Look, after 2025’s Hurry Up Tomorrow face-planted into oblivion, I get the skepticism around pop stars making meta films about fame. Another music superstar in another attack on the senses about how hard it is to be famous? To that I’ll quote that stinker starring The Weeknd and say: “shut up”. What sets The Moment apart is its star. Charli XCX doesn’t just get to keep her “Cool as Hell” title; she can now add legitimate screen presence to her list of talents.

The A24 mockumentary, directed by Aidan Zamiri and co-written with Bertie Brandes, opens with “Brat Summer” already moving like a machine. Charli plays a heightened version of herself as she prepares for an arena debut while her calendar fills with sponsors, press demands, and label notes. Rosanna Arquette (Ex-Husbands) plays Tammy, a label executive who treats momentum like a resource to be mined. Alexander Skarsgård (The Legend of Tarzan) is Johannes, hired to steer an Amazon-funded concert film (how perfectly timed is that?), though his vision doesn’t mesh with Charli’s aesthetic. Hailey Benton Gates (Uncut Gems) plays Celeste, the creative director being slowly pushed aside by forces apparently outside of Charli’s control.

The film takes a bit to lock in. The strobe-lit opening moments are designed to throw you off balance, shock you into submision and they get the job done. Early scenes meander though, uncertain of their footing, cycling through meetings and fittings and the kind of ridiculous conversations artists have to endure seconds before performing for thousands. But it builds upon itself confidently, reaching its midpoint climax in a thrilling scene between Charli and a holistic facialist in Ibiza. It’s raw, honest, and the best thing in the movie.

Is The Moment too long? Yeah. Does it circle the same ideas too many times, stuffing in characters and subplots that don’t quite earn their keep? Absolutely. Jamie Demetriou (Jay Kelly) as Tim Potts, the fraught tour manager, becomes an unfortunate victim of the movie’s length; his incompetence gets highlighted one too many times. But here’s the thing: that messiness feels intentional. It’s the visual equivalent of sensory overload, the chaos of being perceived from every angle at once.

Charli described her role as “sort of a hell version of myself,” and that self-awareness is what makes this work. She’s still figuring out her choices as an actor, and some moments feel forced, like she’s conforming to an emotion she doesn’t vibe with. But when the camera seems not to be paying attention, she loosens up and relaxes into the persona we’ve known. Kate Berlant (Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood) as a twitchy make-up artist and Rachel Sennott (Bodies Bodies Bodies), playing a fictionalized version of herself, are hilarious because they know exactly how to approach the material and have the underlying comedic subtext land on target. Side note: someone PUH-LEASE get Charli and Sennott in a proper two-hander immediately.

Sean Price Williams (Between the Temples), who’s transitioned from journeyman cinematographer to in-demand music video shooter for today’s hottest stars, gives the film music video DNA with experimental art film juice pumping through its veins. A.G. Cook‘s score can be headache-inducing at times, but it raises your pulse in all the best ways. Editors Neal Farmer and Billy Sneddon assembled Zamari’s hours of footage into something coherent and often dazzling — not an easy task considering how random and on-the-fly the much of it was.

The Moment isn’t asking what you’re willing to give to get there; by the time the film opens, Charli is already “there.” What it’s examining is what the trade-off costs your spirit, your autonomy, your soul. That question will resonate as evergreen long after brat summer fades from memory.