There’s Nothing Safe About I Love Boosters
In an age of algorithms and safe bets, I will always champion big bold swings like I Love Boosters. Regardless of whether it all works doesn’t change the necessity of something different. We live in an assembly line of curated content incapable of standing out, and Boots Riley owns every bit of his nonconformist filmmaking in his latest outing. If Sorry to Bother You was Riley at his most profound, then I Love Boosters sees him at his most silly and unrestrained. Indulging every absurd idea that pops into his head, the film unfolds with propulsive vibrance and unshackled execution. That approach turns out to be a bit of a gift and a curse for Riley; a gift in the sense that we get something fresh and original, but a curse because its unbridled approach leaves him lost in his own sauce for most of the film’s runtime.
It’s clear that Riley has a lot on his mind and is extremely passionate about taking a sledgehammer to capitalism and broken systems that exploit the workforce and underdeveloped communities. He has never been shy about these beliefs, and I Love Boosters has no interest whatsoever in being subtle about them. It’s strange for something to be so direct yet so messy, bordering on an incoherent narrative and repetitive plot points the longer it goes on. Of course, Riley has plenty of weirdness up his sleeve, and I Love Boosters has plenty of wild surprises in store. The problem is most of them feel disconnected from each other, functioning more like a socially aware episode of Robot Chicken than a fully fleshed out feature film. I Love Boosters is like a live action Looney Toons comedy, where Bugs and the gang take down the billionaire class and workforce economy.
Great Cast But Overly Ambitious Narrative
It’s best to not get too detailed about what I Love Boosters is actually about. Part of its charm is experiencing its bizarre packaging completely blind. It’s very much a vibes check, and you’ll know pretty quickly if the vibes are vibin’ for you. In short, a group of boosters – shoplifters who resell their stolen goods – take on a ruthless fashion icon who has made a successful career at the expense of others. Revealing any more would give too much away and nothing can prepare you for how far the film is willing to go. It’s an ambition I respect even if I didn’t necessarily like all of his decisions. It’s just a lot all at once, and I found myself wishing for a little more focus and a bit more restraint to dial in some of his larger ideas and reign it in a bit to be a slightly more effective.
One thing Riley knows really well is how to cast his movies. The lead cast (Palmer, Paige, Ackie) are giving it their all, only held back by some lackluster characterization but overcome by their organic onscreen chemistry. The real highlights are Demi Moore – who gets to let her villain flag fly and go all in being a pretentious elite – and Will Poulter who has limited screen time but reminds us all how effortlessly funny he is. While I’m not really sure why his character exists the way he does, I’m convinced that no one knows how to get the best out of LaKeith Stanfield quite like Boots Riley. He’s so good even though nothing about his inclusion in I Love Boosters makes any sense, a testament to his talent and star power when used correctly.
Weird For Weird’s Sake
I Love Boosters is a real struggle for me. It’s bold and loud and weird – all things I love and want in movies – but too unfocused and scattershot to really transform into something more meaningful. It’s a bit too wacky for my tastes, and I say that as someone who actually digs the weirder side of cinema. I Love Boosters traps itself by being weird for weird’s sake, its huge swings not always in service of the story at hand. Fantastical worldbuilding can work so long as that world makes sense unto itself. I Love Boosters just goes for broke, throwing anything and everything at wall and leaving whatever sticks to be interpreted as the movie.
But I also don’t know that I want a toned down version of I Love Boosters, either. So much of what does work is only achieved by its own absurdity and shedding any sense of self seriousness. Riley definitely has a lot to say and doesn’t really care how he says it, and I’m not inclined to completely fault someone for being so assured in their own silliness. I’m hard pressed to be down on something that hates late stage capitalism as much as I do, I just wish I Love Boosters worked a little harder to come together better. Each new element exacerbates rather than enhances, and ends up being more confusing than entertaining.
Is that really such a bad thing, though? Is it better to let these kinds of films thrive, unencumbered by the studio system and unapologetically strange? Should we really be asking Riley to tone down his own strange signature style? Especially when that style can really only be compared to himself and his previous work? I don’t have the answers. I’m left being glad something like I Love Boosters exists but in no hurry to revisit it again anytime soon.
I wanted to love I Love Boosters, but in the end I think I only like them.
Reviews