THE MOMENT, a film that pulls back the curtain, then takes it down from the rod, lights it on fire, and challenges Charli XCX to stand in the center of the flames, all courtesy of Director Aidan Zamiri, has landed, and like Charli XCX’s album, it’s loud, it’s wild, it’s aware. It’s a whole lot of fun.
Opening in select theaters on January 30, this mock documentary film is guaranteed to be a cultural phenomenon before it even hits a screen.
A BRAT-Infused Pop Odyssey
On a fundamental level, THE MOMENT seems to follow a rising pop star named Charli XCX as she finds herself caught between internet legend and an actual breakdown while preparing for her debut arena tour.
However, this isn’t a slick, glossy document of a tour. Zamiri, along with co-writer Bertie Brandes, has used it as a satire of pop star expectations, obsession, branding, and the ever-growing shadow of Charli.
The cast list reads like a crazy dinner gathering: Rosanna Arquette, Kate Berlant, Jamie Demetriou, Hailey Benton Gates, Isaac Powell, Rachel Sennott, Alexander Skarsgård, and even Kylie Jenner, who shows up with her characteristic deadpan seriousness.
While BRAT seemed like the album of a generation of very online party thinkers, THE MOMENT can be seen as a guide from a film.
The Trailer Is A Perfectly Chaotic Green-Tinted Spiral
The trailer begins with Charli talking to the camera in a flat, straight delivery:
“Hi, it’s Charli XCX. Are you having a brat summer?”
From this point on, the conversation becomes a reflection of itself, poking fun at fame. This running gag plays out in the trailer, as the tags, fans, and pop culture apparatus in general are clamoring for “brat summer forever.” At the same time, Charli becomes increasingly convinced that this notion is “a bit cringe,” in her own words. This depiction of a never-ending pressure to change with “f***ing innovative” ideas plays out.
There are whispers of an Amazon series like this being produced, a film about a concert, a director in a bunker, a debate about “metaphorical cocaine,” and a fan proclaiming, “My kids just love Brat.”
The moment reaches a crescendo when Charli finally goes ballistic:
“Everybody’s like, what do you want? What do you want? What do you want? Well, I don’t fing know what I fing want, Tim!”
That line might be the most Charli XCX-related thing that has ever been recorded.
Next would be the fire trick.
A pyrotechnics supervisor cautions her to remain in a ring of lighters that are about to burn. Charli hesitates.
“Why would I be inside it if it’s on fire?”
Three, two, one. It’s lit. The screen emits a green glow.
