gavin6942
This is the first film from Gregg Araki, the man who made "Doom Generation" and "Nowhere". Like those films, the theme is the end of the world and features a backdrop of industrial music (Ministry, My Life With the Thrill Kill Kult, 16 Volt, etc.). The only difference is the lack of budget and big name actors (no Rose McGowan or John Ritter). We follow the lives of a group of gay and lesbian teenagers over the course of roughly two weeks. We see their struggles against oppression, their personal lives. An AOL user would summarize this films as "Buttsecks? O RLY? Ya RLY." but that's just ignoring the overall themes to focus on the more distasteful aspects of the film. If you're ans Araki fan or want a new experience, check this film out. It's not nearly as weird as his other films (no aliens or talking decapitated heads), but it will warp your perception of the world. And the end, while very abrupt, leaves something of a lasting effect.
zepherdog
I thought the movie, "Totally F***ed UP," was a rather good movie. The movie attempts to look at the lives of some troubled gay teens and how they attempt to deal with the complexity and pressures of homosexuality in advent of the approaching new millennium. The interviewing style of the movie was a different approach to viewing a teen movies compared to the main stream movies formulas, but I found the movie entertaining in spite of the narration, and at times, it was very funny. If you ever really been around the teens of today, they do act and talk like these teens. All teens have problems trying to adjust and assimilate into adult life. Having the added pressure of being gay, makes their lives even more complex. I could identify with some of the characters and some of their actions and reactions and their problems trying to become independent, gay adults. I first saw this movie on the Independent Film Channel of cable and eventually I bought my own DVD copy, but I'd like to see more movies like this and more from the writer and director, Gregg Araki. Who knows, eventually these movies will be in main stream too and not just presented only on the Independent Film Network.
thescourge
I saw this film in 1995 at the ICA in London, and it blew me away - and it still does today. Mostly because it treates the characters as genuine real PEOPLE,and without stereotypes. Even in today's age of "will and grace" crap, it still holds up as ten times more genuine.A lot of people complain that nothing much happens - but that's what thesecharacters are destined to do- nothing much. They're problem is that they can't find a place to hang out, to fit in, to find others like them. They are nihilistic outcasts, and because they're gay in 1993, they're even more outcast - butpartially by themselves. This film shows this better than any film I've seen since...-ken
Infofreak
I've been watching Gregg Araki's movies out of chronological order and I think this has really adversely affected the way I'm seeing them. Being a big fan of the surreal, campy, pop art-y 'Doom Generation' and 'Nowhere' has meant that I've found his earlier more realistic movies difficult to enjoy.'The Living End' is one of his more conventional movies but at least it attempted some character development and a story-line. Unfortunately, 'Totally F***ed Up' doesn't have enough of either. It has plenty of anger sure, but it's semi-documentary look at disenfranchised gay teens fails to hold the interest throughout. It has a few good moments, but overall I had to fight to keep involved.The one really good thing about it is that it introduces the charismatic James Duval, who Araki would utilise better in his following two movies. Too bad his subsequent career has mainly seen him relegated to bit parts in (the no brainer) 'Independence Day' and (the admittedly enjoyable) 'Go'. He deserves better.So, if you didn't find much to enjoy in 'Totally F***ed Up' don't let it turn you off Araki completely. He far surpasses this in 'Doom Generation' and especially his most accomplished movie to date 'Nowhere' - a true 90s classic that deserves a larger audience!
AD
