91: Bully (with Ricky Camilleri and Chris Chafin) (Patreon)

The hosts of the 30 Years Later podcast, Ricky Camilleri and Chris Chafin, join me from New York City to discuss Larry Clark’s 2001 true-crime drama Bully.

Possibly the ultimate Florida movie, Bully is a tale of crime and punishment that contrasts a strongly moralistic narrative with Clark’s sweaty, lurid and lecherous visual approach in adapting the true story of a group of sex-crazed stoner teens in Fort Lauderdale who conspire to commit the brutal murder of young Bobby Kent, himself a tormentor of one of the killers, his lifelong pal Marty Puccio.

We discuss this film as a black comedy, Chris vouches for the accuracy of the film’s portrayal of Y2K South Florida teens, we tackle the issues of exploitation and consent that accompany tales of the film’s turbulent production, and we wonder if a movie as uncompromising as Bully could even get made in America today.

Follow Ricky Camilleri and Chris Chafin on Twitter.

Check out the 30 Years Later podcast! I was a recent guest of the show to discuss Patriot Games. They have also launched a new Patreon feed.

“An Oral History of Larry Clark’s Cult Classic Bully” by Daniel Clemens, for i-D magazine, July 27, 2021

Trailer for Bully (Larry Clark, 2001)