September 03, 2020

WIFF’s Weekend Watch List — 09/04

SORRY TO BOTHER YOU (If you want a complete original) Vincent Georgie: The strength of this unpredictable comedy is how wild, how surprising and how…

SORRY TO BOTHER YOU

(If you want a complete original)

Vincent Georgie: The strength of this unpredictable comedy is how wild, how surprising and how smart it is. The film is a ride, enjoy.

Synopsis: In an alternate present-day version of Oakland, black telemarketer Cassius Green (Lakeith Stanfield) discovers a magical key to professional success, which propels him into a macabre universe of “powercalling” that leads to material glory. But the upswing in Cassius’ career raises serious red flags with his girlfriend Detroit (Tessa Thompson), a performance artist and minimum-wage striver who’s secretly part of a Banksy-style activist collective. As his friends and co-workers organize in protest of corporate oppression, Cassius falls under the spell of his company’s cocaine-snorting CEO Steve Lift (Armie Hammer), who offers him a salary beyond his wildest dreams.

Watch on iTunes

Watch on YouTube

CHRISTINE

(If you want a dramatic true story)

Vincent Georgie: Rebecca Miller is exceptionally good here, and the film is compelling in the way that it captures the specific mood, tension and period of Christine’s bizarre, tragic story.

Synopsis: In Sarasota, Florida, circa 1974, an ambitious, 29-year-old reporter is relentlessly motivated to succeed. She knows she has talent but being a driven career woman in the 70s comes with its own challenges, especially when competition for a promotion and a tumultuous home life lead to a dissolution of self. With ratings low, the station manager issues a mandate to deliver juicier and more exploitative stories, including a story firmly at odds with her serious brand of issue-based journalism.