The year is 1999, and everyone was unsure what would happen at the start of a new millennium. The Matrix, The Blair Witch Project, ***** Club, 10 Things I Hate About You, American Pie, Being John Malkovich, and The Iron Giant all came out that year, with The Matrix being the biggest proponent of propelling the cyberpunk genre into the mainstream. But, it was also a year to look back at the decade that half-defined my sense of hobbies, music taste, and a time of learning to use computers. This was around the time that people were getting weary of AI and machines!
A24’s Y2K is Kyle Mooney’s feature directorial debut, but bringing his comedic chops from being a cast member on Saturday Night Live. The story follows the last night of 1999, when two high school juniors crash a New Year’s Eve party, only to find themselves fighting for their lives in this hilarious dial-up disaster comedy/horror. When the clock strikes midnight, they quickly discover that their computers and home appliances are not as homely as they used to be. It is almost like a fun take on what if some of the Y2K conspiracies did come true.
On the acting front, none of the actors could outshine Julian Dennison or Eduardo Franco. Their respective deliveries on quick versus witty jokes always find a way to soak up the screen. They easily overshadowed the leads. Jaeden Martell and Rachel Zegler played their parts as the protagonist kids and the love interests, but nothing really of note to set them aside from similar genre movies with high school love conflicts.
“A24’s Y2K is Kyle Mooney’s feature directorial debut, bringing his comedic chops from Saturday Night Live.”
Anyone who used AOL Instant Messenger (on dial-up!) and had Tamagotchis will truly see this as a great time capsule of one of the biggest cultural shift decades in history. Also, the fame of The Beastie Boys in the 1980s led to the next rap-rock era with Limp Bizkit, who, in turn, passed that big torch to Linkin Park. Y2K having Fred Durst as himself was hilarious and fitting for what the movie was going for. The Durst energy beamed out what this film wanted to offer: a blast from the past.
It has been a while since I have seen a good disaster movie story. Netflix’s Don’t Look Up is probably a close one to being good. What stood out in Y2K, though, was its ability to have so many practical effects in it. The killer robots were mostly practical, and most of their attacks (and kills) were done practically. To sell it even further, the cinematography and editing choices to shoot in a campy horror way were great callbacks to many iconic slashers, such as Friday the 13th and Halloween. I think it would be cool to see Mooney’s version of Five Nights at Freddy’s film after seeing the great practical effects of this.
The score, music and sound design did a phenomenal job across the board. From the sounds of AOL and dial-up to countless iconic 90s songs, Y2K captured the soul and essence of the 90s shift into the 2000s. Shout out to Sisqó and The Thong Song in this film! The score is nothing groundbreaking but that of typical horror tropes of violins and screeching instruments on jump scares. The sound design nailed all the sounds of 90s technology, transporting audiences back in time.
“Y2K captured the soul and essence of the 90s shift into the 2000s, from the sounds of AOL and dial-up to countless iconic 90s songs.”
Seeing Y2K at SAVFF 2024 was interesting because I wondered how many Gen Z students would relate to this. Some of them might not be far off; even I barely made the cutoff. But I think this film does a great job selling the comedy well enough for those who get the inside jokes of that era and those who are watching this without really understanding some of the references.
But again, this is a dumb, fun film to watch as a look back in time, and the practical effects really play to the strengths of the horror scenes.
