BASED ON AN ORIGINAL IDEA BY CHARLI XCX
IN AUSTRALIAN CINEMAS FROM MARCH 5
Directed by: Aidan Zamiri
Written by: Aidan Zamiri and Bertie Brandes
Starring: Charli xcx, Rosanna Arquette, Kate Berlant, Jamie Demetriou, Arielle Dombasle, Hailey Benton Gates, Kylie Jenner, Trew Mullen, Mel Ottenberg, Isaac Powell, Rachel Sennott, Rish Shah, Alexander Skarsgård, Michael Workéyè
In the neon-green wake of 2024’s “Brat Summer,” Charli xcx has delivered something far more dangerous than a standard concert film. The Moment, directed by Aidan Zamiri, is a razor-sharp mockumentary that serves as a “revisionist history” of the very phenomenon that made her a global household name.
The film is a raw, often tragic look at the high cost of fame and the inflated egos that populate the pop music industrial complex. It captures Charli at a crossroads: she’s reached the “precipice of the mountain” she spent fifteen years climbing, only to find a void of dissociation waiting at the top.
The Machine vs. The Artist
The heart of the drama lies in the “relentless apparatus” surrounding her. We see a revolving door of label executives, assistants, and “pencil pushers” who view Charli not as a human, but as a high-timing product designed to make “chin-chin.”
The friction peaks with the arrival of Johannes (a perfectly patronising Alexander Skarsgård), a for-hire director brought in to “sanitize” Charli’s vision for the masses. Skarsgård plays the role with a parasitic glint, attempting to dictate how best to film “Brat Summer” while completely missing the point of what made it cool in the first place. In a brilliant casting masterstroke, Blast from the past actress Rosanna Arquette appears as one of the creative crew with Skarsgard’s character, who doesn’t have a single line of dialogue. This was classic to watch and amusing to add to some of the humorous moments in the film, which you’re bound to have a good giggle throughout the film.
There is a great scene when Charli goes to SPA, and that is one of the highlights of the film as to the interaction of the healer and Charli this was quiet funny to watch.
The Verdict
The Moment is both a music industry satire and an existential crisis caught on camera. It asks a haunting question: Can the art survive the capitalism required to sell it? There are parts where you’ll want to rescue Charli from the machine, but by the end, you realize she’s already saved herself by being the one to tear the machine apart.
It’s messy, it’s meta, and it’s arguably the most vulnerable thing a pop star has ever put on screen.
3 stars
Caroline Russo
