Fenton Bailey
Everything that makes Michael Alig a success, inevitably leads to his own downfall; drugs, excess and royalties.
During the late eighties, with the help from James St. James, Alig rose to clubland fame. He threw the most outrageous parties with his collective of eclectic club kids. They wore platform shoes, headdresses, tons of make-up and waltzed down the streets of New York turning looks at every corner. They held hedonic parties in nightclubs and outlaw parties in fast food restaurants and train stations.
The entire scene became laced in a cocktail of drugs that made the party last longer. Michael, who had become so used to the royalties his charm drew in, abused the supply of his drug dealing housemate, Angel, unapologetically. During a violent confrontation, Michael’s close companion, Freeze, beat Angel with a hammer. At first, an action of self-defence quickly became violent, and Freeze struck him two times more. And, the situation only escalated from there.
Fenton Bailey’s depiction of this tumultuous true story takes you from a high straight down to a low. Does Alig’s charm help him get away with murder? Or will his club kid status do nothing for him in reality?
Party Monster
director FENTON BAILEY
year 2003
director of photography TEODORO MANIACI
cast MACAULAY CULKIN, SETH GREEN, CHLOË SEVIGNY, DIANA SCARWID and MARILYN MANSON
words PRIYESH PATEL
More to read
