24 Hour Party People (2002)
89%RT Audience Score: 87%
Awards & Nominations: 1 win & 13 nominations
The colorful, chaotic 24 Hour Party People nimbly captures the spirit of the Manchester music scene.
24 Hour Party People is the perfect movie for anyone who loves music, laughs, and a good time. This film takes you on a wild ride through the Manchester music scene of the ’80s, from punk to acid house. Steve Coogan is hilarious as the overeducated opinion leader, and the film is brilliantly realized. While it may not be entirely true, it’s definitely entertaining, and that’s all that matters. So grab some popcorn, turn up the volume, and get ready to party like it’s 1989!
Production Company(ies)
RKO Radio Pictures,
Distributor
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Release Type
Filming Location(s)
Granada Studios, Quay Street, Manchester, Greater Manchester, England, UK
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for strong language, drug use and sexuality
Year of Release
2002
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Color:Color
Black and White -
Sound mix:Dolby Digital
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:1h 57m
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Language(s):English
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Aug 9, 2002 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 21, 2003
Genre(s)
Comedy/Drama
Keyword(s)
starring Steve Coogan, Lennie James, Shirley Henderson, Paddy Considine, Andy Serkis, Sean Harris, directed by Michael Winterbottom, written by Frank Cottrell Boyce, comedy, drama, R rating, box office gross $1.1M, reviewed by Nell Minow, Eric Henderson, Jamie Russell, Robert Denerstein, Marc Savlov, directed by Andrew Eaton, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Dolby Stereo, Dolby A, SDDS, DTS, Surround, Dolby Digital, Dolby SR, Manchester, punk, Sex Pistols, Factory Records, The Hacienda club, Joy Division, New Order, Happy Mondays, acid house, music scene, Tony Wilson, Alan Erasmus, Rob Gretton, Martin Hannett, Lindsey Wilson, Ian Curtis
Worldwide gross: $2,801,397
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $4,646,292
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,198
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 506,684
US/Canada gross: $1,184,096
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $1,963,897
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,040
US/Canada opening weekend: $34,940
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $57,950
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,144
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Lennie James – Alan Erasmus
Shirley Henderson – Lindsey Wilson
Paddy Considine – Rob Gretton
Andy Serkis – Martin Hannett
Sean Harris – Ian Curtis
Director(s)
Michael Winterbottom
Writer(s)
Frank Cottrell Boyce
Producer(s)
Andrew Eaton
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
1 win & 13 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (100) | Top Critics (37) | Fresh (86) | Rotten (14)
Excellent movie about punk’s origins; older teens only.
August 26, 2010 | Rating: 4/5
Nell Minow
Common Sense Media
TOP CRITIC
A light and playful look at the Manchester music scene which spans from the punk explosion to the dawn of acid house.
January 31, 2003
Eric Henderson
Slant Magazine
TOP CRITIC
Brilliantly realised and hilariously funny.
November 4, 2002 | Rating: 4/5
Jamie Russell
BBC.com
TOP CRITIC
How much you enjoy 24 Hour Party People, director Michael Winterbottom’s raucous look at the Manchester, England music scene of the ’80s, probably depends on your background.
October 2, 2002 | Rating: B
Robert Denerstein
Denver Rocky Mountain News
TOP CRITIC
One of the most purely entertaining films about (for want of a better term) pop music in years.
October 2, 2002 | Rating: 4/5
Marc Savlov
Austin Chronicle
TOP CRITIC
Coogan, as the consummate overeducated, overly-erudite opinion leader, is spot-on perfect.
September 19, 2002 | Rating: 4/5
Roger Moore
Orlando Sentinel
TOP CRITIC
It may not be all true, necessarily, but it’s super entertaining, and that’s what matters in the end, right?
January 18, 2020
Chris Ludovici
The Spool
January 3, 2013 | Rating: B
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com
Tony Wilson’s and “24-Hour Party People’s” tossed-off philosophy was that the worst of times, like the best, pass away – never truer than in the fickle music industry. A free-form view of a freefall where artifice and artistry tumbled head over heels.
September 25, 2010 | Rating: 3.5/4
Nick Rogers
The Film Yap
Those wishing for a full-on, comprehensive look at the era will be disappointed, but Winterbottom, Coogan, and Boyce serve up a vivid and lively thumbnail sketch.
January 7, 2005 | Rating: 3/4
Michael Dequina
TheMovieReport.com
When it comes to capturing music in a visual medium, 24 Hour Party People ranks right up there with Martin Scorsese’s 1978 rock documentary, The Last Waltz.
June 25, 2004 | Rating: 3.5/4
Judith Egerton
Courier-Journal (Louisville, KY)
24 Hour Party People is a frenzied, metafilmic, postmodern splatter of a homage to a music movement . . . a jolting, raucous ride into the celluloid distance.’
December 1, 2003
Brian Gibson
Vue Weekly (Edmonton, Alberta)…
Plot
Manchester 1976: Cambridge educated Tony Wilson, Granada TV presenter, is at a Sex Pistols gig. Totally inspired by this pivotal moment in music history, he and his friends set up a record label, Factory Records, signing first Joy Division (who go on to become New Order) then James and the Happy Mondays, who all become seminal artists of their time. What ensues is a tale of music, sex, drugs, larger-than-life characters, and the birth of one of the most famous dance clubs in the world, The Hacienda – a mecca for clubbers as famous as the likes of Studio 54. Graphically depicting the music and dance heritage of Manchester from the late 70’s to the early 90’s, this comedy documents the vibrancy that made Mad-chester the place in the world that you would most like to be.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
The film features a cameo from real-life Manchester music scene figures such as Howard Devoto and Mark E. Smith.
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