Title: Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die
MPAA Rating: R
Director: Gore Verbinski
Starring: Sam Rockwell, Juno Temple, Zazi Beetz
Runtime: 2 hrs 14 mins

What It Is: A man bursts into a diner claiming to be from the future (Sam Rockwell). What follows is a bizarre fever dream of a near future dystopian nightmare where AI is allowed to run loose. Through nonlinear storytelling and vignettes, we see a world actively destroyed by a monster humans created. Only a ragtag, unlikely group of humans can stop this fate, but can they defeat a possibly omnipotent enemy?

What We Think: Dear god, I was the audience for the movie. Admittedly, I didn’t think much of this one when I saw the trailer, but I was happily proven wrong. It was utterly beautiful and straight up my alley. It’s been awhile since I’ve reviewed a movie, and this was a perfect one to get my toes wet before Sundance.

First off, let’s talk about the creativity. Every segment of this movie felt wholly original and felt like a fresh take on our overwhelming nightmares of AI. And every bit of this movie had a surrealist edge I could really bite into. From teenage zombies and clones, to an addictive virtual reality headset, to killers wearing pig masks, a woman wearing exclusively princess outfits the entire movie, and an eldritch cat monster that looks like something AI could come up with brought to life. The film has this way of approaching nightmare scenarios with the slightest hint of a smirk that keeps the topics it addresses from getting too dark.

Sam Rockwell, along with his supporting cast deliver a hell of a performance. Sam Rockwell’s comedic swagger makes some of the wildest, most unhinged lines of the film sound sane. Everyone in this movie is great, but he really is the secret sauce that brings it all together and makes it work. Simultaneously cold yet heart warming, his nuanced performance of what can easily be treated as just a goofy character was truly a treat to watch.

I have almost nothing but good things to say about this movie. This is commentary and satire at its finest. The movie is weird in an adorable way yet doesn’t shy away from the looming threat of technology. Unless you’ve been living under a rock the past few years or are a godawful tech bro (“AI creatives” what a joke) you at least are probably somewhat aware of the looming threat that AI presents. Not just to artists, but humanity and the world. With billionaires and film studios fully backing the monstrosity of AI, the future is very scary and I for one am glad to see a film that addresses what that looks like in a modern sense. In an odd way, for as surrealist as it was, this movie almost did seem like a plausible future. We need more media like this that directly addresses the horrors of AI and fights against it.

Did I mention that this movie was also really fucking funny? The writing was *chefs kiss*

Our Grade: A, I have almost nothing but good things to say about this movie. This is commentary and satire at its finest. The movie is weird in an adorable way yet doesn’t shy away from the looming threat of technology. Unless you’ve been living under a rock the past few years or are a godawful tech bro (“AI creatives” what a joke) you at least are probably somewhat aware of the looming threat that AI presents. Not just to artists, but humanity and the world. With billionaires and film studios fully backing the monstrosity of AI, the future is very scary and I for one am glad to see a film that addresses what that looks like in a modern sense. In an odd way, for as surrealist as it was, this movie almost did seem like a plausible future. We need more media like this that directly addresses the horrors of AI and fights against it.

Did I mention that this movie was also really fucking funny? The writing was *chefs kiss*

Go see it. You have no choice. I’m watching you.