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Sorry to Bother You (2018) (85%)
Director: Boots Riley
Writer: Boots Riley
Stars: Lakeith Stanfield, Tessa Thompson, Jermaine Fowler
Production Company: Cinereach
Sorry to Bother You is a comedy that has what I thought would be a fairly unimaginative premise: a black guy starts using a white voice at his telemarketer job and starts landing lots of sales. Is there potential for laughs in this premise? Yes, but I can't say my expectations were very high past that. However, I was very, very surprised by this film. There is a fair bit of office comedy and at times it feels like an episode of Atlanta, but there is also a lot of clever social commentary in here that also makes you laugh. And, frankly, I think that's the best way to fit social commentary into a film. Expect to spend a decent portion of the film trying to figure out exactly how this film it going to end, because it really takes an interesting, and weird, turn towards the end of the story. I can't divulge too much information about it without getting into spoilers, but it's a twist I didn't see coming and I was very satisfied with it.
However, this film is not for everyone. The humor won't land with everyone, and how weird the story gets will certainly put some people off. If you don't like when a film leads the story in a certain direction for most of the film before pivoting to a completely unexpected direction, this film ain't for you. There is also a lot of adult content in here so, uh, don't bring your kids.
Overall, this film takes a lot of risks and not all of them work out, but I really enjoyed what the team behind Sorry to Bother You was able to accomplish. It has a fun, weird, and unpredictable story with interesting characters and an equally intriguing world.
Director: Boots Riley
Writer: Boots Riley
Stars: Lakeith Stanfield, Tessa Thompson, Jermaine Fowler
Production Company: Cinereach
Sorry to Bother You is a comedy that has what I thought would be a fairly unimaginative premise: a black guy starts using a white voice at his telemarketer job and starts landing lots of sales. Is there potential for laughs in this premise? Yes, but I can't say my expectations were very high past that. However, I was very, very surprised by this film. There is a fair bit of office comedy and at times it feels like an episode of Atlanta, but there is also a lot of clever social commentary in here that also makes you laugh. And, frankly, I think that's the best way to fit social commentary into a film. Expect to spend a decent portion of the film trying to figure out exactly how this film it going to end, because it really takes an interesting, and weird, turn towards the end of the story. I can't divulge too much information about it without getting into spoilers, but it's a twist I didn't see coming and I was very satisfied with it.
However, this film is not for everyone. The humor won't land with everyone, and how weird the story gets will certainly put some people off. If you don't like when a film leads the story in a certain direction for most of the film before pivoting to a completely unexpected direction, this film ain't for you. There is also a lot of adult content in here so, uh, don't bring your kids.
Overall, this film takes a lot of risks and not all of them work out, but I really enjoyed what the team behind Sorry to Bother You was able to accomplish. It has a fun, weird, and unpredictable story with interesting characters and an equally intriguing world.