There seems to be a lack of good movies revolving around raves, which is surprising considering the way the dance parties took off in the mid-to-late 1990s. One of the few movies that fit the bill is “Go,” the 1999 Doug Liman-directed comedy/drama.
There are really three main stories to the movie. First, there is Simon’s trip to Las Vegas with his two friends. It’s his first trip, and while determined to have a good time, he ends up, among other things, having a threesome, escaping a hotel fire, getting a private lap-dance, shooting a bouncer and surviving a car chase. All this occurs in matter of one night, of course, while his three friends are dragged helplessly along.
The second story involves Adam (Scott Wolf, “Party of Five”) and Zack (Jay Mohr, “Jerry Maguire”), two actors and lovers who become involved in a sting operation to bust none other than Simon, their usual Ecstasy provider. If they catch Simon in the act, the charges against them will be dropped; however, since Simon is in Las Vegas, they’re forced to deal with Ronna (Sarah Polley, “My Life Without Me”), Simon’s fellow grocery-store clerk, instead.
Thus, the third and most involved story of the film comes in. Desperate to pay the rent, Ronna agrees to provide Adam and Zack with all the rave-preparation aids they need, despite the fact that she’ll have to go straight to Simon’s dealer to do it. When things get sticky and she leaves her best friend Claire (Katie Holmes, “Dawson’s Creek”) as “collateral” while she hunts down some extra money, the situation gets more confused.
Ronna eventually resorts to selling aspirin to young, first-time ravers, telling them it’s “pharmaceutical-grade Ecstasy.” All is going well until the dealer tracks her down. Suddenly, events take a dramatic turn, and Ronna ends up barely alive in a ditch.
In the end, all three stories collide, as the bouncer Simon shot tracks him down, the dealer tracks Ronna down and Adam and Zack reconcile both their relationship problems and their drug charges.
The one downfall of the movie is its tendency to sometimes throw a few too many subplots the audience’s way, causing confusion at some points. In the end, though, when all the storylines are masterfully woven together, audience members who paid attention throughout the first three-quarters of the movie are rewarded.
The soundtrack adds even more to the picture, featuring such 1990s staples such as “Steal My Sunshine” by Len and “Gangsta Trippin” by Fatboy Slim. There’s also a terrific remake of Steppenwolf’s “Magic Carpet Ride” that fits in perfectly with the car-chase scene.
With a surprisingly star-studded cast and the classic multiple-stories-converge-into-one plotline, “Go” would be a great choice for that boring Friday night. It’s got it all — comedy, drama, suspense — thrown together into a tight, hour-and-a-half package that will assuredly entertain you. A reliable rent indeed!
Grade: A/B
