denny kirkwood - The Screengrab

Forgotten Films: "Groove" (2000)

A lot of people will be out tonight trying to have a good time, and with a lot of luck, a precious few of them will have as much fun as the people in Greg Harrison's Groove. An ensemble cast comedy set in San Francisco and taking place mostly over the course of a single night, Groove is a snapshot of '90s rave culture, beginning with the party bringers, led by Ernie (Steve Van Wormer) checking out the abandoned warehouse where they'll throw their shindig and then sending out the long and winding instructions on how to get there. ("Who would want to go to a party that actually lets you know where it is?" yells one aggravated dude who missed that left turn at Albuqueque and spends the whole evening in a futile search for the promised land.) Van Wormer's Ernie makes a terrific underground hero figure for the Techno-Information Age. Throwing parties seems to be his religion, and he lays out an awesome spread--with food, drink, and a steadily escalating line-up of DJs (among them John Digweed and Melissa Sue "Forest" Green), all the while patroling the crowds to make sure that everyone's giving out the right vibes and enjoying themselves. He might be dutifully earning his last merit badge or completing his samurai training.

The mission to successfully steer the party to a satisfying conclusion is what the movie has instead of a plot. Its central identification figures are David (Hamish Linklater, who looks and acts like every guy who just missed getting cast in the title role of the TV series Chuck), who's been dragged to his first rave by his brother Colin (Denny Kirkwood), and Leyla (Lola Glaudini), who's maybe been to a few too many. Glaudini's Leyla, who has the kind of glamour that only the right combination of heavy eyelids and glitter platforms can bestow on a girl, is starting to think about life beyond the party scene but has no idea how to go about it. "You're very pretty," David tells her. "You're very high," she replies. "If I weren't, I'd still think you were," he responds. "I just wouldn't say it."