Bodies Bodies Bodies - Movie Review

Critics Score - 8 of 10

General Audience Score - 9 of 10

Cinephiles readily recognize the studio name A24, but general audiences may not be as aware of this newer film studio, like if you were to say, “the new A24 film”, many would say “what’s that?”. Well, A24 is a movie studio and distributor that has become a mainstay in the world of art house, eclectic and foreign movies and has generally solid filmmaking standards. While they love the horror film genre over there at A24, I haven’t seen them handle many films specifically like their new movie, Bodies Bodies Bodies. It’s more of a Knives Out type of film, a stylish who-dun-it that skews heavily towards a Gen-Z demographic with it’s brilliant cast of younger actors and actresses. Despite it’s appeal to youth, in much the same way Knives Out delivered a combination of suspense and laughs, Bodies Bodies Bodies leaves a trail of murder, mystery and hilarity in it’s wake that will leave audiences of all kinds raving. At a tight hour and a half runtime, not much is wasted here, the pacing is quick and the film has a kinetic energy that will pull you into it, even if you’re not the biggest fan of the actors or on it’s wavelength for humor. The next time you want a big screen thrill ride that’s not on a mediocre bullet train, say it with me three times now, Bodies Bodies Bodies!

SUMMARY - This almost horror film jumps right into the actions with two young ladies, Sophie (Amandla Stenberg) and Bee (Maria Bakalova) making out. This is no quick shot, the camera lingers on the girls for about thirty seconds, the shot is cropped intentionally so we only see their heads, well, head, lips, tongue, etc. Right when Sophie starts groping Bee, Bee laughs and takes off, the scene cuts to the two young lovers laying in the grass and talking. If there were any questions about the filmmakers stance on LGBTQ issues, those were immediately put to rest. They make an interesting pair to be sure, Sophie is a light skinned black girl dressed like a rapper whereas Bee dresses more plainly and has the look and accent of an Eastern European. They’re heading to a huge home way out in the country owned by the parents of David (Pete Davidson), but when they arrive they find a pool party already in session. We get some underwater shots of David and his girlfriend Emma (Chase Sui Wonders), Alice (Rachel Sennott) and her much older Tinder boyfriend Greg (Lee Pace) and the all by herself Jordan (Myha’la Herrold). This cast is terrific, they play so well off each other and they genuinely look like they’re having a blast doing it. That spirit is contagious, it’s hard to not laugh at all these jokers and their silly shenanigans. It took me most of the first act to tap into the humor they were going for, but after I did, it was to much fun to ignore.

Once all the players are assembled, this game of Clue - Instagram star edition commences, they come in from their pool party as a hurricane begins to blow and Pete Davidson yells at the storm, “Is that all you got motherfu$#er?!”. It might be a little cliché to have an in-home slasher style film take place during a thunderstorm, but the constant rain pattering on windows, winds howling outside and thunder rumbling adds an extra layer of edge to the overall nervous tension the film embraces. Upon getting inside, they dance, drink and do some drugs, but not before the screenplay injects some melodrama into a few of these relationships, mainly just so we start guessing as to who is pissed with whoever else enough to take them out. That’s when they play the first round of Bodies Bodies Bodies, a game where they all get cards, one of the cards has a X, the lights go out and the X person must pretend kill another and then everyone has to vote to try and find the killer. I also took a couple issues with the screenplay, although as with any film where people are getting murdered, there were some things the characters did that make little to no sense. But other than a couple minor issues, I found the screenplay incredibly smart and funny. Once the bodies actually start hitting the floor, the real fun begins, so hang on tight, this is gonna be one hell of a wild ride.

Although it was light on jump scares, it was heavy on thrills. Even though the film stays mainly inside the house for a vast majority of the movie, it is very cinematic, especially during some of the sequences after the lights go out. There is an amazing shot of a girl with a light on her head walking out into a hallway, turning to look towards the camera, we can’t see her, we only see the light, then she leaves. It left me stunned, the use of lights and lighting was otherworldly. They use phone camera lights for some sequences, walking through the house with them reminded me of I Am Legend when Will Smith goes into the building after his dog, it’s was actually pretty creepy and kept the tension high. There were also some great neon glow stick necklaces that Rachel Sennott wears, they really added some cool light effects in the blackness that the film thrives in. And her character’s rant about podcasts was everything. The film’s original score by Disasterpeace also utilizes some edgy techno music, chimes and beats to unnerve us, it reminded me a little of Contagion, it combined so well with the lighting and other elements to create a fantastic creepy tone. Like I mentioned, Bodies flies by, it’s incredibly well paced, the editing is tight and helps sustain the cruise control speed that’s set at a breakneck pace. And while I found the movie truly hilarious, I’ve said it before, humor being subjective, it honestly took me through the first act to get on the film’s comedy wavelength, but if you manage to get on board, it’ll have you rolling on the floor.

SUMMARY - This film taps into the fun, big screen, cinematic experience that people have missed and are finally getting to enjoy again. General audience Bodies and critical Bodies alike will rave over these spooky, hilarious and wildly entertaining Bodies Bodies and more Bodies.