Dinner in America

Ashley Sudeta

After an unfortunately timed premier at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival and a discrete U.S release in 2022, “Dinner in America” was nearly destined for obscurity. However, TikTok provided the film with a second chance after its original song, “Watermelon,” went viral. Since then, “Dinner in America” has both been celebrated as a “weird girl movie” and declared a monstrosity.

After being fired from her job, Patty (Emily Skeggs) lets Simon (Kyle Gallner) hide from the police in her home—unaware that he is John Q., the pseudonymous singer of her favorite punk rock band, PSYOPS. In the days before Simon’s upcoming show, the pair become closer as he helps Patty get back at her boss and the boys who bullied her.

For a viral movie, “Dinner in America” was surprisingly unpalatable. Even if you find the vomit and nausea in the opening scene as delightful as I did, the film’s offensive language is shocking. A minor character shouts a racial slur only seven minutes in, and homophobic and ableist slurs are used consistently throughout. While the language wasn’t out of place for the suburban 1990s setting, I wouldn’t blame anyone for shutting the movie off because of it.

Despite this, “Dinner in America” manages to retain some charm. Each dinner scene captures the repression blanketing suburban America, and it’s cathartic to watch Patty and Simon shatter it. I loved seeing Patty, who is implied to have a developmental disability, break free from others’ expectations, gaining greater agency in the process. “Dinner in America” is a uniquely striking film, but it’s messy and indelicate, and certainly not made for TikTok fame.