I have no doubt that being a successful, touring pop star can be extremely stressful. So when Charli xcx’s album brat ended up being a massive hit (her biggest commercial success, in fact) two years ago, the stakes of arena tour that followed went through the roof and the pressures of fame and industry demands while preparing for the tour grew exponentially.
In many ways, the so-called “Brat summer” was a trend that transcended the album. It was a calling card, but it was also a trap that at some point she knew she’d either have to replace with something new or extend as long as there was life in the newly redefined meaning of “brat.” Knowing all of this, it made me curious about what the point of The Moment actually is. Why invent dilemmas to take place when you’re an artist on top when there are real ones that you don’t have to make up?
Clearly, the film is a mockumentary, but since so little of it is played for laughs, it comes across as disingenuous rather than just an exaggerated version of events with Charli xcx playing a slightly more manic, diva-fied version of herself. Director Aidan Zamir (who co-wrote with Bertie Brandes) makes it all look stylish, but to what ends? Charli seems at times to be very certain about what she wants the tour to look like, thanks to advice from her creative director, Celeste (Hailey Benton Gates). But when the record label decides they want a concert film made of the tour’s opening night (which no artist would ever agree to, by the way), they bring in an opinionated filmmaker named Johannes (Alexander Skarsgård) who immediately starts reworking and sanitizing the entire show to play better for his cameras than for the audience. Skarsgård is actually tremendously funny in this role, but again, there’s nothing funny about watching a female artist get steamrolled by a passive-aggressive dude who thinks he knows what’s best for her. Charli also has a completely ineffective manager who allows the label head (Rosanna Arquette) to dictate his client’s every move.
There’s a ridiculous and completely unnecessary subplot involving a brat credit card that is targeted at Charli’s gay fans, but the film is far more intriguing when it stays focused on the tour planning, which encapsulates her struggle for artistic integrity, controlling her legacy, and the price of celebrity. I don’t think The Moment expects us to feel sorry for Charli xcx at any point, but in one sequence when she attempts to take a brief vacation that only ends up lasting a couple of days, you do wish people would leave her alone. There are some cameos by the likes of Rachel Sennott and Kylie Jenner as friends/frenemies that provide a few laughs, but mostly, she’s surrounded by parasites and yes-people who never seem to have her best interests at heart. The Moment left me baffled and eager to see a more genuine behind-the-curtain peak at Charli’s chaotic life; whatever this is feels artificial and soulless.
The film is now playing in theaters.
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