Being a globally famous popstar is a lot like being in a romantic relationship or marriage, but instead of one spouse or partner you have millions of adoring fans. You must consider those fans before making any major decisions, just as you would your husband or wife. Artists often get stuck in a creative rut out of fear of losing their fanbase if they try something different, just as so many people stay in jobs they hate out of fear of upsetting the status quo by making their other half angry. A popstar suddenly deciding they want to make a jazz album is akin to a middle-aged husband ditching his nine to five office job to pursue his dream of opening a record store - such moves aren't likely to go down well with fans and wives.
Charli XCX has cleverly found a way to pursue her artistic ambitions without alienating her fanbase. While continuing to make crowd pleasing pop music, she has begun to pursue a career in the movies, both in front of and behind the camera. While The Moment satirised the idea of a popstar being thrust into the global spotlight, as Charli was in "Brat summer", director Pete Ohs' Erupcja feels like it has more resonance with the singer's lived reality. I imagine while touring the world, superstar performers must often be tempted to disappear in whatever city they happen to be in. That's just what Charli's character does here.
She isn't playing an internationally famous popstar here, but rather an unremarkable Londoner, one who doesn't seem to realise just how unremarkable she is. Bethany arrives in Warsaw with her boyfriend Rob (Will Madden) for a romantic getaway. Having discovered an engagement ring hidden in their apartment, Bethany is aware that Rob plans to propose on the trip. When the volcanic Mount Etna erupts and all flights are cancelled, the couple are stuck in Warsaw for another three days. Rob decides to postpone his proposal until the night before they leave, which suggests he isn't entirely confident in receiving his desired answer.
And he's right to be worried. Far from being ready to take such a leap, Bethany has lost interest in Rob. She decides to look up an old friend, Nel (Lena Góra), with whom it is hinted she enjoyed a turbulent but passionate relationship over the course of several previous trips to Warsaw (whether Bethany and the openly lesbian Nel have any sort of romantic past is left ambiguous).
Each of their get togethers has coincided with a volcanic eruption somewhere in the world. When Nel asks Bethany why she doesn't want to marry Rob, she replies "Because volcanos don't erupt when I'm with him." As the logical minded Rob later points out, a volcano erupts somewhere on the planet at the rate of one per week. That Bethany believes she has some sort of cosmic power to affect the environment speaks volumes about her narcissism, and this is compounded when she ditches poor Rob, choosing to spend the remainder of the trip getting high and partying with Nel, refusing to answer his worried phone calls.
Erupcja plays a lot like Before Sunset if it were rejigged to make us view Ethan Hawke's character with contempt. We initially get onside with Bethany's quest for freedom because Rob really is so, so boring and Bethany is so sexy and charismatic. We might wonder how on earth such mismatched people ended up together, but we've all come across couples like this. The more time we spend separately with Bethany and Rob, the more we come to frown at the former and sympathise with the latter, whose only crime is being very dull. But it is Nel who emerges as the heart of the film, ignoring the advice of those around her and plunging back into the wildness of her youth as soon as Bethany flashes her cheeky grin in her direction. Just like Bethany, Nel has a very sensible suitor in Ula (Agata Trzebuchowska), and there is a sense that she needs to get Bethany out of her system with one last romp before settling down.
The main cast also contribute to the script, and there is likely a degree of improv at play here. But despite its punky indie approach, Erupcja never feels scattershot. Every character comes off as whole as soon as they are introduced, and the performances are engrossing across the board. While it is somewhat tragic in its cynicism regarding human relationships, Erupcja is often very funny. It features the best gag involving luggage since Airplane, and much of the humour comes from a laconic Polish language voiceover that observes and comments on the protagonists the way David Attenborough might speak about a family of leopards. The greatest impression it leaves is that if the whole popstar thing doesn't work out, Charli XCX has a bright future as a movie star.
Directed by: Pete Ohs
Starring: Charli XCX, Will Madden, Lena Góra, Jeremy O. Harris, Agata Trzebuchowska
