The Party (1980)

Very Cool!!!

It's no definitive masterpiece but it's damn close.

I saw this movie before reading any reviews, and I thought it was very funny. I was very surprised to see the overwhelmingly negative reviews this film received from critics.

Clever and entertaining enough to recommend even to members of the 1%

"La boum" is a French movie from 1980, so it will have its 40th anniversary soon already and it is a mix of all kinds of genres: music, comedy, drama, romance, but most of all it is a coming-of-age movie. But we will get to the details of this 110-minute film soon. First I would like to say that I really really appreciate the fact that films like this one or also the probably even more famous "Belle de jour" are shown again in theaters so many decades after their original release. It would be amazing if more classics could return to the big screen, also especially for the big cinemas that usually only offer the new stuff. I guess the quantity of viewers there to watch this one here as well as Bdj show the demand is there.Now back to this one: It is the story of a teenage girl who discovers love, attraction and also sexuality and we get to be a part of it. Sadly, things on the home front aren't looking too brilliant either for her as daddy cheats on mommy and these are more than busy taking care of themselves and their struggles. What's it she got? 13 years of age. Nice quote there. And I generally liked the film's approach in terms of realism. It never tries to fool us into thinking this was about true love, even if the main character believes so. The final scene/shot is the perfect example. Yes the film does go over the top frequently, like in terms of the old lady bringing sexual talk and comedy or the perhaps too frequent use of a certain song, but it is always likable in doing so, which makes it easier to look past that. Maybe the drama is not always working like the "flight" part or the way too big coincidence of him turning up in her hotel room, but yeah well there is a certain charm to this movie that makes it easy to ignore the weaker moments. It did really feel what growing up in 1970's or 1980's France could have looked like in my opinion and I write this as somebody who wasn't even born when this film was written and directed by the late Claude Pinoteau, probably his most known work. He also returned for the sequel two years later, which shows you that this original film was quite a success here. Maybe I will check out the second film at some point too, preferably at the very big screen as well. As for this one hear, it reminded me a bit of a harmless version of the Lemon Popsicle at times, from the girls' perspective obviously and harmless because the characters here are younger for sure. Only the cinema dick grabbing scene was probably on par with the famous Israeli film series. Overall, I give "The Party" a thumbs-up. It is worth seeing alone for the young Sophie Marceau in her very first performance already and looking at that one it is not surprising at all that she is still enjoying a successful and prolific career these days at the age of 50. Check her out. Her performance and the film and comedy feel pretty modern at times, the story could also be from the 2010s. A good watch and I give it a thumbs-up.

I didn't like it. Bad acting, cheesy soundtrack, and bitter plot were all major contributions to this terrible diarrhea mess. I felt that the only amusing part was when Vic's mom destroys the lady's perfume store. The scenes were annoyingly predictable, and the dialog was poorly written. You might have called this a Sixteen Candles rip-off, but this movie was made four years earlier. It's quite a disappointment to see that Sixteen Candles and La Boum are less than one star apart in the IMDb ratings. This film was a huge letdown. Being a fan of the '80s myself, I was expecting something brilliant, but instead I ended up with horrible. 3 out of 10 stars.

I first saw this film in my French class in the early '90s, and I LOVED it. My friends and I would rent this film voluntarily because it was just like the American 80s film we loved, but it was in French and often better. When I looked up this movie, I was surprised to learn that Vic was played by Sophie Marceau (I guess she hadn't starred in any American films back then, so I'd never heard of her). This movie is wonderful and I highly recommend it!! I think I'm going to have to go out and see it again soon!!!

Well, I can only say that this movie perfectly shows growing up and teenage-problems, without 'big dramas' and such things. Plus, I have to give compliments to Vic (Sophie Marceau). Besides she's pretty, she also acts quite good. This is a movie that I've seen about 100 times, and it still didn't bore me.