Sorry to Bother You

July 16, 2018 at 7:40 pm | Posted in 2018 | 4 Comments
Tags: Armie Hammer, Boots Riley, Comedy, Danny Glover, David Cross, Forest Whitaker, Jermaine Fowler, Kate Berlant, Lakeith Stanfield, Lily James, Movie Review, Omari Hardwick, Patton Oswalt, Rosario Dawson, Steven Yeun, Terry Crews, Tessa Thompson, The Coup

◊ ◊ ◊ ◊ ½

If you are unfamiliar with Boots Riley, founding member of the Coup (the funk/hip-hop group from Oakland), I suggest watching this. In many ways, it will tell you everything you need to know to understand “Sorry to Bother You.” Riley’s general aesthetic is a combination of blunt, caustic political commentary woven with wildly creative and sometimes absurdist imagery. But, understand this, there is a point in every image you will see. “Sorry to Bother You” starts with an easy, comedic tone. My whole audience was laughing in the early scenes. They were accessible to all, with heavy-handed character names like Cassius Green (as in “cash is green”) and Diana DeBauchery (for some extra fun, try guessing who’s providing the dubbed white voices, or the elevator’s voice). But, pretty early on, Riley hints that he’s interested in deeper things here. The tone shifts slowly from lighthearted comedy to barbed political satire to psychedelic parable so slowly that the audience doesn’t know what’s happening until it already has. But, as my audience’s roars of laughter were slowly replaced by uncertain giggles, something important was going on. Riley has managed to tell a story about how slavery and the commodification of human beings work in the modern world. There were deep truths under strange images, and an ending as bleak a one as I have seen in a while. Riley is right, of course. There is no escape. This film will make you laugh out loud, it will probably make you shake your head in wonder, and (if you are really paying attention) it may just break your heart.