Y2K Movie Review: Horror Meets 90s Nostalgia

Y2K, A Horror Movie Review by George Wolf

As the clock struck midnight on December 31, 1999, anticipation hung thick in the air. While many revelers welcomed the dawn of the 21st century with bubbling champagne and fireworks, others waited with bated breath for the catastrophic fallout of the Y2K bug. In a clever twist on that historical moment, director Kyle Mooney’s film Y2K catapults us into a nightmare where everyday technology becomes a lethal threat. Combining nostalgic 90s charm with horror tropes, the movie reimagines a night meant for celebration into a frenzied fight for survival.

Release date: 6 December 2024 (USA)

Director: Kyle Mooney

Y2K, A Horror Movie Review by George Wolf

Who can forget those wild few years when people like my Mom were buying books called “Time Bomb 2000,” and then it struck midnight on 12/31/99 and…nothing much happened.

With Y2K, director and co-writer Kyle Mooney reimagines that New Year’s Eve as a night when plenty happens. The double zero year wreaks technological havoc that’s even worse than the doomsayers warned, and a bunch of teenage New York partygoers have to fight for their lives while reminding us about everything 90s.

Eli (Jaeden Martell) and Danny (Julian Dennison) are lifelong BFFs (“the Sticky Boys!”) but pretty low on the high school status bar. Eli pines for the pop-u-lar Laura (Rachel Zegler), and figures the big NYE party that they’re not really invited to might be his best chance to steal a midnight smooch.

So the Sticky Boys crash. But what the F? The start of a new millenium instantly turns everyday tech into killing machines, and bodies start piling up with a succession of comical blood-splatter.

Mooney co-wrote the underrated Brigsby Bear in 2017, but Y2K marks his first directing effort. He also joins the cast as a relentlessly upbeat hippie stoner, adding to the film’s array of characters who are sufficiently amusing inside some usual high schooler stereotypes.

And as the kids head out across Brooklyn looking for a safe haven, Mooney plays with zombie outbreak tropes while Fred Durst has some fun sending up his own image. There are laughs to be had before things get overly silly, but Mooney finds his groove by serving up plenty of nostalgic callbacks that will hit 90s kids in the feels and give the older viewers some knowing smiles and head nods.

I mean, remember how long it used to take just to burn one freaking compact disc?