FYRE (2019) Review
The Greatest Party That Never Happened
FYRE: The Greatest Party That Never Happened is Chris Smith’s documentary film about Fyre Festival: best defined by the viral photo of a sad cheese sandwich that was reportedly served at the event.
The festival was slated as a “luxurious experience”, where guests would have the chance to stay on an island once owned by Pablo Escobar. It was to be attended by the world’s top musicians and supermodels, with ticket prices surpassing fare for most high-end villas and cruises. Fyre Fest was marketed as an exotic staycation: an event that would put Coachella to shame.
However, what was marketed as a paradise soon became a warzone: filled with teenagers wreaking havoc as they begged for water and food, housed only in rain-soaked tents. The Fyre Festival was the brainchild of young entrepreneur Billy McFarland, and rapper Ja Rule. Mcfarland was considered a genius for his age, while Ja Rule had connections to all the best acts. Their partnership fit like a glove, and chances of failure seemed slim.
FYRE, the documentary, takes hilarious hits on a generation obsessed with social praise and mass followings in a digital space. Like the festival, the social media culture is little more than a race to try and put on a pretty, virtual face. Chris Smith’s documentary is brutally honest in this regard.
Although it is easy to laugh at the victims of Fyre Fest, their reactions can still be quite affecting. Fyre, as a social critique, serves as an expose on the men responsible for the fraud, and the culture that ultimately enabled them.
