It’s hard to know when to leave the party. It’s even harder to still be at the party long after it stops being fun.This idea permeates Jordan Firstman’s feature debut, Club Kid. Warm, alive, and emotional, the film is a certified crowd pleaser and the perfect way to kick off the 62nd Chicago International Film Festival.

Club Kid follows Peter (Firstman), a club promoter who has spent the better part of the last decade partying hard. Peter’s fallen into this rut of drugs, meaningless sex, and rotting in his bed while dropping the ball professionally. However, his life is disrupted by Arlo (Reggie Absolom), the ten-year-old son born out of a messy threesome ten years prior.

In a refreshing turn, Peter quickly grasps the weight of what this means. He never harbors animosity towards Arlo, and Arlo doesn’t occupy the bratty kid trope that we’re so used to seeing in these kinds of movies. Both hold a tremendous amount of grace for the other and open themselves up to this unexpected relationship. It’s immediately clear that Club Kid isn’t interested in being just a cynical comedy (though there’s plenty of comedy to be found). It’s chasing warmth and earnestness.

That all rests on the dynamic between Firstman and Absolom who are superb together. Their rapport is natural and easy. Absolom repeatedly rises to Firstman’s starpower and holds his own as an exciting discovery. He occupies each scene with wide-eyed wonder that you can’t help but fall in love with. Arlo feels like a whole person with interests and distinct thoughts. He isn’t there to be a stock portrayal of a child. 

Outside of the duo, Firstman delivers remarkable introspection that we haven’t really gotten to see from his work yet. Peter feels trapped in a liminal space where the things that once comforted him no longer suit him, but he also doesn’t know exactly how to go about being better. Firstman’s depiction of this struggle is relatable, devastating, and, ultimately, winning.

His direction is also sharp and precise as well, managing to preserve the feelgood energy without sacrificing very real and honest conversations. In partnership with cinematographer Adam Newport-Berra, he captures the grit and glam of New York nightlife. Hebathes the film in the oranges and purples of sunrises and sunsets both in the actual sky and in the clubs, reflecting the myriad endings and beginnings Peter experiences.

Club Kid isn’t a perfect film. There are plot points that are introduced and discarded rather quickly. However, what it achieves emotionally more than makes up for any shortcomings. Firstman crafts something that feels like the best party. There’s a lightning-in-a-bottle quality to it; you leave knowing this experience is impossible to replicate but you’ll spend a long time trying to recapture the feeling in your memory.

‘Club Kid’ releases in theaters November 6.

Review Courtesy of Adam Patla

Feature Image Courtesy of A24 via Chicago International Film Festival