Boots Riley has been around for a long time on the music scene. He's a member of the band The Coup. They release a wide variety of music, hip-hop, funk, a little soul and much more. He's also been known to protest a little. I personally found out about him from people tweeting videos of Occupy Movement a few years ago. 2018 he did something a little different. He wrote and directed the film Sorry to Bother You starring Lakeith Stanfield and Tessa Thompson.
The film starts with us getting to know Cash Green and his girlfriend Detroit. Cash is behind on rent that he pays to live in his uncle's garage and his uncle is behind on the mortgage. Cash goes in for a job interview at a telemarketing firm and just lies all the way through. He brought fake trophies and everything. Despite being called on all his nonsense he's hired to work for RegalView. He lets Detroit know it's a good way for her to make some money if she's looking for a second job and she soon starts working there as well.
At RegalView Cash is terrible at the job. Despite that he's invited out by a coworker named Squeeze who informs Cash that they're planning to unionize. He agrees to join the movement to unionize. Meanwhile Langston teaches Cash how to use his white voice. Not Will Smith white, that's just proper but full on no care in the world white. Never been fired, only laid off white. With this new information Cash becomes an all-star on the phone.
When the unionization protest finally kicks off, Cash is all in. Then he gets called into the office expecting to be fired. Instead he's promoted to Power Caller, complete with luxury office and a special elevator. On the Power Level Mr. _____ tells Cash that they only use their white voices on that floor. This is where he learns RegalView secretly sells slave labor and military grade weapons.
Cash hates the job, but the money keeps him locked in. He pays off his uncle's house and buys a Maserati as well as a luxury apartment of his own. However he's soon spending too much time at work and ignores Detroit, forgetting to pick her up from work and missing out on her artwork. They break up after a fight over who is using too much of the bed sheets. Cash crosses the picket line that day and gets hit in the head with a can of soda.
Despite his new wound Cash is invited to party with the CEO of WoryFree Steve Lift. A party Beyonce and Jay-Z can't even get into. Cash briefly stops at Detroit's art exhibition to reconcile. However, he ruins her performance piece and is told to leave. At the party Cash is told by Steve he can drop the white voice because he wants to hear about the gritty days growing up in Oakland and if Cash ever busted a cap in someone. Cash is clearly uncomfortable with his surroundings. Steve forces Cash to rap for the crowd and he performs a song.
Later that night Cash is invited to Steve's office and snorts some cocaine. He makes a wrong turn and finds a room with three half horse, half humans screaming for death. Steve pulls a gun on him and forces him to watch an animated video revealing these are Equisapiens. They're as smart as humans but work twice as hard as horses with half the complaining. The transformation is made through a powder they snort and Cash wonders if that is what he was given. Steve promises it was cocaine. Steve offers Cash a ridiculous sum of money to become an Equisapien for five years and be their Martin Luther King. He refuses and Steve promises him the other benefit is he'll get a horse dick. That's all the plot you get for free, you'll have to buy it to get the rest.
Capitalism is a hell of a drug. Can't live with it, can't live without it. Capitalism will ruin your life if you let it. I wish I could just say no to capitalism and write all day. The problem is, that's not a viable income for me and I have bills to pay. That's where a lot of us are. Sometimes we just feel like there's not really any control in our lives because we spend all our time working or recuperating from work. There should be more unions, not just to save police that are terrible people, but for everyday workers. However that's not profitable for the people at the top so unions are rare these days. I've had a lot of jobs and only one had a union.
It's a hilarious movie, but it also forces you to think a lot. Is there a way you can escape capitalism without going to live in the woods somewhere? A union will certainly help get equal wages and fair treatment for employees. However, will it really stop capitalism from pushing employees harder and harder. Other countries are capping their work weeks at 35 hours, but here in America we're still trying to milk 40 to 60 hours from everyone. Even if you aren't thinking about capitalism you'll have a good time with this movie.
Download a free copy of Darrell's book Phantasmagorical, read some of his other work at 12AMFiction.com and hear him on the Powerbomb Jutsu Podcast
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Blerd Film Club
