Good , But It Is Overrated By Some

It is not only a funny movie, but it allows a great amount of joy for anyone who watches it.

Excellent characters with emotional depth. My wife, daughter and granddaughter all enjoyed it...and me, too! Very good movie! You won't be disappointed.

This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.

An extremly underappreciated Araki movie, beautifully shot, compelling, and thought-provoking. Definitely one of my favorite indie movies to date. A must-watch for anyone interested in the coming of age genre.

with obvious allusions to vivre sa vie (the film is divided into 14 seemingly randomly segregate segments), gregg araki takes a journey into the lives of a group of gay teens in LA (not ALL gay teens, just a group). Well, maybe journey is the wrong word for it. Those familiar with Araki's other works are aware that they are loud, colorful, bombastic, and over-exentuated. They are also very MOBILE, in that a lot happens in the stories (usually someone gets killed, they run from johnny law, etc.). Totally F**ked up is not a mobile film. It doesn't go anywhere. Araki seems to proscribe in this film to the philosophy ( a Rossellini/ Godard staple) that life is less about actions or even interactions than boredom and other people's stories. James Duval plays a teen who broods in self-antipathy, spouting off despeate (and often pathetic) catch phrases like "life is sh**." or "love does not exist." But the underlying notion is that he really has lost faith and all hope, and as much as it ills him to become a statistic he keeps creeping that way, unable to find an outlet to truly express his real dismays.Araki's trademark self-coined slang and gother-than-thou art references are still in tact as we view this period of life that is less transitional emotionally than just a shift of behaviors- as we all act like babies. maybe it's just making up excuses - a character being lured into cheating because of a bootleg nine inch nails video- or maybe it's just talking in goofy language and popping pills in abandonned garages to watch each other fall over.as for the film's "crappy" look, I could either chock it up to lack of funds or intentional grainy filming. After all, every single one of his films are laced with characters using intentionally awful dialogue and intentionally bad acting to disguise its actual intentions. it makes since that he could do this visually too. And with the interspersed interviews with steven's video camera- it could easily be construed as the actual camera eye of the group, a 7th member if you will. either way, it didn't distract me.People who enjoyed Araki's other films because of the pretty colors and big loud noises need not apply themselves to this film, because it does take patience. but the result is a rewarding experience.

I've been watching Gregg Araki's movies out of chronological order and I think this has really adversely affected the way I'm seeing them. Being a big fan of the surreal, campy, pop art-y 'Doom Generation' and 'Nowhere' has meant that I've found his earlier more realistic movies difficult to enjoy.'The Living End' is one of his more conventional movies but at least it attempted some character development and a story-line. Unfortunately, 'Totally F***ed Up' doesn't have enough of either. It has plenty of anger sure, but it's semi-documentary look at disenfranchised gay teens fails to hold the interest throughout. It has a few good moments, but overall I had to fight to keep involved.The one really good thing about it is that it introduces the charismatic James Duval, who Araki would utilise better in his following two movies. Too bad his subsequent career has mainly seen him relegated to bit parts in (the no brainer) 'Independence Day' and (the admittedly enjoyable) 'Go'. He deserves better.So, if you didn't find much to enjoy in 'Totally F***ed Up' don't let it turn you off Araki completely. He far surpasses this in 'Doom Generation' and especially his most accomplished movie to date 'Nowhere' - a true 90s classic that deserves a larger audience!

It's obvious that the other person who did a review of this movie was not an Araki fan. In order to understand this movie, you have to be a hardcore Gregg Araki aficionado. This was one of his first films, and he was just beginning to develop his unique style of directing and writing. The language used is supposed to emphasize the immaturity of our generation even though we are in such serious situations as shown in the movie. It's actually a great juxtaposition. As for the cinematography, I would rather see a movie filmed in the way Totally F***ked Up was than any other uninterestingly-filmed movies. At it's core, this is really a story about the struggles of anyone who has ever felt like an outcast. It does leave us hanging at the end, but so do other Araki movies. That's just his style; and if you don't like it, then too bad for you. If you do happen to like this film or are interested, I urge you to see the rest of the Teenage Apocalypse Trilogy [next: The Doom Generation, Nowhere], and all other Araki films. They are all interesting and stylish.