| Shoplifters of the World | |
|---|---|
 Official poster | |
| Directed by | Stephen Kijak |
| Screenplay by | Stephen Kijak |
| Story by | Lorianne Hall |
| Produced by |
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| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Andrew Wheeler |
| Edited by |
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| Music by | Rael Jones |
Production companies |
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| Distributed by | RLJE Films |
Release date |
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Running time | 90 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Shoplifters of the World is a 2021 American independent comedy-drama film written and directed byStephen Kijak. It starsHelena Howard,Ellar Coltrane,Elena Kampouris,Nick Krause,James Bloor,Thomas Lennon andJoe Manganiello.
The film was released on March 26, 2021 byRLJE Films.
In Denver, four friends reel from the sudden breakup ofthe Smiths, while the local radio station is held at gunpoint by a fan who forces a disgruntled heavy-metal DJ to play music by the Smiths all night.
The plot is loosely based on an actual incident that occurred in 1988 when an 18-year-old attempted to commandeer DenverTop 40 stationY108.[1]
In February 2012, it was announced thatJessica Brown Findlay,James Frecheville,Jeremy Allen White,Thomas Brodie-Sangster,Skylar Astin andZosia Mamet had joined the cast of the film, withStephen Kijak directing from a screenplay that had written.[3] In March 2014,Joe Manganiello joined the cast,[4] and in September 2016, it was announced thatSasha Lane,Isabelle Fuhrman,Ellar Coltrane andNick Krause had also joined, with Findlay, Frecheville, White, Sangster, Astin and Mamet no longer attached.[5] In February 2019, it was announced thatHelena Howard,Elena Kampouris andNick Krause had joined the cast.[6]
Principal photography began in October 2018 in the region ofAlbany, New York, mostly in the towns ofTroy andColonie.[7][8]
In September 2020,RLJE Films acquired distribution rights to the film.[9] It was released on March 26, 2021.[10]
OnRotten Tomatoes, the film holds a 45% approval rating based on 44 reviews, with an average rating of 5.40/10.[11] OnMetacritic, the film holds a rating of 50 out of 100, based on seven critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[12]
Jeannette Catsoulis of theNew York Times wrote that the film was "a loving gift to superfans of the English band The Smiths...this sweetly nostalgic look at lost boys and lonely girls feels like it comes straight from the heart."[13]Armond White's review inNational Review stated: "This is an alternative-rock version ofAmerican Graffiti...(the) music's dramatic resonances are, moment to moment, breathtaking";[14] he also wrote: "If The Smiths were the greatest group of the Eighties, this film about American teens' heartfelt response, reveals the most intense longing for personal expression in the history of popular culture. Stephen Kijak creates one poignant, exultant scene after another."[15] Ken Scrudato ofBlackBook wrote: "The film is haunted by a kind of inescapable, mournful nostalgia, as it piercingly reminds of the irreversible demise of the sort of weirdo tribalism that once so intensely bound together all those living just beyond the fringes of societal acceptance – a tribalism that has been replaced by the Instagramming of pancakes and the soulless obsession with 60-second TikTok videos about absolutely nothing...these were indeed the songs that saved your life – andShoplifters of the World rightly and properly celebrates them."[16]
The Smiths' lead singerMorrissey voiced his approval of the film, stating on his website: "I laughed, I cried, I ate my own head. The Smiths' past still sounds like today's frustrations and tomorrow's liberations."[17]