YOLO (2013)

YOLO is a punk rock, twisted, colorful, vampirette tale of teenagers and love. Kimmi (Julie Brochorst Andersen) and her two high school friends have a secret. The three friends decide that one night they will spend some time hiding out in their school, goofing around and living life to the fullest. What eventually begins to look like a colorful punk rock music video proves to be the defining night in the lives of the three young girls.

The word “woke” was used on the internet for the first time back in 2015, and that term has slithered its way through popular culture since that time. YOLO was released two years prior to this point–but it represents all that “woke” culture is. It explores (and even forces) a lesbian agenda that transcends the entirety of YOLO, and, I’ll be honest, it’s a bit crippling. In 2013 this film may have found itself on the outliers of popular culture, unsure of its place in the grand scheme of cinema–and the agenda (so to speak) may not have antagonized like it does now. The idea of “wokeness” and these ideals being shoved down the throats of viewers is incredibly antagonistic–and while it has certainly found its place in the mainstream–it has run its course for certain viewers at this point in time. The fact that YOLO is sometimes frustrating comes as a result of when I watched the film–but this is the case regardless.

There’s a subtlety present in each of YOLO's three young actors. Viewers can see the emotion on their faces, they can sense the pain being felt by each character, but they never really say what they are feeling. The performances of Andersen, Stephania Potalivo, and Frederikke Dahl Hansen are so precise that it feels like you’re speaking with a close friend. The characters are saying one thing, but you can tell by the looks on their faces what they really want to say. Now that’s incredible acting. To be able to reach viewers on such a personal and emotional level and be able to convince them of something while saying the opposite speaks volumes to how wonderfully talented these young ladies are.

I can’t remember a time when a film was filled with as much deliberate color as YOLO. From the lights, to the outfits, to the fact that the girls play paintball in the school, color appears everywhere, in each and every scene. There’s a darkness that exists inside of each girl, and it feels like that darkness is dying to get out, to expose itself to the world–because, if it could, life would be much simpler. That color represents so much about what the girls aspire to be and who they truly are deep down. They are, regardless of some of the decisions that they make, innocent, and they crave attention like everyone else. The color represents their aspirations and their true selves–regardless of what the rest of the film depicts.

YOLO is a coming-of-age story about three young girls dealing with the struggles of high school. Their journey is certainly different from what you might typically see in the halls of public school–but the reality is that the struggle is still there. YOLO is plagued with the attempt to be woke (before being woke was even a thing), but that is counterbalanced by a series of colors and genuine human emotion that is sure to resonate with all viewers. YOLO is a one-of-a-kind telling of the struggles of a teenager, but it hits the proper notes in terms of expressing these experiences. The film has its flaws, but YOLO has the ability to shine brightly for the right audience.

Directed by Marie Grahtø Sørensen.

Written by Eini Carina Grønvold & Marie Grahtø Sørensen.

Starring Julie Brochorst Andersen, Stephania Potalivo, & Frederikke Dahl Hansen.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/10