so much potential for greatness here!! the middle act is when this film experiences its highest high and then loses its ability to continue escalating in a compelling way. the backrooms themselves are incredibly designed, and the actors do the best they can with the material they’re given, but the characters need some work. i rarely suggest that a film should be longer but this actually may have needed additional time to flesh out the characters, or alternatively, a completely different narrative for our two leads.

i agree with basically everything in this vulture review which i highly recommend reading! production design, costumes, and practical effects in this are so unhinged, i love admiring the world that boots riley builds here. the script is just not as smart, as biting, or as nuanced as it should be… it could’ve used an editor! keke palmer does her best with what she’s given but i left the film feeling that i didn’t know enough about her. will poulter cracked me up a ton. lakeith stanfield didn’t have enough to do. demi moore could’ve played up her villainy more. i can go on!

y’all... jonathan groff’s performance as king george III was so unhinged that he FULLY inadvertently spit all over his entire chin, huh... that’s called range, babey. that’s called committing to the bit of only being onstage for nine (9) minutes in the whole show, babey