How to Talk to Girls at Parties
A rebellious London punk and a mysterious alien teenager find forbidden freedom and romance amid the noisy upheaval of the 1970s punk scene.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- irreverent
- surreal
- witty
- cult movie night
- punk themed viewing
What critics said
Critics broadly found the film energetic and ambitious, with charming performances and striking ideas undermined by unfocused storytelling and weak narrative cohesion.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Enn falls for Zan while she conceals her humanoid alien identity and struggles against her group's conformity.
Enn's punk community provides the film's central alternative to the aliens' ritualized, conformist society.
The film combines 1970s punk fashion, alien bodies, flamboyant costumes, and deliberately bizarre production design.
The youthful love story is interwoven with alien ritual, London punk culture, comedy, and provocative sexuality.
Films like How to Talk to Girls at Parties, and why
Hedwig and the Angry Inch
shared punk energy, gender-bending sexuality, theatrical style, and outsider romance
The Rocky Horror Picture Show
shared surreal science fiction, eccentric subcultures, satirical tone, and unconventional romance
The History of Future Folk
shared alien encounter, youthful romance, British setting, and playful genre hybridity
The Lure
shared psychedelic visual imagination, countercultural rebellion, and comic science fiction romance
Movie Details
- Director
- John Cameron Mitchell
- Release Date
- 2017-10-06
- Runtime
- 103 min
- Rating
- 6.0 / 10 (438)
Cast
- Elle Fanning
- Alex Sharp
- Nicole Kidman
- Matt Lucas
- Ruth Wilson
- Abraham Lewis
- Ethan Lawrence
- Edward Petherbridge
- Joanna Scanlan
- Tom Brooke
Where to watch in United States
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is How to Talk to Girls at Parties about?
- A rebellious London punk and a mysterious alien teenager find forbidden freedom and romance amid the noisy upheaval of the 1970s punk scene.
- What is How to Talk to Girls at Parties like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of How to Talk to Girls at Parties as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is How to Talk to Girls at Parties violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in How to Talk to Girls at Parties as mild.
- What did critics think of How to Talk to Girls at Parties?
- Critics broadly found the film energetic and ambitious, with charming performances and striking ideas undermined by unfocused storytelling and weak narrative cohesion.
- Which films are like How to Talk to Girls at Parties?
- Films with a similar feel include Hedwig and the Angry Inch, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, The History of Future Folk, and The Lure.
- How long is How to Talk to Girls at Parties?
- How to Talk to Girls at Parties runs 103 minutes.
- Where can I watch How to Talk to Girls at Parties?
- In United States, How to Talk to Girls at Parties is available to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home.
