Taylour Paige

Riley Keough

Colman Domingo

Nicholas Braun

Ari'el Stachel

Nelcie Souffrant

Nasir Rahim

Jason Mitchell

Ts Madison

Latasha Glenn

Kalesha Johnson

Natalie Mimms

Shadae Mitchell

Oleika Redd

Tommy Foxhill

Ben Bladon

Tony DeMil

Ernest Emmanuel Peeples

Joseph Sanders

Brett Chesebro

Carl Collanus

Jay Dersahagian

Rusty Dumhoff

Mark Fiedler

Alex Flash

Matt Harding

Richard Lariviere

Bob Lawton

Ernest Lee Wilson, Jr.

Josh Locy

Pedro Armando Medina

Thomas Nash

Bill Pierce

Michael Worden

Kyle Williams

Andrew Romano

Sophie Hall

Angelo Diaz

Rico Paris

Michael Aceveda

Anibal Echevarria Bonet

Max Guevara

Harold Hernandez

David Rodriguez

Bernard Lyght

Michael Opal

Eric Salas

Doug Walker

Jarquale Stewart

Drew Rin Varick

Megan Hayes

Rose Bladh

Leslie Bloome

Kristin Catuogno

Ryan Collison

Mark DeSimone

Joanna Fang

Jon Flores

Josh Gold

Laura Heinzinger

Diana Sagristá

Nick Seaman

Fernanda Starling

Ricky R. Weaver

Eric Scott Williamson

Mary Florence Brown

Natalie Montoya

John Rusnak

Chris Scharffenberg

Kurt Thoresen

Alexandra Tibbe

Lisa Daly

Dulany Foster IV

Zach Hamelton

Lauren Hulsey

Andrew Lim

Alex Noble

Jason Sanford

Mildred Brignoni

Lydia H. Parker

Rachel Pollen

Candace Rice

Catharine Stuart

Nicole Suerez

Will Hammargren

Devin Kina

Sherrill Smith

Mandi Collier

Jen Malone

Bridget Samuels

Jahn Sood

Jay Palomino

Michael Kefeyalew

Tony Armer

Israel Vasquez

Shahrzad Davani

Jennifer Konawal

David Kushner

Hannah Berke

Rashida Bolden

T.A. Henderson

Naomi Raddatz

Alex Sherman

Devin Myer

Brandon Nelson

Stéphane Renard

Leslie Shatz

Tim LeDoux

Osvaldo Silvera Jr.

Mark Sean Haynes

Chris Hill

Allison Rose Carter

Jon Read

Theresa Frankel

Billy Wells

Douglas W. Johnson

Anna Kooris

Ryan Maharaj

Kristin Wollett

Aris Mendoza

Stephen I. Erdberg

Cornelius Blaga

Michael P. DeVries

Rick Pilcher

Mike L. Germaine

Abby Bailey

Joe Fragassi

Donny Smith

Daniel Morfesis

Emily Nine

Damien van der Cruyssen

Ross Ostrom

Mike McGowan

David Garrett

Janicza Bravo

David Hinojosa

Vince Jolivette

Christine Vachon

Gia Walsh

Kara Baker

Kim Taylor-Coleman

Ari Wegner

Joi McMillon

Katie Byron

Ruston Head

Derica Cole Washington

Comedy

Crime

Zola

Killer Films

Ramona Films

Gigi Films

United States of America

Louisa Moore - Screen Zealots

“You wanna hear a story about why me and this b--ch here fell out? It’s kind of long but full of suspense.”

On paper (or on an iPhone screen), “Zola” sounds like one of the worst ever ideas for a feature-length film. Based on a real-life Twitter thread between a Hooters waitress and a stripper, this stranger than fiction story played out over social media in 2015 — and damn if it doesn’t make for a wildly original, outrageously entertaining movie.

Zola (Taylour Paige) meets Stefani (Riley Keough) at a restaurant in Detroit, where the two begin chatting about their common interest: pole dancing. Soon after they meet, Stefani invites Zola on a cross-country road trip to Tampa, where they hope to make thousands of dollars dancing in the swanky Florida strip clubs. What starts out as a promising business venture turns into an absolutely crazy (and dangerous) outing with violent pimps, prostitution, attempted suicide, and murder. You have to see it to believe it. It’s crazy.

The story is (mostly) true, and writer – director Janicza Bravo focuses on Zola’s side of the story (although Stefani has a chance to present her version in one of the most hilarious bits in the film). You could say it’s all about individual perspective, but Zola is presented as the lone truth teller. Will we ever know the full truth? It’s unlikely.

The performances are as sensational as the story, with challenging and risky roles for all of the actors involved. Paige and Keough (in what was my favorite performance at Sundance this year) are particularly fearless as they go all-in on Zola and Stefani, Nicholas Braun is sympathetic as a kind, long-suffering boyfriend, and Colman Domingo is downright frightening as an intimidating, violent pimp. The cast takes the script and runs wild with it, and it works.

Bravo has achieved something incredible here, as she literally takes tweets and has crafted them into a saucy screenplay. The film has an appealing eccentricity to it, and it’s directed with a tongue-in-cheek style that fits the material like a glove. Her attention to detail is stellar, and the look of the film is perfectly matched to its source material.

“Zola” has a few missteps and feels overly long, but the confidence from Bravo and her cast makes the majority of its flaws disappear. It manages to stay funny, even when things get very, very dark. This is one of those wacky movies that is sure to be talked about, if only for the sheer insanity of the story.

Full review: <a>https://www.tinakakadelis.com/beyond-the-cinerama-dome/2021/12/28/american-nightmare-zola-review<a>

Janicza Bravo’s long-awaited star of Sundance, _@zola_, could not feel more timely, despite the year-long delay. Adapted from the viral Twitter thread of 2015 by Aziah “Zola” King, @zola tells the story of a trip to Tampa gone horribly wrong. After a chance meeting in a Detroit restaurant, Zola (an impeccable Taylour Paige) agrees to accompany Stefani (Riley Keough), Stefani’s roommate X (Colman Domingo), and Stefani’s boyfriend (Nicolas Braun) on a trip to Tampa to earn money by dancing in strip clubs. Stefani has done this before and assures Zola that she can make really good money. What follows is a nightmare of Floridian proportions.

Different, but I actually liked it.

<em>'Zola'</em> takes a few scenes to get into it and to get used to the stylistic choices, namely with the editing and dialogue, though by the end I did in fact enjoy this film. It's a bonkers story, one that I semi heard about when it became known that a film was going to be made based on a thread of tweets.

It's probably much better than it was any right to be in truth, all things considered, but the filmmakers made it work and deserve credit for that - and also for the astutely chosen short run time, too.

The acting talent bring noteworthy performances, with particularly Taylour Paige and also Riley Keough putting in the work. Colman Domingo is also good - I already like that guy from TV's <em>'<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fear_the_Walking_Dead" rel="nofollow">Fear the Walking Dead</a>'</em>, so it's always a pleasure to see him act elsewhere.

Recommended.