In 2018, rapper and activist Boots Riley made his feature film debut with Sorry to Bother You, a caustically funny satire about racial and economic disparity. That film followed a telemarketer who adopts a 'white voice' to succeed, but also featured horse-people, a moment that threatened to break the spell for some viewers. Riley's brash style doesn't make it easy to love his gonzo agitprop, but that's part of his appeal—he dares us to resist, and gets away with it because he's a compelling and necessary voice.
A Mixed Bag of Absurdity and Politics
Riley's latest film, I Love Boosters, is just as outrageously hilarious and militant in its refusal to be enjoyed conventionally. The premise is seductive: a group of Robin Hood-like thieves liberate high fashion from the filthy rich. But just as you settle in, Riley throws in demon cunnilingus or Marxist concepts like dialectical materialism, illustrated by two people raw-dogging it. These hysterical bits are digestible, but the film becomes increasingly absurd and baffling. Yet the offending gags and detours feel motivated by the movie's rousing political ideas, ensuring we're not lulled into complacency.
Riley isn't the first to play this game; trolling with political intent is very Jean-Luc Godard, whom Riley cheekily references. The film borrows from Godard's radical masterpiece Tout Va Bien, substituting Paris for the Bay Area and a hostile labour strike for a multifaceted revolt against the fashion industry.
The Boosters and Their Mission
The boosters, led by Keke Palmer's squirrely and irresistibly charming Corvette, are part of that revolt. They go on a shoplifting spree, snatching designer fashion off racks and stuffing everything into their spacious outfits to pawn later. Corvette, Taylour Paige's mischievous Mariah, and Naomi Ackie's stoic Sade are entrepreneurs who treat their venture like a movement, building community among fellow boosters and appreciative customers. Mariah dubs it 'fast fashion philanthropy'. Their operation puts them on the same side as exploited retail staff and Chinese sweatshop labourers who oppose Demi Moore's silver-haired Christie Smith, a haute couture vulture capitalist. Christie dubs the thieves 'the Velvet Gang' and calls them 'low-class urban bitches', but Corvette is flattered that Christie knows they exist.
Corvette idolizes Christie, having once aspired to be a designer herself before hustling as a fast way out of living in an abandoned fried chicken spot with Mariah. The film is loaded with sight gags and boasts Riley's knack for sketch comedy, especially during deliriously fun heist scenes. An early bit where Mariah holds her breath to turn light-skinned Black to throw off white retail staff is peak Riley. Things get especially wild when Poppy Liu's character, a refugee from an unsafe Chinese factory, joins the Velvet Gang and brings a teleportation device.
Strong Cast, Limited Characters
Riley gets the most out of his ensemble, which includes Sorry to Bother You's LaKeith Stanfield as a sultry playboy and Don Cheadle, disguised under heavy latex, as a greasy furniture salesman with a pyramid scheme. But while every actor makes a brash impression, their characters feel frustratingly limited. We don't get intimate with Corvette and her crew, making it hard to care when the plot goes haywire. Many characters are defined mostly by their stance on race and capitalism, serving the movie's messaging rather than developing as individuals.
I Love Boosters keeps everyone at a distance, in full view of its political tapestry. The film is out in US cinemas on 22 May, with UK and Australia dates to be announced.
