In the Dutch-speaking part of Belgium, where also yours truly hails from, "Zillion" is rapidly becoming much more than just a successful movie. It's a phenomenon! It's been several years since a locally produced film managed to bring so many people to the cinema, and - even more remarkably - so many people from different generations, as well! The film was already playing for almost a full month in cinemas when I went to see it, and the theater was still full. That's extremely exceptional for a Flemish movie.
It's the story of an infamous nightclub that really only existed between 1997 and 2002, so you'd expect it mainly attracts audiences who partied and experimented in this short period, but somehow, it's popular among much younger and much older people as well. And righteously so, I may add, because "Zillion" is a unique and original film full of fascinating characters, throwback 90s moments, awesome Belgian dance music, and recognizable faits-divers.
The best thing about writer/director Robin Pront's ambitious project is the intriguing mixture of facts and fiction. The decadent disco was real, the even more decadent protagonists (like the megalomaniac owner Frank Verstraeten and porn king Dennis Black Magic) were real, and the unimaginably decadent drug/sex parties at the Zillion were real as well. I know it, I was there a couple of times. The storylines connecting everything together, though, are a mix between truthful and made up, but you don't know what is real or not.
One thing's for sure, "Zillion" is the most memorable and entertaining Flemish movie in years. The pacing is non-stop fast, it's darkly comical, representative of everything that went wrong in this country during the 90s, and it has an awesome all-star cast plus an even more awesome soundtrack.
