-songwriter has had a fued on social media with. And a friend of the young pop Stars Rachel Sennott (Bodies Bodies Bodies) also appears in the mockumentary. These cameos, as well as others, are all part of the feel and tone this film is going for.

The director of the movie tried to do some strange yet interesting things with it to make it stand out. A few technical aspects fascinated me. One was a scene that was blurry. I wonder what the idea was with this particular scene. It was a conversation between Charli XCX and her show designer Celeste (Hailey Gates). Another thing that made this movie stand out with the graphic between scenes that showed a lot of logos from the record label to things that are in pop culture or things this pop singer represents or does advertising work for. They went by fast and there were a lot of them so I couldn’t catch all of them. 

The film started with a cold opening video of her “365 Partygirl” a hit song from the brat album. This is the lifestyle she is going for and trying to sell to other young women her age. Partying, drinking, and doing drugs was what she thought would be the thing that young girl would get behind. She was right. This was exactly what girls wanted to do. Specifically on a warm climate like a beach or exotic location. Taking their parents’ money to go party in places like Ebitha was right up Charli XCX alley so she could sell this vibe to others. Which is what happens. It blew up into an entire way of thinking. Hence the term “brat summer”.

One performance in the movie that was quite funny, though, was Skarsgard as the director of the show, who replaced the friend of Charli XCX as the producer of the show. He played this character as very flamboyant and over the top. This is a rare comedic performance from Skarsgard, which plays relatively serious characters. He’s starting to show some range as an actor, as evident by his recent appearance on Saturday Night Live. Charli XCX also appeared on the sketch comedy show during the moment in question. Skarsgard is also in another crazy film “Pillion “ coming out soon. I can’t wait to see what else he does.

“The Moment” was an interesting movie. It had some technical aspects that set it apart from other films like this. The cast was good, and most of them, including the cameos, did a good job. Skarsgard was the standout for me. I got a few laughs from all the people who represented these music moguls and sidekicks in Charli XCX life. Charli XCX obviously wanted to sell a certain vibe with her performance. She came across as a bit comedic. I believe this was on purpose. She wanted to make a comedy out of this mockumentary concert film. The director tried doing the best job he could with the idea of this movie, but it wasn’t as entertaining as I think they thought it was going to be when they made it. Maybe fans of the pop singer will like it anyway. It’s more geared towards them than a middle-aged man like me. 

2 ½ stars