Zola
Director: Janicza Bravo
Writer: Janicza Bravo, Jeremy O. Harris, A’Ziah King, David Kushner
Starring: Taylour Paige, Riley Keough, Nicholas Braun, Colman Domingo, Jason Mitchell
Reason for watching: new release, also because it’s a meme
Number of times I’ve watched it: first time viewing
***
This movie is based on the honest-to-God craziest story I’ve ever read. It serves as further proof that 1) Florida should be considered its own country and sawed off the continent like a Buggs Bunny cartoon 2) that true stories often turn out to be crazier than fictional ones. There is no moral lesson to be pulled here; no character arc. Just some absolute insanity that rolled out on Twitter and then was turned into a motion picture.
First of all, you should know the plot of this story if you clicked that first hyperlink you should know the whole story. Not throwing shade at anyone, but that was the whole plot of this movie minus a few pieces of information here or there. Basically, Zola (Taylour Paige) meets Stephanie (Riley Keough), and the two go on a trip down to Florida to make some money at a strip club. Things go sideways when a pimp named Z (Colman Domingo) gets involved with Stephanie. I don’t want to get into too much more of what happens because I’ll feel like I need a shower if I tell you anymore, and I want people to actually go see this for themselves (as if anyone reads this blog).
Back to the actual story again, if you read that entire thread, you know this story can go to a really dark place. The potential was there for this movie to be quite scary. But the whole thing gets played as a kind of dark comedy or almost a dream. It makes it much easier to digest when the fifth unbelievable thing in a row happens. Keough and Paige really steal the screen as well. I know they are the leads, and you can’t technically say they are “stealing the screen.” But this just shows how strong their performances. Keough continues to show off an incredible range as the stereotypical insane Floridian and Paige is the embodiment of a human eye roll. They’re impressive. Plus, Domingo keeps going nuts with strong performances too. This plus that Euphoria special episode and whatever he’s gonna do in Candyman later this year makes for a very nice year for him.
Probably the thing that most impressed me though is the mystique factor here. As someone who did visit Florida when Zola, Stephanie, and Z were there and did not witness this story play out in front of my eyes, that Twitter thread was something of a legend to my generation. Similar to something like The Hunger Games or the Star Wars sequels. The idea of these things becoming a movie might have been better than what we actually got on the screen. It’s sacred, and there’s a little bit of fear that comes with something like this becoming a movie. You want it to happen, but you’re afraid it may not live up to what you imagine. But Zola still delivers on the mythology here. It doesn’t feel like an insult to what you loved about the source material or a compromise. It has the same feel as the original story. I would have to say that a lot of that comes from that dream feeling I mentioned earlier. It feels immersive but oddly distant at the same time, which cushions you from the reality of what’s happening on the screen.
Stressed more than anything though, this is not a movie to take your kids to. The words “stripper” and “pimp” should have given away in the description. It’s certainly not made for them, but I’ve seen parents take their kids into R-rated movies before because they’re uninformed. I like a clear conscience, so here it: DO NOT TAKE YOUR KIDS TO THIS!!!!
8/10
Until I see another one